The Parables of Jesus

The Parable of the Wineskins

Matthew 9:16-17 ^{Amplified Bible}

 

“But no one puts a piece of unshrunk (new) cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and a worse tear results. Nor is new wine put into old wineskins [that have lost their elasticity]; otherwise the wineskins burst, and the [fermenting] wine spills and the wineskins are ruined. But new wine is put into fresh wineskins, so both are preserved.”   

           This parable compares the Old Testament law to the Age of Grace established by Jesus. The Law was hard, harsh, and unforgiving. It was demanding and impossible to follow without tripping up at some point along the way. The Gospel of Grace was and is loving and merciful, filled with compassion and forgiveness. It was and is a total contradiction of the Law. Different in every way. The two cannot successfully be mixed. Though the Jews tried to inject Judaism into Christianity, it didn’t work. It is like sewing a new, unwashed patch of cloth that hadn’t been preshrunk onto an old article of clothing. When washed, the patch would shrink, ripping itself away from the old cloth. The tear would be worse than before.          

The main thrust of this parable though is the mention of wineskins.  “A skin was a bag made from the skin of an animal. New wine was always put in a new bag so that the bag would stretch as the wine continued to ferment, and then the bag would harden. An old bag would burst if new wine was put in it.” ^[1] “The pressure caused by the fermentation of the new wine would burst the old skins because they had lost their elasticity. The life and liberty of the Gospel ruins the wineskins of ritualism.” ^[2]

            The new Christian Era that Christ introduced resulted in tension between the new believers and the Jewish Christians. Christ brought joy into the lives of these believers that couldn’t be contained within the Law’s rigid rituals. Because of what Christ did on the cross there would forever be a new order of things. Until next time, walk with the King and be a blessing.

In his name & for his glory,

Richard Keller

Bread of Life Ministries 

^[1] A footnote from the Life Application Study Bible.

^[2] Believer's Bible Commentary - Copyright © 1989, 1990, 1992, 1995, 2016 by William MacDonald.