Luke 5:36

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.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(36) And he spake also a parable unto them.—The illustration that follows is common to all three reports, but St. Luke only describes it as a parable, the others apparently confining that term to something that took the form of an actual narrative.

No man putteth.—The better MSS. give, No man having rent a piece from a new garment putteth it upon an old. The form which the illustration thus assumes gives it obviously a greater vividness. What folly could be greater than the act described?

Both the new maketh a rent.—Better, as agreeing with the reading just given, he will both rend the new, and the patch from the new will not agree with the old.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

5:27-39 It was a wonder of Christ's grace, that he would call a publican to be his disciple and follower. It was a wonder of his grace, that the call was made so effectual. It was a wonder of his grace, that he came to call sinners to repentance, and to assure them of pardon. It was a wonder of his grace, that he so patiently bore the contradiction of sinners against himself and his disciples. It was a wonder of his grace, that he fixed the services of his disciples according to their strength and standing. The Lord trains up his people gradually for the trials allotted them; we should copy his example in dealing with the weak in faith, or the tempted believer.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

See this passage illustrated in the notes at Matthew 9:14-17.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

Lu 5:33-39. Fasting.

(See on [1577]Mt 9:14-17.)

The incongruities mentioned in Lu 5:36-38 were intended to illustrate the difference between the genius of the old and new economies, and the danger of mixing up the one with the other. As in the one case supposed, "the rent is made worse," and in the other, "the new wine is spilled," so by a mongrel mixture of the ascetic ritualism of the old with the spiritual freedom of the new economy, both are disfigured and destroyed. The additional parable in Lu 5:39, which is peculiar to Luke, has been variously interpreted. But the "new wine" seems plainly to be the evangelical freedom which Christ was introducing; and the old, the opposite spirit of Judaism: men long accustomed to the latter could not be expected "straightway"—all at once—to take a liking for the former; that is, "These inquiries about the difference between My disciples and the Pharisees," and even John's, are not surprising; they are the effect of a natural revulsion against sudden change, which time will cure; the new wine will itself in time become old, and so acquire all the added charms of antiquity. What lessons does this teach, on the one hand, to those who unreasonably cling to what is getting antiquated; and, on the other, to hasty reformers who have no patience with the timidity of their weaker brethren!

Matthew Poole's Commentary

See Poole on "Luke 5:33"

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And he spake also a parable unto them,.... The Scribes and Pharisees; illustrating what he had just now said:

no man putteth a piece of a new garment upon an old; by "a piece of a new garment" meaning the new and upstart notions and traditions of the elders, which were so in comparison of the law of Moses; and by the "old", the robe of their own righteousness, wrought out in obedience to the moral and ceremonial law: and Christ suggests, that to join these together, in order to patch up a garment of righteousness, to appear in before God, was equally as weak and ridiculous, as to put a piece of new and undressed cloth into a garment that was old, and wore threadbare.

If otherwise, then both the new, maketh the rent; that is, much worse than it was, as it is expressed both in Matthew and Mark; the old and new cloth being unsuitable, and not of equal strength to hold together: by this Christ intimates, that the Jews, by being directed to the observance of the traditions of the elders, were drawn off from a regard to the commandments of God; so that instead of having a better righteousness, they had one much the worse, a ragged, and a rent one.

And the piece that was taken out of the new, agreeth not with the old; and so the statutes of men, and the ordinances of God, or the traditions of the elders, and the commands of God, are no more like one another, than the piece of a new and an old garment, and as unlike is obedience to the one, and to the other;

See Gill on Matthew 9:16. See Gill on Matthew 9:17. See Gill on Mark 2:21.

See Gill on Mark 2:22 where this, and the following parable, are more largely explained.

Geneva Study Bible

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.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Expositor's Greek Testament

Luke 5:36-39. Relative parabolic Logia.—ἔλεγε … ὅτι: an editorial introduction to the parabolic sayings. The first of these, as given by Lk., varies in form from the version in the parallels, suggests somewhat different ideas, and is in itself by no means clear. Much depends on whether we omit or retain σχίσας in the first clause. If, with [52] [53] [54] [55], we retain it, the case put is: a piece cut out of a new garment to patch an old one, the evil results being: the new spoiled, and the old patched with the new piece presenting an incongruous appearance (οὐ συμφωνήσει). If, with [56] [57], etc., we omit σχίσας, the case put may be: a new piece not cut out of a new garment, but a remnant (Hahn) used to patch an old, this new piece making a rent in the old garment; τὸ καινὸν in second clause not object of, but nominative to, σχίσει, and the contrast between the new patch and old garment presenting a grotesque appearance. The objection to this latter view is that there is no reason in the case supposed why the new patch should make a rent. In Mt. and Mk. the patch is made with unfulled cloth, which will contract. But the remnant of cloth with which a new garment is made would not be unfulled, and it would not contract. The sole evil in that case would be a piebald appearance. On the whole it seems best to retain σχίσας, and to render τὸ καινὸν σχίσει, he (the man who does so foolish a thing) will rend the new. Kypke suggests as an alternative rendering: the new is rent, taking σχίζει intransitively, of which use he cites an instance from the Testament of the twelve patriarchs. The sense on this rendering remains the same.

[52] Codex Sinaiticus (sæc. iv.), now at St. Petersburg, published in facsimile type by its discoverer, Tischendorf, in 1862.

[53] Codex Vaticanus (sæc. iv.), published in photographic facsimile in 1889 under the care of the Abbate Cozza-Luzi.

[54] Codex Bezae

[55] Codex Regius--eighth century, represents an ancient text, and is often in agreement with א and B.

[56] Codex Alexandrinus of the fifth century, a chief representative of the “Syrian” text, that is, the revised text formed by judicious eclectic use of all existing texts, and meant to be the authoritative New Testament.

[57] Codex Ephraemi

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

36. a piece of a new garment upon an old] Rather, no one rending a patch from a new garment putteth it upon an old garment. The word σχίσας ‘rending’ though omitted in our version is found in א, A, B, D, L. Our Lord delighted in using these homely metaphors which brought the truth within the comprehension of his humblest hearers. St Matthew (Matthew 9:16) has ‘a patch of unteazled cloth.’

both the new maketh a rent] Rather, with the best uncials, he will both rend the new. The inferior readings adopted by the E. V. make us lose sight of the fact that there is a treble mischief implied, namely, (1) the rending of the new to patch the old; (2) the incongruity of the mixture; (3) the increase of the rent of the old. The latter is mentioned only by St Matthew, but is implied by the bursten skins of the next similitude. Our Lord is referring to the proposal to enforce the ascetic leanings of the forerunner, and the Pharisaic regulations which had become a parasitic growth on the old dispensation, upon the glad simplicity of the new dispensation. To act thus, was much the same thing as using the Gospel by way of a mere adjunct to—a mere purple patch upon—the old garment of the Law. The teaching of Christ was a new and seamless robe which would only be spoilt by being rent. It was impossible to tear a few doctrines and precepts from Christianity, and use them as ornaments and improvements of Mosaism. If this were attempted (1) the Gospel would be maimed by the rending from its entirety; (2) the contrast between the new and the old system would be made more glaring; (3) the decay of the evanescent institutions would only be violently accelerated. Notice how distinctly these comparisons imply the ultimate abrogation of the Law.

agreeth not] Rather, will not agree (sumphonesei).

Bengel's Gnomen

Luke 5:36. Παραβολὴν, a parable) From a garment, and from wine: a kind of parable especially appropriate at a banquet [Luke 5:29]: comp. ch. Luke 14:7.—τὸ καινὸν) new.[57]

[57] In the sense, not worn out by use, different from the old worn-out garments: but νέον applied to the wine, new, in the sense of fresh, recent, opposed to wine mellowed by age; νέος is lately originated, as opposed to that originated some time back; καινὸς, not yet used, new, and different, as opposed to that which was formerly: hence Jesus does not say νέους ἀσκούς, nor ἱμάτιον νέον, nor οἶνον καινόν, but καινοὺς ἀσκούς, ἵματιον καινόν, and οἶνον νέον. See Tittm. Syn.—ED. and TRANSL.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 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. Oriental teaching has ever delighted in using these vivid and picturesque metaphors and parables taken from the everyday life of the people; here the reference is, of course, to the question put by the. Pharisees and John's disciples respecting fasting. This and the following little parable, and the curious simile which he added directly after, is part of the Lord's answer to his questioners. They charged him in their query with throwing (by the neglect of fasting) a slur on the time-honoured practices and observances of the most religious men of Israel. His reply acknowledged that, as far as he was concerned, they were right. He had quietly put aside the rigidly appointed fasts and other ceremonial rites by means of which the great Jewish teachers - to use their own expression - had put a hedge about the Law. They were right, too, in the conclusion they had come to, implied but not expressed, in their evidently hostile questioning. His was a totally new form of the old Hebrew' religon - new altogether in the grandeur of its conception and in the breadth of its influence. His was a totally new garment that he was about to offer to the people; now to patch up the beautiful new work with the old one would be surely to mar both. In the older authorities the text is slightly longer and more vivid than the text from which our own more corrupt Authorized Version was translated. It would run thus: "No one rending a patch from a new garment putteth it upon an old garment." Luke 5:36

Vincent's Word Studies

A parable

"From a garment and from wine, especially appropriate at a banquet" (Bengel).

Putteth a piece of a new garment upon an old (ἐπίβλημα ἱματίου καινοῦ ἐπιβάλλει ἐπὶ ἱμάτιον παλαιόν)

The best texts, however, insert σχίσας, having rent, which directly governs ἐπίβλημα, piece; so that the rendering is, No man having rent a piece from, a new garment, putteth it, etc. So Rev., No man tendeth a piece and putteth. Both Matthew and Mark have cloth instead of garment, by the use of which latter term "the incongruity of the proceeding comes more strongly into prominence" (Meyer). ἐπίβλημα, a piece, is, literally, a patch, from ἐπί, upon, and βάλλω, to throw: something clapped on. Compare the kindred verb here, ἐπιβάλλει, putteth upon.

The new maketh a rent (τὸ καινὸν σχίζει)

The best texts read σχίσει, will rend, governing the new, instead of being used intransitively. Render, as Rev., He will rend the new.

Agreeth not (οὐ συμφωνεῖ)

The best texts read συμφωνήσει, the future; will not agree. So Rev.

In Matthew and Mark there is only a single damage, that, namely, to the old garment, the rent in which is enlarged. In Luke the damage is twofold; first, in injuring the new garment by cutting out a piece; and second, in making the old garment appear patched, instead of widening the rent, as in Matthew and Mark.