Category: Christ’s earthly ministry

Saturday, September 14, 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?

After issuing comments about using an old or shrunken woolen patch to repair a torn woolen garment (Matthew 9:16; cf. Mark 2:21; Luke 5:36), Christ then spoke on the subject of placing new wine in new bottles instead of old bottles. “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 9:17). “And no man putteth new wine into old bottles: else the new wine doth burst the bottles, and the wine is spilled, and the bottles will be marred: but new wine must be put into new bottles” (Mark 2:22). “And no man putteth new wine into old bottles; else the new wine will burst the bottles, and be spilled, and the bottles shall perish. But new wine must be put into new bottles; and both are preserved” (Luke 5:37,38).

“Bottles” here are animal skins (especially the durable hides of goats) stretched and sewed together to form vessels with narrow necks and wide bases. Jews used them for storing or carrying liquids. In this case, they held “new wine,” or newly-pressed grape juice. “Old bottles” had traces of yeast organisms, so storing new wine would initiate fermentation. Gas bubbles are formed during the fermentation process, causing expansion of the bottle. Old wineskins would break open because they had hardened, whereas new wineskins would be elastic. It thus made more sense to place new wine in new bottles, keeping the juice fresh and sweet for an extended time. Again, like with the new and old fabrics, they were not to “mix and match” new wine with old bottles….

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….

Thursday, September 12, 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?

Observe the parallel, Mark 2:21,22: “[21] 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. [22] And no man putteth new wine into old bottles: else the new wine doth burst the bottles, and the wine is spilled, and the bottles will be marred: but new wine must be put into new bottles.”

Now, look at the other parallel, Luke 5:36-39: “[36] 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. [37] And no man putteth new wine into old bottles; else the new wine will burst the bottles, and be spilled, and the bottles shall perish. [38] But new wine must be put into new bottles; and both are preserved. [39] No man also having drunk old wine straightway desireth new: for he saith, The old is better.” (Note how verse 39 is unique to Luke’s Gospel Record. We will comment on this later.)

While the practices of attaching “new cloth” to an “old garment” and putting “new wine” in “new bottles” means practically nothing to us in our 21^st-century, non-Jewish culture, Jesus’ audience clearly understood what He meant. In order to fully appreciate His words, we have to do some research, some study, some thinking, some acknowledgement of the context, and it will become quite obvious as to why He said what He did….