Matthew Henry Commentary Matthew 9:14-17

"Then come to him the disciples of John, saying, Why do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy disciples fast not? And Jesus said unto them, Can the sons of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then will they fast. And no man putteth a piece of undressed cloth upon an old garment; for that which should fill it up taketh from the garment, and a worse rent is made. Neither do [men] put new wine into old wine-skins: else the skins burst, and the wine is spilled, and the skins perish: but they put new wine into fresh wine-skins, and both are preserved." — Matthew 9:14-17 (ASV)

John was at this time in prison. His circumstances, his character, and the nature of the message he was sent to deliver, led those who were particularly attached to him to keep frequent fasts. Christ referred them to John's testimony of Him (John 3:29). Though there is no doubt that Jesus and His disciples lived in a spare and frugal manner, it would be improper for His disciples to fast while they had the comfort of His presence. When He is with them, all is well.

The presence of the sun makes day, and its absence produces night. Our Lord further reminded them of common rules of prudence. It was not customary to take a piece of new, unshrunk cloth to patch an old garment. Such a patch would not integrate well with the soft, old material; instead, it would tear the garment further, making the tear worse. Nor would people put new wine into old leather wineskins, as these were decaying and would likely burst from the wine's fermentation. Instead, new wine was put into strong, new wineskins, so both the wine and the wineskins would be preserved.

Great caution and prudence are necessary so that young converts do not receive gloomy and forbidding ideas about serving our Lord; instead, duties should be urged upon them as they are able to bear them.