Mark 2:14–22

¹⁴Then, moving on, He saw Levi ^ethe son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax office, ^fand He said to him, “Follow Me!” ^gSo he got up and followed ^hHim.

Dining with Sinners

¹⁵While He was reclining at the table in Levi’s house, many tax collectors ⁱand sinners ^jwere also guests ^klwith Jesus and His disciples, because there were many who were following Him. ¹⁶When the scribes ^mof the Pharisees ^nosaw that He was eating ^pwith sinners ^qand tax collectors, ^rthey asked His disciples, “Why does He eat ^swith tax collectors and sinners?”

¹⁷When Jesus heard this, He told them, “Those who are well don’t need ^ta doctor, ^ubut the sick ^vdo need one. I didn’t come to call the righteous, ^wbut sinners.” ^x

A Question about Fasting

¹⁸Now ^yJohn’s ^zdisciples ^aand the Pharisees ^bcwere fasting. ^dPeople came and asked Him, “Why do John’s disciples and the Pharisees’ disciples fast, but Your disciples do not fast?”

¹⁹Jesus said to them, “The wedding guests ^ecannot fast while the groom ^fis with them, can they? As long as they have the groom with them, they cannot fast. ²⁰But the time ^gwill come ^hwhen the groom is taken away from them, ⁱand then they will fast ^jin that day. ²¹No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new patch pulls away from the old cloth, ^kand a worse tear is made. ²²And no one puts new wine ^linto old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst ^mthe skins, and the wine is lost as well as the skins. ⁿBut new wine is for fresh wineskins.”