Matthew 22:11 (ASV)

Passage

But when the king came in to behold the guests, he saw there a man who had not on a wedding-garment:

Nearby Context

Matthew 22:9 Go ye therefore unto the partings of the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage feast.

Matthew 22:10 And those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was filled with guests.

Matthew 22:11 But when the king came in to behold the guests, he saw there a man who had not on a wedding-garment:

Matthew 22:12 and he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding-garment? And he was speechless.

Matthew 22:13 Then the king said to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and cast him out into the outer darkness; there shall be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "king", "came", "behold", "guests", and "wedding-garment". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "king" and "came", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 10's "And those servants went out into the..." into verse 12's "and he saith unto him Friend how...", so "king" and "came" belong inside that flow. In Matthew context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "king" and "came" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.