Then the king told the servants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
Parallel translations
- WEB Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and throw him into the outer darkness; there is where the weeping and grinding of teeth will be.’
- KJV Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
- NKJV Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
- NASB Then the king said to the servants, ‘Tie his hands and feet, and throw him into the outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth in that place.’
- NLT Then the king said to his aides, ‘Bind his hands and feet and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The king casts the unworthy guest into outer darkness with weeping and gnashing of teeth. This is a sober warning of final judgment.
Overview
The man's exclusion into 'outer darkness' is Matthew's recurring image of final, conscious separation from God. Coming to the feast without the wedding garment of true righteousness ends in judgment, not blessing. The verse underscores that the gracious invitation must be met with genuine faith, not mere outward participation.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 21
- Matt 8:12But the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
- Matt 25:30And throw that worthless servant into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
- 2 Th 1:9They will suffer the penalty of eternal destruction, separated from the presence of the Lord and the glory of His might,
- Luke 13:28There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves are thrown out.
- 2 Pet 2:17These men are springs without water and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them.
- 2 Pet 2:4For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but cast them deep into hell, placing them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment;
- Matt 24:51Then he will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
- Matt 13:42And they will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
- Matt 13:50and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
- Jude 1:6And the angels who did not stay within their own domain but abandoned their proper dwelling—these He has kept in eternal chains under darkness, bound for judgment on that great day.
- Rev 21:27But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who practices an abomination or a lie, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
- Acts 7:54On hearing this, the members of the Sanhedrin were enraged, and they gnashed their teeth at him.
- Jude 1:13They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever.
- Ps 112:10The wicked man will see and be grieved; he will gnash his teeth and waste away; the desires of the wicked will perish.
- Ps 37:12The wicked scheme against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them,
- Matt 13:30Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat into my barn.’”
- Matt 12:29Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and steal his possessions, unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can plunder his house.
- Isa 52:1Awake, awake, clothe yourself with strength, O Zion! Put on your garments of splendor, O Jerusalem, holy city! For the uncircumcised and unclean will no longer enter you.
- Acts 21:11Coming over to us, he took Paul’s belt, bound his own feet and hands, and said, “The Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews of Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and hand him over to the Gentiles.’”
- John 21:18Truly, truly, I tell you, when you were young, you dressed yourself and walked where you wanted; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.”
- Dan 3:20and he commanded some mighty men of valor in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and throw them into the blazing fiery furnace.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 22:13 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.