^14 (A)And as he passed by, he saw ^(B)Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him.

¹⁵ And as he reclined at table in his house, many ^(C)tax collectors and sinners were reclining with Jesus and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. ¹⁶ And ^(D)the scribes of^[a] the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, ^(E)“Why does he eat^[b] with tax collectors and sinners?” ¹⁷ And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. ^(F)I came not to call the righteous, ^(G)but sinners.”

A Question About Fasting

¹⁸ Now ^(H)John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. And people came and said to him, ^(I)“Why do John's disciples and ^(J)the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” ¹⁹ And Jesus said to them, ^(K)“Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. ^20 (L)The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and ^(M)then they will fast in that day. ²¹ No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. ²² And no one puts new wine into old ^(N)wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins.”^[c]

Jesus Calls Levi

^27 (A)After this he went out and saw ^(B)a tax collector named ^(C)Levi, sitting at the tax booth. And he said to him, “Follow me.” ²⁸ And ^(D)leaving everything, he rose and followed him.

²⁹ And Levi made him a great feast in his house, and there was a large company ^(E)of tax collectors and others reclining at table with them. ³⁰ And the Pharisees and ^(F)their scribes grumbled at his disciples, saying, ^(G)“Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” ³¹ And Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. ^32 (H)I have not come to call the righteous ^(I)but sinners ^(J)to repentance.”

A Question About Fasting

³³ And they said to him, ^(K)“The disciples of John ^(L)fast often and ^(M)offer prayers, ^(N)and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink.” ³⁴ And Jesus said to them, ^(O)“Can you make wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? ^35 (P)The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and ^(Q)then they will fast in those days.” ³⁶ He also told them a parable: “No one tears a piece from a new garment and puts it on an old garment. If he does, he will tear the new, and the piece from the new will not match the old. ³⁷ And no one puts new wine into old ^(R)wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. ³⁸ But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins.