^14:16But Jesus⁵⁰ said to him, “A man once gave a great banquet⁵¹ and invited⁵² many guests.⁵³^14:17At⁵⁴ the time for the banquet⁵⁵ he sent his slave⁵⁶ to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, because everything is now ready.’ ^14:18But one after another they all⁵⁷ began to make excuses.⁵⁸ The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field,⁵⁹ and I must go out and see it. Please excuse me.’⁶⁰^14:19Another⁶¹ said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen,⁶² and I am going out⁶³ to examine them. Please excuse me.’ ^14:20Another⁶⁴ said, ‘I just got married, and I cannot come.’⁶⁵^14:21So⁶⁶ the slave came back and reported this to his master. Then the master of the household was furious⁶⁷ and said to his slave, ‘Go out quickly⁶⁸ to the streets and alleys of the city,⁶⁹ and bring in the poor,⁷⁰ the crippled,⁷¹ the blind, and the lame.’ ^14:22Then⁷² the slave said, ‘Sir, what you instructed has been done, and there is still room.’⁷³^14:23So⁷⁴ the master said to his⁷⁵ slave, ‘Go out to the highways⁷⁶ and country roads⁷⁷ and urge⁷⁸ people⁷⁹ to come in, so that my house will be filled.⁸⁰

Read in Logos

Footnotes

50 Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
51 Or “dinner.”
52 Presumably those invited would have sent a reply with the invitation stating their desire to attend, much like a modern R.S.V.P. Then they waited for the servant to announce the beginning of the celebration (D. L. Bock, Luke [], 2:).
53 The word “guests” is not in the Greek text but is implied.
54 Grk “And at.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
55 Or “dinner.”
56 See the note on the word “slave” in .
57 Or “all unanimously” ( ἀπό 6). “One after another” is suggested by L&N 61.2.
58 To make excuses and cancel at this point was an insult in the culture of the time. Regardless of customs concerning responses to invitations, refusal at this point was rude.
59 I have bought a field. An examination of newly bought land was a common practice. It was this person’s priority.
60 The expression Please excuse me is probably a polite way of refusing, given the dynamics of the situation, although it is important to note that an initial acceptance had probably been indicated and it was now a bit late for a refusal. The semantic equivalent of the phrase may well be “please accept my apologies.”
61 Grk “And another.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
62 Five yoke of oxen. This was a wealthy man, because the normal farmer had one or two yoke of oxen.
63 The translation “going out” for πορεύομαι (poreuomai) is used because “going” in this context could be understood to mean “I am about to” rather than the correct nuance, “I am on my way to.”
64 Grk “And another.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
65 I just got married, and I cannot come. There is no request to be excused here; just a refusal. Why this disqualifies attendance is not clear. The OT freed a newly married man from certain responsibilities such as serving in the army (Deut 20:7; 24:5), but that would hardly apply to a banquet. The invitation is not respected in any of the three cases.
66 Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the result of the preceding responses.
67 Grk “being furious, said.” The participle ὀργισθείς (orgistheis) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
68 It was necessary to go out quickly because the banquet was already prepared. All the food would spoil if not eaten immediately.
69 Or “town.”
70 The poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame. Note how the list matches v. 13, illustrating that point. Note also how the party goes on; it is not postponed until a later date. Instead new guests are invited.
71 Grk “and the crippled.” Normally crippled as a result of being maimed or mutilated (L&N 23.177). καί (kai) has not been translated here and before the following category (Grk “and the blind and the lame”) since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.
72 Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the order of events within the parable.
73 And still there is room. This comment suggests the celebration was quite a big one, picturing the openness of God’s grace.
74 Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the master’s response to the slave’s report.
75 Grk “the”; in context the article is used as a possessive pronoun ( ).
76 Go out to the highways and country roads. This suggests the inclusion of people outside the town, even beyond the needy (poor, crippled, blind, and lame) in the town, and so is an allusion to the inclusion of the Gentiles.
77 The Greek word φραγμός (phragmos) refers to a fence, wall, or hedge surrounding a vineyard ( 1). “Highways” and “country roads” probably refer not to separate places, but to the situation outside the town where the rural roads run right alongside the hedges or fences surrounding the fields (cf. J. A. Fitzmyer, Luke [], 1057).
78 Traditionally “force” or “compel,” but according to ἀναγκάζω 2 this is a weakened nuance: “strongly urge/invite.” The meaning in this context is more like “persuade.”
79 The word “people” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context.
80 So that my house will be filled. God will bless many people.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

But he said to him, “A man once gave a great banquet and invited many. And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please have me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them. Please have me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’ So the servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’ And the servant said, ‘Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’

“But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’

“Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’

“Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’

“The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’

“ ‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’

“Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Then he told him, “A man was giving a large banquet and invited many. At the time of the banquet, he sent his servant to tell those who were invited, ‘Come, because everything is now ready.’

“But without exception they all began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. I ask you to excuse me.’

“Another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m going to try them out. I ask you to excuse me.’

“And another said, ‘I just got married, and therefore I’m unable to come.’

“So the servant came back and reported these things to his master. Then in anger, the master of the house told his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the city, and bring in here the poor, maimed, blind, and lame.’

“ ‘Master,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, and there’s still room.’

“Then the master told the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges and make them come in, so that my house may be filled.

NLTNew Living Translation

Jesus replied with this story: “A man prepared a great feast and sent out many invitations. When the banquet was ready, he sent his servant to tell the guests, ‘Come, the banquet is ready.’ But they all began making excuses. One said, ‘I have just bought a field and must inspect it. Please excuse me.’ Another said, ‘I have just bought five pairs of oxen, and I want to try them out. Please excuse me.’ Another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’

“The servant returned and told his master what they had said. His master was furious and said, ‘Go quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and invite the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’ After the servant had done this, he reported, ‘There is still room for more.’ So his master said, ‘Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

But he said to him, “A certain man was giving a large banquet and invited many. And he sent his slave at the hour of the banquet to say to those who have been invited, ‘Come, because now it is ready!’ And they all alike began to excuse themselves. The first said to him, ‘I have purchased a field, and I must go out to look at it. I ask you, consider me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have purchased five yoke of oxen, and I am going to examine them. I ask you, consider me excused.’ And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and for this reason I am not able to come.’ And the slave came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his slave, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the city and bring in here the poor and crippled and blind and lame!’ And the slave said, ‘Sir, what you ordered has been done, and there is still room.’ And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges and press them to come in, so that my house will be filled!

KJV 1900King James Version

Then said he unto him, A certain man made a great supper, and bade many: And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready. And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come. So that servant came, and shewed his lord these things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind. And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room. And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.

Public Domain