After his opponents leave, Jesus addresses the crowd telling a parable comparing the realm of the skies to a man, a king.
Matthew 22:11 And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:
Matthew 22:11 But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes.
Arriving, however, the king gazed at the ones reclining for himself, he saw there a person not having attired himself in attire for a wedding.
We not only have to show up, but we have to show up ready with the proper attitude.
The two words translated as "wedding garment" means "attire for a wedding," which is not the same thing. Jesus used the term in much the same way as we would describe someone wearing their "Sunday best." The minimum requirement at the time seems to be simply to have clean clothing. Again, like wearing your Sunday best, the idea is to show respect to the host, the other guests, and the event. This lack of respect is the man's crime.
The ending of the verse is a joke. The verb translated as "put on/wearing" and "garment/clothing" are the noun and verb forms of the same root, creating an alliteration. With the negative in between, this also creates a contradiction. The sense is something like "not having attired himself in attire." If we imagine that Jesus pausing here, the audience hears that the man wasn't wearing clothes, generating a laugh, after the laugh, Jesus adds "for a wedding," on the end to reverse the idea, catching the audience jumping to conclusions, something Jesus does commonly.
- WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "and" should be something more like "but."
- IW - Inserted Word -- The word "when" doesn't exist in the source.
- WF - Wrong Form - The "came" is not an active verb but a participle, "arriving."
- WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "see" should be something more like "gaze."
- WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "guests" should be something more like "reclining."
- WF - Wrong Form - The "guest" is not a noun but a participle, "reclining."
- IW - Inserted Word -- The word "which" doesn't exist in the source.
- WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "on" should be something more like "attired."
- WF - Wrong Form - The "on" is not a preposition but a participle, "attired."
- WV - Wrong Voice - The verb is in the middle voice requiring the concept of "himself" as its object.
- WF - Wrong Form - The "wedding" is not an adjective but a noun, "for a wedding."
- WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "guests" should be something more like "reclining."
- IW - Inserted Word -- The word "when" doesn't exist in the source.
- WF - Wrong Form - The "came" is not an active verb but a participle, "arriving."
- WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "see" should be something more like "gaze."
- WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "guests" should be something more like "reclining."
- WF - Wrong Form - The "guest" is not a noun but a participle, "reclining."
- WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "noticed" should be something more like "see."
- IW - Inserted Word -- The word "who" doesn't exist in the source.
- WT - Wrong Tense - The English verb "was" is the past tense, but Greek is in the past perfect, a completed action, "having seen."
- WW - Wrong Word -- The word translated as "wearing" should be something more like "attired."
- WV - Wrong Voice - The verb is in the middle voice requiring the concept of "himself" as its object.
- WF - Wrong Form - The "wedding" is not an adjective but a noun, "for a wedding."
- WN - Wrong Number- The word "clothes" is translated as plural but the Greek word is singular.
And -- (WW) The Greek word translated as "and" is usually translated as "but" joins phrases in an adversarial way. Since it always falls in the second position, translating it as "however" often captures its feeling better. Here, the difference is important because this "but" or "however" is the word on which the continuation of the story hangs.
when -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "it" in the Greek source. It was added because the previous verb was translated as active rather than a participle.
the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." . The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more.
king --"The king" is translated from a Greek word that means a "king" or "chief."
came --(WF) "Came in" is from a word that means "go or come into" and has the double meaning of "coming into one's mind." However, it is in the form of an adjective, "coming in."
in --- This is from the prefix of the previous verb that means "from."
to -- This "to" is added because the infinitive form of the verb requires a "to" in English.
see --(WW) The Greek word translated as "to see" is a very unusual word, Jesus only using it six times. It has more of a sense of gazing with wonder or contemplation. It is not one of the several common words translated as "see." It has the sense of "gaze upon" and it is in the middle voice, "gazed upon for himself"
the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." . The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more.
guests, --(WW, WF) The word translated as "guests" doesn't mean "guests.." It means "lie at table" and "reclining." It is a verb acting as a noun, "the reclining." It has a double meaning of "be laid up" as a votive offering in the temple, and "to be dedicated," which may be the point here.
he -- This is from the third-person, singular form of the verb.
saw --The verb translated as "saw" means "to see" but it is used like we use the word "see" to mean "to know" or "to perceive." This is the most common word used to mean "see."
there --"There" is a word meaning "there," "in that place," and in philosophy means "the intelligible world."
a -- There is no indefinite article in Greek, but when a word doesn't have a definite article, the indefinite article can be added in English translation.
man --The Greek word for "a man" in the singular means "person" and "humanity" and "people" and "peoples" in the plural.
which ---- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "which" in the Greek source. It was added because the previous verb was translated as active rather than a participle.
had This helping verb "hath" indicates that the verb is the tense indicating an action completed in the past.
not -- The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It means "no," "not," or"no truly." It makes a negative statement of fact.
on --(WW, WF)The word translated as "on" means "put on" in the context is clothes, the verb form of the noun translated below as "garment." Both are uncommon words, used by Jesus five (verb) and six (noun) times. It works like our word "attire," functioning as a verb and noun. However, it has a double meaning of "entered into" or "get into" which fits for the larger meaning here, not entering into the spirit of the event. This is how Jesus uses this word elsewhere.
missing "himself"-- (WV) A phrase is necessary because the form of the previous verb is a middle voice, which means that the subject is to act on "himself."
a -- There is no indefinite article in Greek, but when a word doesn't have a definite article, the indefinite article can be added in English translation.
wedding --- (WF) "Wedding" means "marriage," "wedding," and "wedlock." It is not an adjective, but a noun following "garment."
garment: --The word translated as "garment" means "clothing" or "covering." It is from the same root as the word above, creating an alliteration.
But -- The Greek word translated as "and" is usually translated as "but" joins phrases in an adversarial way. Since it always falls in the second position, translating it as "however" often captures its feeling better. Here, the difference is important because this "but" or "however" is the word on which the continuation of the story hangs.
when -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "it" in the Greek source. It was added because the previous verb was translated as active rather than a participle.
the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." . The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more.
king --"The king" is translated from a Greek word that means a "king" or "chief."
came --(WF) "Came in" is from a word that means "go or come into" and has the double meaning of "coming into one's mind." However, it is in the form of an adjective, "coming in."
in --- This is from the prefix of the previous verb that means "from."
to -- This "to" is added because the infinitive form of the verb requires a "to" in English.
see --(WW) The Greek word translated as "to see" is a very unusual word, Jesus only using it six times. It has more of a sense of gazing with wonder or contemplation. It is not one of the several common words translated as "see." It has the sense of "gaze upon" and it is in the middle voice, "gazed upon for himself"
the -- The word translated as "the" is the Greek definite article, without a noun, it has the sense of "the one." . The Greek article is much closer to our demonstrative pronouns ("this," "that," "these," "those") than the English "the." See this article for more.
guests, --(WW, WF) The word translated as "guests" doesn't mean "guests" . It means "lie at table" and "reclining." It is a verb acting as a noun, "the reclining." It has a double meaning of "be laid up" as a votive offering in the temple, and "to be dedicated," which may be the point here.
he -- This is from the third-person, singular form of the verb.
noticed --(WW) The verb translated as "noticed " means "to see" but it is used like we use the word "see" to mean "to know" or "to perceive." This is the most common word used to mean "see."
a -- There is no indefinite article in Greek, but when a word doesn't have a definite article, the indefinite article can be added in English translation.
man --The Greek word for "a man" in the singular means "person" and "humanity" and "people" and "peoples" in the plural.
there --"There" is a word meaning "there," "in that place," and in philosophy means "the intelligible world."
who ---- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "who" in the Greek source. It was added because the previous verb was translated as active rather than a participle.
was -- (WT) This helping verb "was" indicates that the verb is the past tense, but the tenses is an action completed in the past, the past perfect, "having worn."
not -- The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It means "no," "not," or"no truly." It makes a negative statement of fact.
wearing --(WW)The word translated as "wearing " means "put on" in the context is clothes, the verb form of the noun translated below as "garment." I does not mean "wearing" clothes, but the act of putting them on. It works like our word "attire," functioning as a verb and noun. However, it has a double meaning of "entered into" or "get into" which fits for the larger meaning here, not entering into the spirit of the event. This is how Jesus uses this word elsewhere.
missing "himself"-- (WV) A phrase is necessary because the form of the previous verb is a middle voice, which means that the subject is to act on "himself."
wedding --- (WF) "Wedding" means "marriage," "wedding," and "wedlock." It is not an adjective, but a noun following "garment."
clothes: -- (WN) The word translated as "garment" means "clothing" or "covering." It is from the same root as the word above, creating an alliteration.
εἰσελθὼν [68 verses](part sg aor act masc nom) "Came in" is [68 verses] which means both "to go into," "to come in," "to enter," "to enter an office," "to enter a charge," (as in court) and "to come into one's mind."
δὲ (conj) "And" is from de which means "but" and "on the other hand." It is the particle that joins sentences in an adversarial way but can also be an explanation of cause ("so").
ὁ (article sg masc nom) "The" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the").
βασιλεὺς [27 verses](noun sg masc nom) "The king" is basileus, which means a "king," "chief," "prince," "lord," "master," "a great man," and "the first and most distinguished of any class." It is a form of the word used for "kingdom."
θεάσασθαί [6 verses](verb aor inf mp) "To see" is theaomai, which means to "gaze at," "behold," mostly with a sense of "wonder," of the mind, "contemplate," "see clearly," and "view as spectators."
τοὺς (article pl masc acc) "The" is the Greek definite article, hos, ("the").
ἀνακειμένους [3 verses](part pl pres mp masc acc) "The guests" is anakeimai, which means to "be laid up" as a votive offering in the temple, "to be dedicated," "to be set up" as a statue in public, "to be put aside," "lie at table," and "recline."
εἶδεν [166 verses](verb 3rd sg aor ind act) "He saw" is eido which means "to see," "to examine," "to perceive," "to behold," "to know how to do," "to see with the mind's eye," and "to know."
ἐκεῖ [33 verses](adv) "There" is ekei, which means "there," "in that place," and in philosophy means "the intelligible world."
ἄνθρωπον [209 verses](noun sg masc acc) "A man" is anthropos, which is "man," and, in plural, "mankind." It also means "humanity" and that which is human and opposed to that which is animal or inanimate.
οὐκ (partic) "Not" is from ou which is the negative adverb for facts and statements, negating both single words and sentences. The other negative adverb, μή applies to will and thought; οὐ denies, μή rejects; οὐ is absolute, μή relative; οὐ objective, μή subjective. -- The Greek word translated as "not" is the Greek negative used to deny objective facts, not opinions. It makes a negative statement of fact.
ἐνδεδυμένον[6 verses] (part sg perf mp neut acc) "Had on" is endyo, which means to "go into," "put on [clothes]," "enter," "press into," "sink in," "enter upon it," "undertake it," and "insinuate oneself into."
ἔνδυμα [5 verses](noun sg neut acc) "Garment" is endyma, which means "garment," and "covering."
γάμου: [10 verses](noun sg masc gen) "Wedding" is from the gamos, which means "marriage," "wedding," and "wedlock."
This verse has so many double meanings, I can only refer you to the hidden meaning section and vocabulary. It also has some a literation.