In response to the query on why Jesus’ disciples did not fast like those of John the Baptist, Jesus tells the parable of New Wine in Old Wineskins in the Gospels viz. Matthew 9:14–17, Mark 2:21–22, and Luke 5:33–39.
Interestingly, Luke adds a verse in 5:39:
And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for they say, ‘The old is better.’”
Of course, Jesus was not against fasting, as we hear him saying in Mt 17:21 (KJV):
Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.
He may have, however, been opposed to looking at fasting as a goal in itself. Lk 5:39, it appears, is his way of saying that people were happy clinging to the age-old traditions, like one’s preferring old wine to the new. But unfortunately, the Gospels do not elaborate the connection of fasting with the analogy of old and new wine.
My question therefore, is: What is the special relevance of Luke 5:39 in the context of Parable of the Wineskins? Inputs from any denomination are welcome.
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