Matthew 22:8 (YLT)

Passage

then saith he to his servants, The marriage-feast indeed is ready, and those called were not worthy,

Nearby Context

Matthew 22:6 and the rest, having laid hold on his servants, did insult and slay <FI>them<Fi> .

Matthew 22:7 `And the king having heard, was wroth, and having sent forth his soldiers, he destroyed those murderers, and their city he set on fire;

Matthew 22:8 then saith he to his servants, The marriage-feast indeed is ready, and those called were not worthy,

Matthew 22:9 be going, then, on to the cross-ways, and as many as ye may find, call ye to the marriage-feasts.

Matthew 22:10 `And those servants, having gone forth to the ways, did gather all, as many as they found, both bad and good, and the marriage-feast apartment was filled with those reclining.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "called", "saith", "servants", "marriage-feast", "indeed", "ready", and "worthy". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "called" and "saith", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 7's "And the king having heard was wroth..." into verse 9's "be going then on to the cross-ways...", so "called" and "saith" 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 "called" and "saith" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.