God,
and their dread of official displeasure and possible penalty did not
deter them from friendly demonstrations.

Jesus resumed His teaching by relating the _Parable of the Royal
Marriage Feast_.

"And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said, The
kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for
his son, And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to
the wedding: and they would not come. Again, he sent forth other
servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my
dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready:
come unto the marriage. But they made light of it, and went their ways,
one to his farm, another to his merchandise: And the remnant took his
servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them. But when the
king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and
destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. Then saith he to
his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not
worthy. Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find,
bid to the marriage. So those servants went out into the highways, and
gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the
wedding was furnished with guests."[1099]

The invitation of a king to his subjects is equivalent to a command. The
marriage feast was no surprize event, for the selected guests had been
bidden long aforetime; and, in accordance with oriental custom were
notified again on the opening day of the festivities,[1100] which,
according to Hebrew customs, would be understood as extending over a
period of seven or fourteen days; in this case of a marriage in the
royal family the greater duration would be assumed. Many of the bidden
guests refused to come when formally summoned; and of the tolerant
king's later and more pressing message they made light and went their
ways, while the most wicked turned upon the servants who brought the
royal summons, mistreated them cruelly, and some of them they killed. It
is plainly evident that the refusal to attend the king's feast was a
deliberate rebellion against the royal authority and a personal
indignity against both the reigning sovereign and his son. It was as
much a duty as an honor for loyal subjects to attend the marriage
festival of the prince, whom we cannot err in regarding as the lawful
heir to the throne, and therefore the one who might s