The Call of Matthew, Dining with Sinners, and A Question about Fasting Gospel reading: Mark 2:13-22 Video clip: https://youtube/watch?v=SjLhETvNJNQ The Call of Matthew 13 Then Jesus went out again beside the sea. The whole crowd was coming to Him, and He taught them. 14 Then, moving on, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax office, and He said to him, “Follow Me!” So he got up and followed Him. Dining with Sinners 15 While He was reclining at the table in Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were also guests with Jesus and His disciples, because there were many who were following Him. 16 When the scribes of the Pharisees saw that He was eating with sinners and tax collectors, they asked His disciples, “Why does He eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 17 When Jesus heard this, He told them, “Those who are well don’t need a doctor, but the sick do need one. I didn’t come to call the righteous, but sinners.” A Question about Fasting 18 Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. People came and asked Him, “Why do John’s disciples and the Pharisees’ disciples fast, but Your disciples do not fast?” 19 Jesus said to them, “The wedding guests cannot fast while the groom is with them, can they? As long as they have the groom with them, they cannot fast. 20 But the time will come when the groom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day. 21 No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new patch pulls away from the old cloth, and a worse tear is made. 22 And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost as well as the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins.” **Verse 2:13-14 ‘Sea’ refers to the Sea of Galilee. Only Mark identifies the tax collector as ‘Levi the son of Alphaeus’ (Mt. 9:9; Lk. 5:27 from which we learn that Levi was another name for Matthew; Mt. 10:3). The ‘tax office’ was most likely a local customs booth and those working as tax collectors were regarded as no better than thieves or Gentiles. ‘Follow Me’ recalls Mk. 1:17-18 and is the customary term found in the Gospels for discipleship. ‘He got up and followed Him’ indicates that Levi’s response to Jesus call was immediate. **Verses 2:15-17 ‘Reclining’ near the floor-level ‘table’ on an elbow with the legs extended is thought to be the traditional dining posture. Levi invited Jesus and His disciples to a banquet which included disreputable guests such as ‘tax collectors and sinners’ (see also Lk. 5:29). ‘Sinners’ refers to those who actively and intentionally violate God’s laws. Jesus, far from condoning their sins, in some sense identified with them because he had come specifically to save sinners. Regarding ‘scribes’ **[those who mastered the Torah and treasured oral tradition. Mark records that the scribes were Jesus’ fiercest opponents and were the amongst the main instigators leading to His death]**. Most scribes were Pharisees (“separated ones”) and thereby strictly observed the written and oral law, believed in angels and the resurrection, opposed Greek influence, and were respected and admired by the people. The Pharisees were in constant conflict with Jesus. ‘The righteous’ whom Jesus says He ‘did not come to call’ is an ironical reference to the self-righteous Pharisees. **Verse 2:18 The question regarding ‘fasting’ came up because the behavior of Jesus and His disciples contrasted with the followers of John the Baptist and the Pharisees. Fasting under Levitical law was only required on the Day of Atonement (Lv. 16:29-30). In the New Testament times, the Pharisees fasted on both Monday and Thursday (Lk. 18:12) which was considered an act of piety (Mt. 6:16-18). **Verses 2:19-20 A ‘wedding’ typically lasted seven days. ‘Guests’ (literally “sons of the bridal chamber”) may refer to wedding guest or the groom’s attendants. ‘The groom’ recalls John the Baptist’s designation of Jesus (Jn. 3:29). ‘Is taken away’ suggests forcible removal and shifts the focus to Jesus’ coming death. Jesus stated that after He was violently “taken away” as John the Baptist had been (Mk. 1:14), His disciples would fast as John’s disciples were doing now. **Verses 2:21-22 These are Jesus’ first parables in Mark. ‘Wineskins’ were made from soft and workable goatskins. Old wineskins that had already been used in the process of fermenting wine had lost their elasticity, become brittle, and would rupture if used again, resulting in the loss of both the container and the new wine. Both sayings indicate the impossibility of integrating Jesus’ teachings (the “new”) with the religious structure and practices of traditional Judaism (the “old”). **Verses 2:23-24 ‘What is not lawful’ does not indicate what regulations were broken. The controversy was that they did this ‘on the Sabbath’, a day of rest when no work was permitted (Ex. 20:8-11; Dt. 5:12-15). Harvesting and threshing grain on the Sabbath was specifically prohibited (Ex. 34:21). The ripen grain places the time of this narrative in the late spring or early summer. HCSB Study Bible, Holman Christian Standard Bible
Posted on: Fri, 16 Jan 2015 11:03:46 +0000