Mark 2:20 is Jesus telling his listeners that a time is coming when he will be taken away from his followers, and that they will fast on that day. The verse explains why his disciples were not fasting like John’s disciples and the Pharisees: while the bridegroom is present, the wedding guests celebrate. Jesus spoke these words in answer to a question about fasting, and he was speaking to the crowds and religious leaders who had noticed the difference.
But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then will they fast in that day.
Mark 2:20 (WEB)
What Mark 2:20 Means
The phrase “the days will come” points forward to a specific future moment in Jesus’ ministry. Jesus is not saying that fasting is wrong. He is saying that fasting has a particular place in the life of faith, and that the right response to his presence is different from the right response to his absence. The “bridegroom” is Jesus himself, and the “groomsmen” in the previous verse are his companions. Their joy in his company is the reason they do not fast at that moment.
The phrase “taken away” refers to Jesus’ coming death, which the Gospel of Mark repeatedly foreshadows. When that day arrives, his followers will grieve, and grief often shows itself through fasting in the Bible. The verse does not promise a set schedule of fasting for every believer, nor does it say that fasting must always be done in sadness. It simply observes that the emotional and spiritual shape of faith changes depending on whether Jesus is physically with his people or not.
The Context of Mark 2:20
The Gospel of Mark is traditionally attributed to John Mark, a companion of the apostles, and it was written primarily for a Gentile audience, probably in the late first century. It presents Jesus in fast-moving scenes, emphasizing his authority, his compassion for outcasts, and the growing opposition of religious leaders. Mark 2:20 sits inside a cluster of controversy stories, where Jesus is questioned about eating with sinners, fasting, and healing on the Sabbath.
Just before the verse, Jesus says he came to call sinners, not the righteous. Just after it, he gives two short images about sewing new cloth onto old garments and putting new wine into old wineskins. Read in that setting, the verse becomes part of a larger point: Jesus is bringing something new that cannot be fitted neatly into old routines. The wedding imagery, the patch, and the wine all say the same thing in different ways, which helps explain why the disciples did not follow the familiar pattern of fasting at that time.
Key Phrases in Mark 2:20
Matthew 9:15
Jesus said to them, “Can the friends of the bridegroom mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast.
(WEB)
Matthew records a parallel version of this teaching, which helps confirm the meaning of the saying. Reading the two accounts together shows how the early church remembered Jesus’ words about the wedding guests and the bridegroom. The repetition across Gospels gives readers a firmer grasp of the point Jesus was making.
Isaiah 62:5
For as a young man marries a virgin, so your sons will marry you. As a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so your God will rejoice over you.
(WEB)
Isaiah uses the imagery of a bridegroom rejoicing over his bride to describe God’s delight in his people. This passage helps explain why the bridegroom image would have felt so meaningful to Jesus’ hearers. It reveals the tenderness and joy at the heart of the relationship that Jesus was describing.
A Short Prayer From Mark 2:20
Lord Jesus, you are the one who brings joy to your people, and I thank you for your presence in my life. When I feel your nearness, help me to rejoice and not to take it for granted. When I feel the sorrow of your absence or the weight of loss, teach me to seek you honestly and to bring my grief into your hands. Shape my heart so that my worship and my prayers reflect the seasons you have placed me in. Amen.
