Mark 2:18

King James Version (KJV)

And the disciples of John and of the Pharisees used to fast: and they come and say unto him, Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but thy disciples fast not?

Adam Clarke
Bible Commentary

Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast - See this largely explained on Matthew 9:14; (note), etc. The following vices are very common to Pharisees.

They are more busied in censuring the conduct of others than in rectifying their own.

They desire that every one should regulate his piety by theirs; and embrace their particular customs and forms of devotion.

They speak of and compare themselves with other people, only that they may have an opportunity of distinguishing and exalting themselves.

On the nature, times, and duration of fasting, see Matthew 6:16; Matthew 9:15.

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Albert Barnes
Notes on the Whole Bible

And the disciples of John and of the Pharisees used to fast - Were accustomed often to fast. Compare Luke 5:33; Luke 18:12.

And they come and say - The disciples of John come, Matthew 9:4.

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Matthew Henry
Concise Bible Commentary

Strict professors are apt to blame all that do not fully come up to their own views. Christ did not escape slanders; we should be willing to bear them, as well as careful not to deserve them; but should attend to every part of our duty in its proper order and season.

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SDA Bible Commentary (limited)
Volume 1-7

18. The disciples of John. [The Question About Fasting, Mark 2:18-22=Matt. 9:14-17=Luke 5:33-39. Major comment: Mark. See Middle Galilean Ministry; on parables pp. 203-207.]

Used to fast. Probably better, “were fasting.” Doubtless John’s disciples shared at least to some extent in his abstemious way of life (see Matt. 3:4), as is evidenced here by their fasting. It seems clear that they were, indeed, fasting at the very time they brought their question to Jesus.

An ancient Jewish treatise on fasting from the 1st century a.d., Megillath Ta‘anith, mentions Jews who at that time regularly fasted on the second and fifth days of the week, that is, Monday and Thursday (see Luke 18:12). Although Jewish tradition attributes this custom to the story that Moses began his 40-day fast on Mt. Sinai (see Ex. 34:28) on a Thursday and terminated it on a Monday, it seems probable that the observance of these two days as fasts actually arose from the desire to keep them as far as possible from the Sabbath, and at the same time not to have them too close together. See Strack and Billerbeck, Kommentar zum Neuen Testament, vol. 2, pp. 241-243.

Strack and Billerbeck, leading authorities on ancient Judaism, indicate that the exact motives behind these biweekly fasts are not entirely clear, but it seems probable that they arose through a desire on the part of particularly earnest people to seek to atone for the worldliness of the nation, which they felt was fast bringing on its destruction. In general among the ancient Jews fasting was undertaken by individuals in order to make good a misdeed or to ensure the favorable answer to a prayer or fulfillment of a wish. Indeed, many seem to have fasted because they believed such an act earned special merit for them before God.

These uses of fasting rested, of course, upon a misconception of the character of God and of the nature of righteousness. Too often fasting degenerated into a means of righteousness by works through which men hoped to appease an austere God and earn His favor, regardless of the state of their hearts. Centuries before the time of Jesus the prophets had denounced such ideas, declaring that God had come to abhor Israel’s fasts and other religious observances (Isa. 58:3-5; Zech. 7:5, 6).

There are times when the Christian needs keenness of thought and discriminating judgment; he may have important decisions to make, or may need to discern more clearly the will of God. Under such circumstances fasting can prove a great blessing. Such fasting may not necessarily mean complete abstinence from food, but a diet limited to the simple essentials for maintaining health and vigor. The Christian may, like Daniel, refrain from the use of “pleasant bread” (Dan 10:3). God is not honored and one’s Christian experience is not promoted by any practice that weakens the body or impairs the health. See Matt. 6:16.

They come and say. Those here designated are not clearly identified, nor is the Gospel of Luke clearer in this respect (see Luke 5:33). However, Matthew states definitely that it was the disciples of John the Baptist who plied Jesus with the query in regard to fasting (Matt. 9:14).

According to the tentative chronology adopted in this commentary, John had been imprisoned in the early spring of this year, a.d. 29, and probably was executed shortly before the Passover of a.d. 30 (see on Matt. 4:12; Mark 6:14-29; Luke 3:19, 20). His disciples raised their question on fasting probably not more than a few months before he died.

Thy disciples fast not. Thus the scribes apparently hoped to alienate the rapidly growing body of disciples from their Master.

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Ellen G. White
The Desire of Ages, 272-80

This chapter is based on Matthew 9:9-17; Mark 2:14-22; Luke 5:27-39.

Of the Roman officials in Palestine, none were more hated than the publicans. The fact that the taxes were imposed by a foreign power was a continual irritation to the Jews, being a reminder that their independence had departed. And the taxgatherers were not merely the instruments of Roman oppression; they were extortioners on their own account, enriching themselves at the expense of the people. A Jew who accepted this office at the hands of the Romans was looked upon as betraying the honor of his nation. He was despised as an apostate, and was classed with the vilest of society. DA 272.1

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