Luke 14:15

That shall eat bread in the kingdom of God - This is spoken in conformity to the general expectation of the Jews, who imagined that the kingdom of the Messiah should be wholly of a secular nature. Instead of αρτον, bread, EKMS-V, more than one hundred others, with some versions and fathers, read αριϚον, a dinner. This is probably the best reading, as it is likely it was a dinner at which they now sat; and it would be natural for the person to say, Happy is he who shall dine in the kingdom of God. It does not appear that there was any but this person present, who was capable of relishing the conversation of our Lord, or entering at all into its spiritual reference.

Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God - The kingdom of God here means the kingdom which the Messiah was to set up. See the notes at Matthew 3:2. The Jews supposed that he would be a temporal prince, and that his reign would be one of great magnificence and splendor. They supposed that the "Jews" then would be delivered from all their oppressions, and that, from being a degraded people, they would become the most distinguished and happy nation of the earth. To that period they looked forward as one of great happiness. There is some reason to think that they supposed that the ancient just people would then be raised up to enjoy the blessings of the reign of the Messiah. Our Saviour having mentioned the "resurrection of the just," this man understood it in the common way of the Jews, and spoke of the special happiness which they expected at that time. The Jews "only," he expected, would partake of those blessings. Those notions the Saviour corrects in the parable which follows.