THE BANQUET OF GOD
THE WEDDING SUPPER OF THE LAMB
© Hubert Krause  
The Church of God in Williamstown
WEB SITE: http://www.alphalink.com.au/~sanhub/index_.htm

INTRODUCTION
Israel as the Bride of Yahweh is a prophetic theme throughout the Bible. Israel of old, put away by Christ for her repeated adulteries, will be restored, through the Church, as His wife. The Scriptures, employing some of the most beautiful imagery, attest to this. For instance, the prophet Hosea shows us how, after God's judgment of His people in the "wilderness" (v 14), Christ will indeed marry His Church:

Isaiah similarly paints the picture: And the imagery is carried over into the New Testament: Those whom God has called to His Kingdom as a part of the Bride of Jesus Christ are also summoned to the great wedding banquet, or supper, which is to follow. Much confusion exists over this royal banquet. When is it? Where is it? Who is in attendance? What should it mean to us? These are some of the questions I would like to address and attempt to answer in this message. A look at some of the ancient Jewish wedding practices and at the nature of feasting at the time of Christ sheds additional insight into this special event prepared for the saints of God.

THE WEDDING SUPPER ANNOUNCEMENT
In the vision just prior to the return of Jesus Christ (Rev 19:11-16), John sees and hears:

Yes, the Bride is indeed ready, and the marriage can proceed, as it does for all the elect saints, at the return of Jesus Christ. The wedding gown of the Bride is a gift—she is "given" the white bridal dress of holiness, which is here defined as godly character developed through holy lives and good works. In this way, she is sanctified by Jesus Christ: Then, back in Revelation, another announcement is made: Yet we find here no description of either the wedding—which of course, for the resurrected saints, will take place at the return of Christ—nor of the wedding supper. So when is the wedding reception, and just who are the "blessed" who are called to share in this final Marriage Supper? Who is it who is to be married to Jesus Christ, to finally make up the Bride of the Son of God?

As has been mentioned, the Greek word gamos, the noun used in Rev 19:7 and rendered as "marriage", can also mean "wedding feast", the feast of the marriage; it is so used in Jn 2:1-11: in verses 1-2, gamos is rendered as "marriage", yet the description is of the actual wedding feast in Cana. This ambiguity in the meaning of the Greek is important in establishing the time of the Wedding Supper of the Lamb, and we will consider this shortly. However, let us first examine some of the references and allusions to this great event scattered throughout the Scriptures, along with some of the symbolism attached to it, and in so doing build up a picture of what we can expect at this glorious celebration.

IMAGES OF THE BANQUET TABLE OF GOD
The imagery of a royal banquet in the presence of Christ is presented to us by David in Psalm 23:

David is pictured seated at Christ's table, at Christ's feast, enemies symbolically present, to attest to his triumphant presence at this banquet, to celebrate a victory they are powerless to prevent and in which they are shown what they have forfeited. It is a picture also for us, who are called to eat and drink at the victory banquet of God. Throughout David's life God had many times delivered him, succored him, as if providing a "meal" in the very presence of his enemies, and despite them. There is also to be a complete and final fulfillment for him—and for us!

Christ give us a similar portrayal of the triumph of the saints and the exclusion of the enemies of God:

Yet will these reprobates actually see the Kingdom of God?

Let us consider the meaning attached to the anointing of the head. Christ, having had His feet anointed with expensive perfume (Lk 7:37-38), used the occasion to teach a lesson, in which He mentioned this custom of anointing the head:

Anointing with common oil, carried out by the host, and usually to the head, was reserved for only the most special of guests at occasions like this. The allusion is to the anointing of the head as at a festival, denoting prosperity, joy, and God's blessing.

Let us also explore a little further this imagery of eating and drinking in the Kingdom of God. Notice what Christ told His disciples during the 'Last Supper' ceremony:

What are the implications of these words of Christ? The cup from which all the disciples drank, one of several cups of wine drunk, and perhaps the final, was the cup that symbolically sealed the so-called "New" Covenant in Christ's blood, just as the sacrificial blood of the Lamb had ratified the Covenant with Israel of old (Ex 24:8). It is also the cup of forgiveness and of the believer's fellowship with the Son of God. Is it unreasonable to consider the wine of "this cup", symbolising this Covenant, to be the wine—the symbolic wine—that Christ promised He would drink no more until He drank it with His disciples, again anticipating the Messianic banquet of the new age when what was foreshadowed by this cup would be fulfilled? And if this is indeed the case, even as this cup is the cup of the Covenant, could not the future feast, the Supper of the Lamb, then also very much be the meal of the Covenant? Furthermore—if this is indeed the case—with whom else will Christ drink of this cup?

Who shares in this cup now? Is it not all who are Christ's, who have come to Him in this age, who are commanded to "eat" of His Body and to "drink" of His blood, as set down in the commemoration of His death at the "Lord's Supper"? So who do we suppose will similarly partake of this particular cup, again no doubt one of many cups drunk, during the marriage banquet of the Lamb? Should it not likewise be shared by all the glorified saints attendant at this awesome feast which pictures the ultimate fulfillment of the Covenant of God with His people?

Keeping in mind this question, let's continue to explore the imagery, this time of serving at the Lord's table.

SERVING AT THE BANQUET
The symbolism of the Lord's "table" was further addressed by Christ as He taught His disciples the all-important lesson of service:

To be sure, the picture is one of sharing in the rulership of the Son of God. But is it not more than this? Among the ancients, supper was the principal social meal. To eat together, to break bread together, has always been a portrayal of the closest intimacy and friendship.

Continuing with the theme of service, Christ, the Servant of servants, urges all His servants—all of us—to be ready to serve:

These ancients wore a long flowing robe as the outer garment (Mt 5:40) which had to be tied back, or "girded" by a sash or girdle when they worked, walked or ran. To "gird up the loins" meant to be active, diligent, prepared for action, for service. We are to be this way spiritually, and Christ has promised us that He is likewise prepared to literally serve us at the Wedding Banquet in His Kingdom.
Servants who waited at the table were so girded, and it appears to have been the custom of the day for the bridegroom, at the wedding supper, to wait as a servant upon the company. So also will Christ, the true Servant of servants, wait upon as at the wonderful wedding supper of God. He will place us at His table and feast us. What an honour!

SEATING AT THE BANQUET
The Jewish custom—and the Roman, for that matter—at a feast was not to eat sitting, but rather to recline on couches. Three raised tables were arranged in the form of a square, with a clear space in the midst, and one end quite open. Around these tables were placed cushions large enough to accommodate three or more guests, who ate while reclining on couches, supporting their heads with their left hands and eating from a common bowl with their right. On these the guests reclined, leaning on their left side, supporting their heads with their left hands, and eating with their right. Their feet were extended from the table, so that the head of one naturally reclined on the bosom of another. Hence to lie "in the bosom" of another (as in Jn 13:23; Lk 16:22-23) was a description of intimacy, such as the apostle John shared, without contest, it would seem.

We might ask, Will we be seated in any particular order, or will all the seating be random? Does God ever plan or do anything randomly?

It will the greatest honour and blessing to sit with these and other distinguished saints at the royal banquet. Do we joyously anticipate this occasion?

Luke adds to the words of Christ, in an allusion to places at the banquet:

In referring to these "first" and "last", "lowest" and "highest" places, the primary application is of course a spiritual one). Yet the chief seat, or the "uppermost" one, was the middle couch at the upper end of the table. This the Pharisees loved, as a post of honour or distinction. For the saints, of course, the lesson in this discussion of the seating order is again one of the importance of service, yet it also adds to our vision of the final great Banquet: To be sure, we will indeed all be honoured guests at this great banquet of God, yet is the seating order an order of merit, we may ask?

INVITEES TO THE BANQUET
So who is invited and who will be in attendance at the wedding banquet of God? The parables of Christ dealing with the Great Banquet afford us some pointers. In Luke's account, this parable is evoked by the comments of one of the guests:

Christ then responds: In Matthew's account of the parable of the wedding feast (Mt 22:1-14), it is the king who sends invitations to a 'marriage feast for his son'. It is, after all, a royal banquet: In Luke's account, because the parable here used to depict the Wedding Supper is describing a private banquet, as opposed to a royal one, the guests simply turn down the invitations with no consequences described: In accordance with the custom of the time, a servant is sent to remind the guests of the invitations that had been issued earlier—and in which the precise time of the banquet had not been stated—and even to escort them to the feast now ready (cf. Est 6:14). To refuse this second summons was considered an insult. The excuses made—"I've got better things to do"—are not only discourteous but also inadmissible, as these invitees would have had these plans in mind when they received the original invitations, which they ought not to have accepted, even if only for courtesy's sake, as in the final excuse.

The guests in Matthew's parable, however, ridicule the invitations and mistreat the servants; the primary allusion is of course to Judaism. There are no excuses offered, for the royal invitation is compulsory:

In both parables the original invitations are then amended and re-issued. In Matthew's story, all this takes place only after a punitive military campaign against the murderers of the messengers and the insult to the king and his son by the refusal to attend the marriage: The invitation to the Kingdom and to the Wedding Banquet is taken away from those who have disqualified themselves and—for the purposes of the parable—is extended anew, if you will, to those willing to bear the fruits of the Kingdom. The invitation here, which fills up the banquet hall, is described as a general gathering of all the guests destined to be in attendance. The banquet hall is indeed filled.

However, let us notice Luke's expanded version, for in it the original invitations are reissued to a specific category of guests—the outcasts and the afflicted—who are brought in:

Yet please notice what is then also recorded by Luke: Luke therefore refers—again, for the purposes of the parable—if you like, to a third re-issuing of the invitation, to others who are this time made to come in, and who, in so doing, fill up the banquet hall, just as does Matthew's general invitation. God knows the total number of attendees at His Royal Feast. While direct force is not used (an impossible task for a single servant!), the greatest efforts of persuasion are. One translation (Knox) says: "Give them no choice but to come in".

Yet neither of the last two re-invitations will include any of the invitees on the first guest list:

The punishment of those who had despised the invitations is complete exclusion from the feast; yet this must be equated, from Matthew's parable, and from his account of the guest without the appropriate wedding clothes (Mt 22:11-14), as we will note, with the punishment of 'outer darkness'. What are the implications of this for those whom God expects at the Wedding Feast of His Son? We are reminded: So who is on the guest-list—the guests who collectively form the Bride of Jesus Christ—in the second and the third of the re-issued invitations to the Wedding Supper of the Lamb, and what will they—and we—be wearing?

DRESSED FOR THE BANQUET
Let's revisit Matthew's account of the Great Banquet:

The garments worn on festival occasions were chiefly long white robes, and it was the custom of the person who was holding the feast to prepare such robes to be worn by the guests. Similarly, guests at a wedding would have been provided by the host with fitting robes. To fail to wear these was considered most insulting.

The earlier guests had insulted the king by their refusal to attend the wedding banquet, this one by his unwillingness to prepare himself. The king, coming to greet the guests about the take part in the feast, finds one of them improperly attired, and he is excluded and relegated to darkness—a darkness all the blacker from the standpoint of the brilliantly-lit banquet hall (cf. David's enemies symbolically witnessing his triumphant presence at the table of God).

The filthy rags of our own righteousness will not grant us entry either to the wedding or to the wedding banquet. The robes of the righteousness of God will not be handed out by our heavenly Father for donning a few hours before the wedding or wedding supper is to take place! It takes a life-time of overcoming and purification by God to acquire the "fitting" robes which grant us entry into the banquet hall. The poor, the crippled, the lame, those who will be brought in from the roads and the country lanes to take up their invitation will all be required to develop the righteousness of God. The elect saints, sealed by God from His wrath to come (Rev 7:3-8; 14:1), do this willingly, even through trials and tribulations, as part and parcel of their growth in the character of God:

They are those who rise at the return of Jesus Christ, those who are "called, chosen, and faithful" (Rev 17:14) to God throughout their lives. Perhaps it is they who are depicted in Luke's parable as the poor, the crippled and the lame brought in from streets and alleys of the town (Lk 7:14).

But there is another group which has to acquire the pure, white robes of righteousness in a much more painful manner. A great multitude, who are not depicted as having been similarly sealed, have to learn the lesson, possibly at the cost of their lives (Rev 7:16-17), during the Great Tribulation:

Perhaps it is they who are largely pictured in Luke's version of the parable by those who are compelled—through the tribulation—to come in from the roads and country lanes outside the city to finally fill up the banquet hall (Lk 7:23). If this is indeed the case, what are the implications for the timing of the Royal Banquet of God?

So when is the great Supper of God and of the Lamb?

WHEN IS THE GREAT SUPPER?
The notion that we have had foisted upon us is that this wedding banquet will be held almost immediately upon the return of Jesus Christ. There is indeed a "supper of God" to take place—but it is far removed from the promised Supper of the Saints! In fact, it stands in grim contrast to it:

Using imagery akin to Ezek 39:17-20, this is a sacrificial supper for the birds of the air of the enemies of God: …who have assembled to resist the returning Jesus Christ: Yet let us use this ghastly picture to ask a pertinent question: would a loving God have such an important commemoration as the victory banquet of the saints take place at a time of such immense suffering upon the earth?

Yet God does promise His own banquet:

So this feast, this banquet of God, is for all peoples; it is a feast such as might be associated with a wedding. When is death swallowed up forever? True, this begins for some at the resurrection, when "death is swallowed up in victory" (1Co 15:5). But when are "all tears" finally completely wiped away?

Let us return to John's vision of the great multitude drawn from every nation standing before the throne of God in white robes (Rev 7:9-10). He has had explained to him, as we noted earlier, the identity of this vast multitude:

And the time frame in which this vision of this great multitude is valid is also defined for us by the Scriptures. In Rev 21:1-2, John sees the vision of the new heaven and earth, and the new Jerusalem: It is a picture of the multitudes who have suffered and overcome during the Great Tribulation ruling with the elect firstfruits, the hundred and forty-four thousand (Rev 7:4-8; 14:1-5) in the heavenly Jerusalem!

Let us notice the actual consummation of the marriage of the saints to Christ, as shown to John in his vision:

So the New Jerusalem, at the time of the new heavens and the new earth, is still depicted as the Bride—as the Bride of the Lamb—but now in her fullness: And—I would like to suggest to you—it is in the New Jerusalem, the holy city of God, in the new heaven and earth, when all is made new, that the Great Banquet will be held, after the consummation of the marriage of the Bride to the Son of God, with the redeemed of all nations—from all eras and ages—in attendance. And it is in the presence of God the Father, whose throne-room is in the city. The totality and completion of all things, the Sabbath of sabbaths, is celebrated in perfect Utopia! This would also tie in with the symbolism of the banquet as the celebration of the covenant, considered earlier.

Are we preparing for this awe-inspiring event now?

Notice what else may be incorporated in, or anticipated by this festal commemoration, or which may occur shortly after it—another consummation:

The language is very much that of the end of an era, perhaps the culmination of the mediatorial, intercessory work of Christ for human beings. Interestingly, and a point for discussion, David wrote of the Son of God: So what happens next, after all the enemies of Christ are subdued?

GLIMPSES FROM ANCIENT WEDDING CUSTOMS
Let us draw upon some beautiful images from ancient Israelite and Jewish history to cement this picture of the Wedding and the Wedding Supper of the Lamb. The following description is of what seems to have been the most common custom.

During the period of the betrothal, with the bride-elect virtually regarded as the wife of her husband, she lived with her friends, and all her communication between herself and her future husband was carried on through the medium of a friend deputed for the purpose, termed the "friend of the bridegroom" (Jn 3:29: what symbolism springs to your mind here?). When the hour of the wedding arrived, generally late in the evening, the bridegroom set forth from his house, under the light of burning lamps or torches (cf. Mt 25, the parable of the virgins), attended by his groomsmen and friends (Jdg 14:11; Mt 9:15) and accompanied by musicians and singers (Jer 7:34; 16:9), to claim the bride at the house of her father.

The bride would be waiting at home, with her maid-servants stationed along the road to alert her when they saw the bridegroom approaching. He would knock at her door, which would open to his bride, prepared and adorned for the wedding feast. After receiving the bride from her parents with their blessing, the bridegroom conducted the wedding party back to his own house, or the house of his father, again under torchlight. All along the road there was music and dancing. At his house a feast was prepared, to which all the friends and neighbours were invited (Ge 29:22; Mt 22:1-10; Lk 14:8; Jn 2:2) and the marriage ceremony took place, the hand of the bride being placed into the hand of the groom's father, who would then place it into the groom's hand.

A wedding feast could last a day, a week (as was common on Old Testament times [Ge 29:27-28; Jdg 14:10,12], or even longer. In fact, the Greek used in Mt 22:2,3,4 and 9 to describe the royal wedding feast or banquet is plural: the wedding festivities, the acts of feasting, would last for days.

Can we perhaps see in the ancient Semitic custom of a groom's fetching the bride to his home allusions to the wedding supper in the New Jerusalem, after the millennial reign of Christ and the saints on the earth? The rest of the Bride has yet to be brought in. Is it unreasonable to expect that Christ will display her—the full, glorified Church—to His Father as part of the wedding ceremony in the New Jerusalem?

THE FESTIVITIES
Will the vision of this momentous event serve to inspire us, to motivate us more than ever before, to work fervently to ensure that we do in fact take up our allotted places at the table of God and so both be in attendance as well as active participants when the Wedding of Weddings is finally consummated? Vast multitudes will be there to share in the abundance of the table of the Lord, to eat of His bread and drink of His wine—the "new wine" in the new Jerusalem! Will we be included in this joyous throng to celebrate this feast of feasts, this victory of victories? God is lavish in the outpouring of His blessings and He wants to anoint our heads and fill our cups to overflowing You know, the water that was miraculously converted to wine at the wedding feast in Cana was the best wine in copious amounts. Why would it be otherwise at this feast, the wedding feast of the ages! Who knows how long it will last!

How much do we really want to take up our share in the future joy of Zion, the glory of the redeemed of God, of the Bride of Christ:

The Bridegroom wants to "rejoice over the Bride" (Isa 62:5)—His Bride, the Church—and He wants us present, as part of the vast multitude of the redeemed saints, to share His joy with His Father at the great banquet of God. Will we be there?

CONCLUSION
The calling, the invitation to attend the Wedding Supper of the Lamb will only be issued once in a person's lifetime:

God has invited us and all His saints called throughout all ages to His great Banquet, and we have accepted the invitation. Now the final summons is about to be made, for us to be present when the time is announced. The great banquet is even now awaiting us, and we are all invited, both as guests as well as together forming the glorified Bride of Christ. Are we getting ready? Will we "deserve to come" (Mt 22:8)? Or are we going to miss out because we don't even have enough oil for the torches to guide our path through the darkness of this world to the house of the Bridegroom (Mt 25:1,10)? Once the door is shut, it will be too late (Mt 25:10)! Will we overcome and be faithful to the very end, and so receive our ticket of admission, our new name entitling us to be in attendance at the banquet of God? Symbolically, the future Bride, along with the Spirit of God, is now beckoning us: How are we going to answer the summons?

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