“The kingdom of heaven,” said Jesus, “is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his servants to those who’d been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.
“Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who’ve been invited that I’ve prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything’s ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’
“But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.
“Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet’s ready, but those I invited didn’t deserve to come. So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.
“But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who wasn’t wearing wedding clothes. He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?’ The man was speechless.
“Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there’ll be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
“For many are invited, but few are chosen.”
Matthew
Love Never Dies 