Matthew 22:6

Mat 22:6. And the remnant — Or the rest of them, who did not go to farms or merchandise, who were neither husbandmen nor tradesmen, but ecclesiastics; namely, the scribes and Pharisees, and chief priests; took [Gr. κρατησαντες, laying hold on] his servants, entreated them spitefully [or rather, shamefully,] and slew them — If it be objected that these circumstances of the parable are improbable, as it was never known in the world that subjects refused the invitation of their sovereign to the marriage of his son; and much less that any persons were ever so rude and barbarous as to treat with ignominy and slay the servants of a king, or of any superior, who came to invite them to a feast, it must be observed that, allowing this to be so, it only places the crime of the Jews in a more aggravated point of view, with respect to whom all this was literally true. They whose feet should have been beautiful, because they brought glad tidings of peace and salvation, were treated as the offscouring of all things, 1Co 4:13. The prophets, and John the Baptist, had been thus abused already, and the apostles and other ministers of Christ were to lay their account with being treated in the same manner. The Jews were, either directly or indirectly, agents in most of the persecutions of the first preachers of the gospel: witness the history of the Acts, and the Epistles of the apostles.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Mat 22:6. Οἱ δὲ λοιποὶ, and the remnant) Who did not wish to appear to have made light of it.[954]—ὕβρισαν, treated them with insult and injury) see 2Ch 30:10; 1Ti 1:13; Heb 10:29.

[954] And who did not attend either to farming or merchandise. To wit, those who have less of hinderances in their way not rarely sin the more grievously for that very reason, when they thrust themselves into sacred things, by their perverse mode of behaving with respect to them.—V. g.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Mat 22:6 . λοιποὶ , the rest, as if οἱ ἀμελήσαντες were only a part, the greater part, of the invited, while the expression by itself naturally covers the whole. Weiss finds in λοιποὶ a trace of patching: the parable originally referred to the people of Israel as a whole, but Mt. introduced a reference to the Sanhedrists and here has them specially in view as the λοιποὶ . Koetsveld remarks on the improbability of the story at this point: men at a distance rulers of provinces could not be invited in the morning with the expectation of their being present at the palace by mid-day. So far this makes for the hypothesis of remodelling by a second hand. But even in Christ’s acknowledged parables improbabilities are sometimes introduced to meet the requirements of the case; e.g. , in Lk.’s version of the parable all refuse. κρατήσαντες … ὕβ . καὶ ἀπέκτειναν : acts of open rebellion inevitably leading to war. This feature, according to Weiss, lies outside the picture. Not so, if the marriage feast was to be the occasion for recognising the son as heir. Then refusal to come meant withholding homage, rebellion in the bud, and acts of violence were but the next step.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully--insulted them.

and slew them--These are two different classes of unbelievers: the one simply indifferent; the other absolutely hostile--the one, contemptuous scorners; the other, bitter persecutors.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

(6) Entreated them spitefully.—The Greek word implies the wanton infliction of outrage. The parable at this stage looks forward as well as backward, and seems to include the sufferings of Christian preachers and martyrs as well as those of the prophets who were sent to Israel.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And the remnant took his servants,.... They that went to their several worldly callings and occupations of life, troubled themselves no further about the Messiah, his doctrines and ordinances; but others of them were more spiteful and injurious: they not only slighted the message, and took no notice of the invitation, but also abused the messengers; some of the servants they laid hold upon, and put them in the common prison, and detained them there a while; as they did the apostles quickly after our Lord's ascension, particularly Peter and John:

and entreated them spitefully; gave them very hard words, and reproachful language; menacing and threatening them what they would do to them, if they did not forbear preaching in the name of Jesus; though they were not intimidated hereby, but rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer shame on such an account; and even their malice and wickedness proceeded so far, as to take away the lives of some of them:

and slew them: thus they stoned Stephen to death, the first martyr for Christ; and killed James, the brother of John, with the sword; which last, though he was put to death by Herod, yet with the consent and approval of the Jews.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

6 And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them.

Ver. 6. Entreated them spitefully and slew them] This is that sin which brings ruin without remedy, 2Ch 36:16. Josiah’s humiliation could not expiate Manasseh’s bloodshed. Our Popish prelates in less than four years sacrificed the lives of eight hundred innocents to their idols here in Queen Mary’s days. That precious blood doth yet cry to heaven for vengeance against us. And it was a pious motion that one made in a sermon to this present parliament, that there might be a day of public humiliation, purposely set apart, and solemnly kept throughout the kingdom, for the innocent bloodshed here in those Marian days of most abhorred memory.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And the remnant ... - That is, a part made light of it; treated it with silent contempt, and coolly went about their business. The others were not satisfied with that, but showed positive malignity. Some sinners seem to be well satisfied by merely neglecting religion; others proceed against it with open violence and bitter malice.

Entreated them spitefully - Used harsh and opprobrious words. Reviled and abused them. This was done because they hated and despised the king. So sinners often abuse and calumniate ministers of religion because they themselves hate God, and can in no way else show their hatred so well.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Put them to death. Thus the Jews had many times treated the prophets. (Witham) --- These were by far the most impious and the most ungrateful; tenuerunt Servos ejus, as is related in the Acts, with regard to the death of James, and Stephen, and Paul. (Menochius)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

6. Remnant — The persecutors are the comparative few and more violent. Strauss objects that it is unnatural to represent men as murdering those who merely come to invite them to a marriage. But he forgets that this is a king’s invitation; and the persons are in a state of rebellious hostility to their sovereign, and simply avail themselves of this chance of showing their hostility to him. They are therefore guilty of treason. Similar was the offence of Vashti in refusing to obey the invitation of the king. Est_1:12. And this is a significant picture of the madness of man’s rebellion against the mercy of God.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The remnant. These form the second class of recalcitrant guests. They are actively hostile to the King and his messengers, rejecting them not merely for worldly or interested motives, but from intense hatred to the doctrines which they taught. Such were the scribes and Pharisees, who could not endure to see the Law superseded, and the Gentiles raised to their level; such were the Sadducees, who scoffed at a faith founded on the resurrection, and refused credit to the miraculous with which the gospel was interwoven. Took his servants. The narratives in the Acts give many instances of the seizure and imprisonment of apostles and believers. (see Act_4:3 Act_9:2 Act_12:4, etc.) Entreated (treated) them spitefully. (see Act_5:40 Act_14:19 Act_16:23, etc.; 2Co_11:23-25) Slew them; e.g. Stephen, (Act_7:58) James. (Act_12:2) All but one of the apostles died violent deaths at the hands of those who rejected the gospel; and there must have been numbers of martyrs of whom history has preserved no record, though their names are written in heaven, which is far better.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

6. And the remnant took his servants and … slew them. The indifference of the previous class was proof of disloyalty, but the second class resort to open rebellion. This was fulfilled in the persecutions of the apostles and early church stirred by the Jews. See Acts 4:3; 5:18, 40; 7:58; 8:3; 12:3; 14:5, 19; 16:23; 17:5; 21:30; 23:2; also the Epistles here and there.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

6.] Two classes are here represented: the irreligious and careless people (notice τὸν ἴδιον ἀγρόν, bringing out the selfish spirit), and the rulers, who persecuted and slew God’s messengers. Stephen,—James the brother of John, James the Just, and doubtless other of the Apostles of whose end we have no certain account, perished by the hands or instigation of the Jews: they persecuted Paul all through his life, and most probably brought him to his death at last: and the guilt of the death of the Lord abode upon them (ch. 27:25). They repeatedly insulted and scourged the Apostles (see Act 4:3; Act 5:18, Act 5:40).

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

6, 7. These verses may be due to the editor writing in remembrance of the death of the Baptist, the Crucifixion of the Messiah, the persecution of the Apostles, and the destruction of Jerusalem. v. 8 follows well upon v. 5. οὐκ ἦσαν ἄξιοι suits the indifferent guests of v. 5 much better than the executed murderers of v. 7. The verse expresses the editor’s belief in the connection between the fall of Jerusalem and the Parousia. The marriage feast here follows the burning of the city.

(L)

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.