Friday, September 13, 2024
“No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse. Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved” (Matthew 9:16,17 KJV).
What is our Lord Jesus Christ teaching here?
Firstly, what we need to know about the cultural setting of today’s Scripture is that, since the Jews were keepers of sheep, nearly all of their clothing was woolen. The “new cloth” and the “old garment” are made of wool. Re-read the verses. “No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse” (Matthew 9:16). “No man also seweth a piece of new cloth on an old garment: else the new piece that filled it up taketh away from the old, and the rent is made worse” (Mark 2:21). “And he spake also a parable unto them; No man putteth a piece of a new garment upon an old; if otherwise, then both the new maketh a rent, and the piece that was taken out of the new agreeth not with the old” (Luke 5:36).
Secondly, this is what else we should know about the background of today’s Scripture. The “new” woolen patch was an un-shrunk or unfinished cloth. Once attached to the old garment, the woolen patch would shrink, ripping the old garment to a greater extent than it was torn before—and the rent or tear would be made worse. Thus, they were not to “mix and match,” but rather use “old” (treated) patches for their torn clothing. As concerning apparel, new and old were incompatible. The Lord Jesus knew this, and pointed it out to His audience in order to teach them a lesson in the spiritual realm.
Moreover, to strengthen His argument, He switched topics from clothes and patches to wine and bottles….
333 Words of Grace 