John Calvin Commentary Luke 14:12

"And he said to him also that had bidden him, When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, nor thy kinsmen, nor rich neighbors; lest haply they also bid thee again, and a recompense be made thee." — Luke 14:12 (ASV)

When thou makest a dinner. Those who think that this is an absolute condemnation of entertainments given by relatives and friends to each other remove an element of civility from human society. It would be not only unfeeling but barbarous to exclude relatives from the hospitable table and to class them only with strangers. Christ did not intend to dissuade us from everything courteous, but merely to show that acts of civility, which are customary among people, are no proof whatever of charity.

To perform any act for rich people, in the hope of a reward from them (from whom we expect a similar return), is not generosity but a system of commercial exchange. In the same way, kind services rendered from mercenary motives are of no account in the sight of God and do not deserve to be considered charity. If I entertain my relatives or rich friends at supper, the act of civility itself should not be condemned. However, as a proof of charity, it will have no value whatever, for we frequently see that extremely selfish persons grudge no expense or luxury in treating their friends.

What then? You may spread a table for the rich, but at the same time, you must not neglect the poor. You may feast with your friends and relatives, but you must not exclude strangers if they happen to be poor and if you have the means to relieve their needs. In short, the meaning of the passage is that those who are kind to relatives and friends but are ungenerous towards the poor are entitled to no commendation, because they do not exercise charity but consult only their own gain or ambition.

Christ particularly addresses the person who had invited him, because he perceived that this person was too much given to pomp and luxury and was so eager to obtain the applause and favor of the rich that he cared very little about the poor. Accordingly, through this one man, this reproof is directed against all those who spend their wealth in ambitious display or who bargain for mutual compensation, but leave nothing over for the poor, as if they were afraid that whatever is freely given would be lost.