Understanding Christ’s New Covenant in Luke 5:36-39

The parable in Luke 5:36–39 calls us to receive Christ’s work as something truly new, not as a patch or add‑on to our old way of life.

The Text of the Parable (KJV)

• “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.” (Luke 5:36, KJV)​
• “And no man putteth new wine into old bottles; else the new wine will burst the bottles, and be spilled, and the bottles shall perish.” (Luke 5:37, KJV)​
• “But new wine must be put into new bottles; and both are preserved.” (Luke 5:38, KJV)​
• “No man also having drunk old wine straightway desireth new: for he saith, The old is better.” (Luke 5:39, KJV)​

These short images—garment, wine, and wineskins—are Jesus’ answer to questions about fasting and religious practice in His day.

Old Garment, New Patch

Jesus first speaks of an old garment and a new patch. In the ancient world, a new, unshrunk piece of cloth, sewn on an old, worn garment, would pull away as it shrank, making the tear worse instead of better.

In the same way, the life and teaching of Christ cannot simply be stitched onto an unchanged heart or an old system of self‑righteousness. If we try to “add Jesus” as a religious accessory while clinging to our old patterns of sin, pride, or legalism, the result is strain, frustration, and ultimately a worse tear. The gospel is not a patch on our old nature; it is the call to become a new creation in Him.

New Wine, Old Wineskins

Next, Jesus turns to the picture of new wine and old bottles (wineskins). Fresh wine continues to ferment and expand, and in Jesus’ day it needed to be stored in fresh, flexible skins that could stretch without bursting. Old skins, already stretched and hardened, would split under the pressure, wasting both wine and container.

The “new wine” points to the living, powerful, expansive work of Christ—His kingdom, His Spirit, His grace. The “old bottles” picture rigid religious forms and hardened hearts that cannot bear the transforming pressure of that new life. Jesus is warning that His way cannot be confined inside cold tradition or self‑made rules; it demands hearts made new, softened and made flexible by repentance and faith.

“The Old Is Better”

The parable ends with a searching observation: “No man also having drunk old wine straightway desireth new: for he saith, The old is better.” (Luke 5:39, KJV) People accustomed to the “old wine” of familiar patterns, even when those patterns are spiritually empty, often resist change. The Pharisees were satisfied with their inherited system and did not feel their need for the Messiah’s transforming work.

This exposes a tendency in every heart: we grow comfortable with what we know, even if it leaves us far from God. We may cling to an “old” identity, an “old” bitterness, or an “old” religious routine, simply because it feels safe. The Lord’s new wine threatens our control, our habits, and our pride, so we quietly say in our hearts, “The old is better.”

Living the Parable Today

This parable presses several questions on us today.

• Are we asking Jesus to be a patch—fixing a few tears—while we keep the same foundation of self‑reliance and sin? The Lord does not offer repair without regeneration. He calls us to put off the old man and put on the new.
• Are we expecting the living Christ to fit inside old, rigid patterns—an unchanged schedule, an unrepentant lifestyle, a purely external religion? New wine belongs in new wineskins: hearts surrendered, minds renewed, lives open to His leading.
• Are we secretly convinced that “the old is better”? When the Spirit convicts us, invites us deeper into prayer, Scripture, obedience, or service, do we retreat into what is familiar instead of stepping into what is new?

An example helps. Imagine a person who has always related to God by checking religious boxes—attending services, saying certain prayers, keeping up appearances. When they come to Christ, they may be tempted to simply add a Bible study or a worship playlist as a “patch” on the same old mindset. But the new wine of the gospel presses for more: genuine humility, reconciliation with others, sacrificial love, a willingness to confess sin and be changed. That requires a new wineskin—new priorities, new habits, new openness to the Spirit’s work.

Luke 5:36–39 invites us to stop negotiating with Jesus about how little can change and still be “fixed.” Instead, it calls us to yield our whole selves to Him, that He might clothe us in His righteousness, fill us with His life, and make us truly new.

Be sure to check the other parable studies in the Gospels:

Matthew
Mark
John

For further study and deeper understanding check out
Discovering the Path of Salvation series by Stephen Luckett