καὶ ἀπέστειλε τοὺς δούλους αὐτοῦ καλέσαι τοὺς κεκλημένους εἰς τοὺς γάμους, καὶ οὐκ ἤθελον ἐλθεῖν.
In the parable of the wedding feast (Matthew 22:1–14), Jesus crafts a narrative that is both deeply theological and profoundly human. At its heart lies a moment of refusal—simple in form, yet devastating in implication:
καὶ ἀπέστειλε τοὺς δούλους αὐτοῦ καλέσαι τοὺς κεκλημένους εἰς τοὺς γάμους, καὶ οὐκ ἤθελον ἐλθεῖν.
“And he sent his servants to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, but they were not willing to come.” This verse encapsulates the tragic irony of divine invitation met with human indifference. Our focus will be on the aspectual contrast between the aorist indicative verbs ἀπέστειλε and ἤθελον, and how their verbal aspect shapes our understanding of divine initiative and human response—or lack thereof.
Morphological Breakdown of Key Terms
| Word | Root | Form | Literal Translation | Grammatical Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἀπέστειλε | ἀποστέλλω | Aorist indicative, active, third person singular | “He sent” | Emphasizes completed action with historical definiteness |
| καλέσαι | καλέω | Aorist infinitive, active | “To call” | Complementary infinitive expressing purpose of sending |
| κεκλημένους | κεκλημένος | Perfect participle, passive, masculine accusative plural | “Those who have been called” | Denotes ongoing state resulting from past action |
| ἤθελον | θέλω | Imperfect indicative, active, third person plural | “They were willing” | Imperfect emphasizes ongoing or repeated refusal |
| ἐλθεῖν | ἔρχομαι | Aorist infinitive, active | “To come” | Used with ἤθελον to express willingness to perform an action |
The Aorist Indicative: Divine Initiative in Action
The verb ἀπέστειλε (“he sent”) is a strong aorist indicative, emphasizing a completed, punctiliar action in the past. In narrative Greek, especially in Koine, the aorist often functions as the default tense for narrating events—it tells us what happened, decisively and definitively.
Here, it signals the sovereign initiative of God, represented by the king who sends out his servants. The sending is not tentative or uncertain—it is a decisive act of invitation. There is no ambiguity about the king’s intent: the feast is ready, the messengers are dispatched, and the guests are summoned.
The aorist captures the finality of this action: the invitation was issued, fully and irrevocably. There is no hesitation in the divine gesture—only clarity and authority.
The Imperfect Indicative: Human Willingness in Motion
In contrast to the aorist’s decisive tone, we find the imperfect indicative ἤθελον (“they were willing”). The imperfect tense in Greek often conveys ongoing, repeated, or habitual action. It paints a picture of persistent refusal—a continuous state of unwillingness rather than a single act of rejection.
This is crucial: the invited guests did not merely decline once—they refused repeatedly, perhaps over time, perhaps even defiantly. Their refusal was not momentary indecision but entrenched resistance.
Moreover, the phrase οὐκ ἤθελον ἐλθεῖν (“they were not willing to come”) combines the imperfect with an aorist infinitive (ἐλθεῖν). This structure expresses a repeated or sustained unwillingness to perform a specific action—in this case, to respond to the invitation.
The effect is haunting: while the king acts decisively and finally, the recipients of the invitation remain in a state of ongoing rebellion. The contrast is stark—divine resolve meets human inertia.
The Perfect Participle: The Invited Who Were Already Called
The phrase τοὺς κεκλημένους (“those who have been called”) uses a perfect passive participle, which denotes a past action with present results. These individuals were already summoned before the feast was ready; they were not newly invited but previously designated guests.
This detail adds a layer of tragedy. These are not outsiders stumbling upon the invitation—they are the originally chosen ones. Their refusal is not ignorance but deliberate rejection of a prior commitment. The perfect tense underscores that their status as “called” remains unchanged—even in their refusal, they retain the dignity of invitation, now tragically unfulfilled.
The Weight of a Tense
In this single verse, Matthew places two tenses in opposition: the aorist indicative, symbolizing divine sovereignty and decisive action, and the imperfect indicative, embodying human delay, reluctance, and refusal.
It is a linguistic mirror of salvation history itself. God calls decisively. He sends messengers. He prepares a feast. But those who were first invited turn away—not once, but repeatedly. And so the invitation goes out again, to new people, to sinners and Gentiles alike.
Let us hear this passage not only as a parable of judgment, but also as a call to examine our own hearts. Are we among those who were called long ago, yet still refuse to come? Or do we recognize the voice of the King, and answer His summons with joy?
For in the grammar of grace, there is always room at the table—but the time to accept the invitation is now.
