Then Jesus gave them this illustration: “No one tears a piece of cloth from a new garment and uses it to patch an old garment. For then the new garment would be ruined, and the new patch wouldn’t even match the old garment. “And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. For the new wine would burst the wineskins, spilling the wine and ruining the skins. New wine must be stored in new wineskins. But no one who drinks the old wine seems to want the new wine. ‘The old is just fine,’ they say.”
Luke 5:36-39
This pericope is attached to the one before it in all three synoptic gospels. I told you in the previous Gem that it is most likely Jesus who has linked this saying to what went before it. I also indicated that you need to keep your wits about you as you move from pericope to pericope. Read across the pericopes and see how they are linked together.
I suggested too that you compare this unit across all three gospel writers. There are some differences. To make it easy to compare, here are the same segments from Matthew and Mark.
I have chosen the translation from the NLT as it links this segment with what went before it. So too does Eugene Peterson in the Message when he begins both the Matthew and Mark segments with “He went on . . .”
“Besides, who would patch old clothing with new cloth? For the new patch would shrink and rip away from the old cloth, leaving an even bigger tear than before. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. For the old skins would burst from the pressure, spilling the wine and ruining the skins. New wine is stored in new wineskins so that both are preserved.”
Matthew 9:16-17
“Besides, who would patch old clothing with new cloth? For the new patch would shrink and rip away from the old cloth, leaving an even bigger tear than before. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. For the wine would burst the wineskins, and the wine and the skins would both be lost. New wine calls for new wineskins.”
Mark 2:21-22
“Then Jesus gave them this illustration: “No one tears a piece of cloth from a new garment and uses it to patch an old garment. For then the new garment would be ruined, and the new patch wouldn’t even match the old garment. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. For the new wine would burst the wineskins, spilling the wine and ruining the skins. New wine must be stored in new wineskins. But no one who drinks the old wine seems to want the new wine. ‘The old is just fine,’ they say.”
Luke 5:36-39
The following are the colour codes for the comparisons of the passages:
Matt and Mark share
Matt and Luke share
Mark and Luke share
All three share
Blank indicates unique to that writer.
- What is to be made of the differences above?
- Is there is pattern here? Is one of the writers rewriting the others in order to say something new?
- To bring out a new truth?
No I don’t think so. The changes are too random and there is no pattern to them. It is more likely that Jesus used this illustration a number of times in His preaching and each time changed it a little. He used it differently each time he “preached that sermon”. People tell me that I do that. I don’t preach the same sermon twice. I don’t memorise my sermons and preach it the same way each time by rote. One woman followed me to 5 different God’s Awesome Book seminars. When I asked her why, she said because you never say the same things twice in the same way. You always add more detail or make a new point with the changes you make. So I come to every one I can, to learn as much as I can. I think that is what is going on here. I think it is Jesus making the subtle changes and the Gospel writers are remembering the different elements he used. Luke’s account is the most interesting. The changes Jesus made this time and how He used it are the most interesting in my opinion.
Note both Matthew and Mark have the word [de] to introduce this passage. It is an adversative particle that can be translated in various ways. “But” is the usual way of translating it however it can also be translated: and, also, moreover or simply “now“. Not only is it adversative; setting something against something else but it is clearly links ideas together. In other words this passage is linked to the paragraph before it. In Luke’s case he makes that even clearer with his “then Jesus gave them this illustration”. This is an illustration of what He was talking about in the paragraph before related to whether the disciples should fast or not. This paragraph is setting the system of Judaism which the Pharisees practice against the new way in which Jesus is teaching his disciples. This illustration takes a saying from everyday life and uses it to give insight to what is happening here.
Where Matthew and Mark talk about a patch, as Jesus mentioned in the sermon, Luke reported of cutting a piece from a new garment in order to mend the old. Both of course end up being ruined. You can’t do that. No one in their right mind would cut a piece from a new garment in order to mend an old one. Throw the old one away and use the new one. Exactly, that’s Jesus’ point! The new wine or the new garment is the gospel of Christ and His teaching; the old skins represent the system of Judaism. The Gospel is radically different from the old ways. Jesus is training His disciples in a new way which can’t be contained by the old Pharisaical system or the Judaic approach. It needs a totally new approach or both the new teaching and old ways will be ruined. The inference is to allow His disciples the freedom to not fast if they so choose. Don’t force them into the old mould.
Then there is this curious line “But no one who drinks the old wine seems to want the new wine. ‘The old is just fine,’ they say.” What does Jesus mean by using that statement? I suggest you think about it some more and I will go on to deal with it in the next Gem. It is a new slant on an old thought. Take it in, mull it over, turn it around and around to see its different facets and apply it to yourself. Remember application is the key to making it yours anyway. So do what my late Greek professor used to say – take every verse and suck it like a sweetie. Ok here’s a challenge take verse 39 and suck it like a sweetie.
Where the mind goes, the man follows.
Joyce Meyer
Practice doesn’t make perfect. Practicing perfectly makes perfect.
Anon
It’s our imperfections which spawn our perfections.
Jeremy Anderson
Life is a series of Seasons. People often fail when they choose to remain in one season and not accept the next.
Sidney Mohede