Alcoholic Beverage Are Design To Help People Forget Their Misery
Give strong drink to him who is perishing, And wine to those who are bitter of heart. Let him drink and forget his poverty, And remember his misery no more. (Proverbs 31:6-7) NKJV.
Do you think there is any positive blessing connected with drinking in the Bible? There are some statements that we are going to look at. We’ll see whether or not they apply to alcoholic beverages.
The statements given in the Word of God which have to do with mixing grains to make alcoholic content greater are all very clear in that we should have nothing to do with it. Don’t even look at it! That what Proverbs 23:31 says! It’s only for those who are dying and want to end it all.
Alcoholic Beverage Are Developed To A Stage Of Fermentation That Is Not Recommended In The Bible
I want to repeat this because people attack this point. The Bible is very detailed, practical clear.
Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has complaints? Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes? Those who linger long at the wine, Those who go in search of mixed wine Do not look on the wine when it is red, When it sparkles in the cup, When it swirls around smoothly; (Prov. 23:29-31) NKJV.
There is a lot of debate over what the translation here really implies, but there is one thing that is very obvious it is talking about stage of fermentation where the wine is very active. God says, Don’t even look at it! Stay away from it completely.
There are a lot of questions that come into people minds, so I want to go into this a little further. I’ve have said that alcohol beverages which are developed to the stage that we have them today, is never recommended in the Bible. But there are some positive statements in the Bible.
They Are Not the Wine that Reminds Us of the Blessing of the Lord
He causes the grass to grow for the cattle, And vegetation for the service of man, That he may bring forth food from the earth, And wine that makes glad the heart of man, Oil to make his face shine, And bread which strengthens man’s heart. (Psalm 104:14-15) NKJV.
There! That justifies alcoholic beverages, some people say. No, it don’t it’s talking about that which God created; it’s not talking about the processes of man which follow His creation. He’s talking about stirring in extra grain in order to ferment it. He’s talking about the product of God’s own creation! It is a perversion of the Word of God’s to use this verse to justify alcoholic beverages.
Go, eat your bread with joy, And drink your wine with a merry heart; For God has already accepted your works. Let your garments always be white, And let your head lack no oil (Eccl. 9:7-8) NKJV.
Remember that “wine” refer to all stages of the grapes from the fresh fruit to the most fermented stage. Only the context can help us. The context here goes on to talking about living a joyfully wife. It is talking about bread and our basic needs. There is not a Jewish commentary in the world that authorizes fermented alcoholic beverages as the interpretation of this passage. It is a beverage we would drink like water, long before any fermentation takes place.
It is talking about God providing for all of our needs. We are to be thankful and to praise the Lord that He’s taking care of us. It has nothing to with the promotion of alcoholic beverages as we know today.
They Are Not the Wine Created by Jesus at the Wedding in Cana
One gentleman who was quick to accept social drinking said to me, “The wedding at Cana of Galilee is all the proof I need!” Really! At the wedding, we have to first of the miracles that Jesus did. His disciple and He attended the wedding and they ran out of wine. The mother of Jesus came and said, “They have no wine.” Jesus performed an amazing miracle!
There were six waterpots of stone and they contained twenty or thirty gallons a piece. He said, “Fill the waterpots with water,” and when they drew it out, here what happened.
When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!” (John 2:9-10) NKJV.
The practice was to let the guests get into a state where they didn’t care whether the wine was good or bad before bringing it out the lesser wine. But what I want to you to see here is that “good wine” has a special meaning.
The grapes are thrown into the wine vat when they bring them in from the field-they are going to trample them out. The sheer pressure causes juices to seep down into a pan they put under the vat. You can still see it done that way today. The workers will run in from the field and drink the juice straight from the pan before they ever start pressing out the grapes. They fight over it! That’s “good wine.”
Can you imagine how many grapes the men would have had to gather to make enough “good wine” to fill all those stone jars. How did they have time to do that? It was an obvious miracle of the Lord and no magical tricks here at all. It was a sensational miracle.
That “good wine” was the only kind of wine that the rabbis would even consider for the “wine tithe”. They never used strongly fermented wines as we know it today.
They Are Not the Wine that Relieves Stomach Problems
No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for your stomach’s sake and your frequent infirmities. (1Timothy 5:23) NKJV.
People often use this verse to justify drinking alcoholic beverages. I don’t know if you know this or not, but in Israel, the medical profession does not recommend alcoholic beverages for stomach problems! If you have the flu, they recommend pure grape juice. You can still go into restaurants in Jerusalem where they put bottles on your table to look like wine. I have seen this many times and have tasted it. It was not wine at all it is pure grape juice!
Why o they recommend grape juice for stomach’s sake? They teach that nutritional value that will help our stomach strongest when it is grape juice. As the process of fermentation goes on it is losing its nutritional value because of because fermentation is a process of decay. This only takes a little thinking for us to understand it. The whole process of fermentation in the Bible is a sedative! It is not teaching that wine has nutritional value for your stomach problems. That is not what Paul recommended. He recommended Grape juice as they still do today.
They Are Not the Wine Used in the Worship of the Lord
And you shall eat before the Lord your God, in the place where He chooses to make His name abide, the tithe of your grain and your new wine and your oil, of the firstborn of your herds and your flocks, that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always (Deut 14:23) NKJV.
If alcoholic processes were as harmless as some people try to tell us, then God wouldn’t be distressed about having them used in worship. How do we know what stage of fermentation is meant here? The Hebrew word is very clear and it only refers to wine less than forty days old and usually, it only refers to grape juice.
As we look over the evidences of the Bible we can learn that alcoholic beverages are dangerous; it is denied to certain people; it is designed to help some people to forget their misery, like a sedative given to those who are dying; it is at a stage of fermentation that is never recommended in the Bible.
Give strong drink to him who is perishing, And wine to those who are bitter of heart. Let him drink and forget his poverty, And remember his misery no more. (Proverbs 31:6-7) NKJV.
Do you think there is any positive blessing connected with drinking in the Bible? There are some statements that we are going to look at. We’ll see whether or not they apply to alcoholic beverages.
The statements given in the Word of God which have to do with mixing grains to make alcoholic content greater are all very clear in that we should have nothing to do with it. Don’t even look at it! That what Proverbs 23:31 says! It’s only for those who are dying and want to end it all.
Alcoholic Beverage Are Developed To A Stage Of Fermentation That Is Not Recommended In The Bible
I want to repeat this because people attack this point. The Bible is very detailed, practical clear.
Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has complaints? Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes? Those who linger long at the wine, Those who go in search of mixed wine Do not look on the wine when it is red, When it sparkles in the cup, When it swirls around smoothly; (Prov. 23:29-31) NKJV.
There is a lot of debate over what the translation here really implies, but there is one thing that is very obvious it is talking about stage of fermentation where the wine is very active. God says, Don’t even look at it! Stay away from it completely.
There are a lot of questions that come into people minds, so I want to go into this a little further. I’ve have said that alcohol beverages which are developed to the stage that we have them today, is never recommended in the Bible. But there are some positive statements in the Bible.
They Are Not the Wine that Reminds Us of the Blessing of the Lord
He causes the grass to grow for the cattle, And vegetation for the service of man, That he may bring forth food from the earth, And wine that makes glad the heart of man, Oil to make his face shine, And bread which strengthens man’s heart. (Psalm 104:14-15) NKJV.
There! That justifies alcoholic beverages, some people say. No, it don’t it’s talking about that which God created; it’s not talking about the processes of man which follow His creation. He’s talking about stirring in extra grain in order to ferment it. He’s talking about the product of God’s own creation! It is a perversion of the Word of God’s to use this verse to justify alcoholic beverages.
Go, eat your bread with joy, And drink your wine with a merry heart; For God has already accepted your works. Let your garments always be white, And let your head lack no oil (Eccl. 9:7-8) NKJV.
Remember that “wine” refer to all stages of the grapes from the fresh fruit to the most fermented stage. Only the context can help us. The context here goes on to talking about living a joyfully wife. It is talking about bread and our basic needs. There is not a Jewish commentary in the world that authorizes fermented alcoholic beverages as the interpretation of this passage. It is a beverage we would drink like water, long before any fermentation takes place.
It is talking about God providing for all of our needs. We are to be thankful and to praise the Lord that He’s taking care of us. It has nothing to with the promotion of alcoholic beverages as we know today.
They Are Not the Wine Created by Jesus at the Wedding in Cana
One gentleman who was quick to accept social drinking said to me, “The wedding at Cana of Galilee is all the proof I need!” Really! At the wedding, we have to first of the miracles that Jesus did. His disciple and He attended the wedding and they ran out of wine. The mother of Jesus came and said, “They have no wine.” Jesus performed an amazing miracle!
There were six waterpots of stone and they contained twenty or thirty gallons a piece. He said, “Fill the waterpots with water,” and when they drew it out, here what happened.
When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!” (John 2:9-10) NKJV.
The practice was to let the guests get into a state where they didn’t care whether the wine was good or bad before bringing it out the lesser wine. But what I want to you to see here is that “good wine” has a special meaning.
The grapes are thrown into the wine vat when they bring them in from the field-they are going to trample them out. The sheer pressure causes juices to seep down into a pan they put under the vat. You can still see it done that way today. The workers will run in from the field and drink the juice straight from the pan before they ever start pressing out the grapes. They fight over it! That’s “good wine.”
Can you imagine how many grapes the men would have had to gather to make enough “good wine” to fill all those stone jars. How did they have time to do that? It was an obvious miracle of the Lord and no magical tricks here at all. It was a sensational miracle.
That “good wine” was the only kind of wine that the rabbis would even consider for the “wine tithe”. They never used strongly fermented wines as we know it today.
They Are Not the Wine that Relieves Stomach Problems
No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for your stomach’s sake and your frequent infirmities. (1Timothy 5:23) NKJV.
People often use this verse to justify drinking alcoholic beverages. I don’t know if you know this or not, but in Israel, the medical profession does not recommend alcoholic beverages for stomach problems! If you have the flu, they recommend pure grape juice. You can still go into restaurants in Jerusalem where they put bottles on your table to look like wine. I have seen this many times and have tasted it. It was not wine at all it is pure grape juice!
Why o they recommend grape juice for stomach’s sake? They teach that nutritional value that will help our stomach strongest when it is grape juice. As the process of fermentation goes on it is losing its nutritional value because of because fermentation is a process of decay. This only takes a little thinking for us to understand it. The whole process of fermentation in the Bible is a sedative! It is not teaching that wine has nutritional value for your stomach problems. That is not what Paul recommended. He recommended Grape juice as they still do today.
They Are Not the Wine Used in the Worship of the Lord
And you shall eat before the Lord your God, in the place where He chooses to make His name abide, the tithe of your grain and your new wine and your oil, of the firstborn of your herds and your flocks, that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always (Deut 14:23) NKJV.
If alcoholic processes were as harmless as some people try to tell us, then God wouldn’t be distressed about having them used in worship. How do we know what stage of fermentation is meant here? The Hebrew word is very clear and it only refers to wine less than forty days old and usually, it only refers to grape juice.
As we look over the evidences of the Bible we can learn that alcoholic beverages are dangerous; it is denied to certain people; it is designed to help some people to forget their misery, like a sedative given to those who are dying; it is at a stage of fermentation that is never recommended in the Bible.