🍷 To Wine or Not to Wine?

The Bible does not contain a universal command that all people must never drink any wine at all. In fact, Scripture sometimes speaks positively of wine (e.g., Psalm 104:15 calls it something that “gladdens the heart of man,” Jesus turned water into wine at a wedding in John 2:1-11, and Paul told Timothy to drink “a little wine” for his stomach in 1 Timothy 5:23). However, the Bible issues repeated, strong warnings against wine and strong drink when they lead to intoxication, excess, or loss of self-control. It also ties total abstinence to specific calls for holiness and consecration (e.g., priests and Nazirites). Drunkenness is explicitly listed as sinful behavior that contradicts a holy life. Below is the clearest biblical evidence on both points.


  1. Direct warnings that Wine/Strong Drink is dangerous and should be avoided:
    These verses treat wine (especially when it intoxicates) as something that deceives, mocks, and destroys wisdom and self-control:

    “Wine is a mocker and beer a brawler; whoever is led astray by them is not wise.”"
    - Proverbs 20:1
    A vivid description of the misery of drunkenness:
    “Who has woe? Who has sorrow? … Those who linger over wine, who go to sample bowls of mixed wine. Do not gaze at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down smoothly! In the end it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper. Your eyes will see strange sights, and your mind will imagine confusing things…”
    - Proverbs 23:29-35
    “Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.”
    - Ephesians 5:18
    “Wine and new wine take away the understanding.”
    - Hosea 4:11
    “Woe to those who rise early in the morning to run after their drinks, who stay up late at night till they are inflamed with wine.”
    - Isaiah 5:11

  2. Specific commands for total abstinence tied to Holiness/Consecration:
    Certain groups were required to abstain completely as part of being set apart for God:

    “You and your sons are not to drink wine or other fermented drink whenever you go into the tent of meeting, or you will die. This is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come.”
    - Leviticus 10:9 (to priests)
    This was a voluntary but highly honoured way to live especially holy before God.
    Nazirite vow of special consecration/holiness :
    “If a man or woman wants to make a special vow, a vow of dedication to the LORD as a Nazirite, they must abstain from wine and other fermented drink and must not drink any wine vinegar, strong drink or grape juice… They must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, not even the seeds or skins.”
    - Numbers 6:1-4
    Samson and John the Baptist; their mothers were commanded:
    “Drink no wine or other fermented drink… for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb.”
    - Judges 13:4,7 & Luke 1:15
    “No priest is to drink wine when he enters the inner court.”
    - Ezekiel 44:21 (priests again)
    The Rechabites were praised by God for their lifelong refusal of wine (Jeremiah 35:6-14, 18-19).

  3. Drunkenness explicitly contradicts Holy Living:
    Holiness in Scripture means being set apart for God, pure, self-controlled, and reflecting His character. Drunkenness is repeatedly listed as the opposite:

    “But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.’”
    - 1 Peter 1:15-16 (quoting Leviticus 19:2)
    “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world…”
    - Romans 12:1-2
    ““The acts of the flesh are obvious: … drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
    - Galatians 5:19-21
    “…nor drunkards… will inherit the kingdom of God.”
    - 1 Corinthians 6:9-10
    “For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.”
    - 1 Thessalonians 4:7
    Sobriety = clear-minded holiness.
    “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion…”
    - 1 Peter 5:8
    “It is good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weak.”
    - Romans 14:21

    4. Summary:

    Key take away: Ephesians 5:18 sets up a direct contrast — do not be drunk with wine (which produces debauchery and loss of control), but be filled with the Spirit (which produces holy living: love, joy, peace, self-control — Galatians 5:22-23). Drunkenness defiles the body, which Scripture calls the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). A person under the influence of alcohol cannot fully offer themselves as a “living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God.”

    The Bible never says “wine is always sinful for every person.” But it gives overwhelming evidence that:

    • - Wine easily deceives and leads to ruin.
    • - Certain holy callings require total abstinence.
    • - Drunkenness is a serious sin that keeps people out of the kingdom and is incompatible with the holy life God commands (“Be holy because I am holy”).
    Many faithful Christians throughout history have therefore chosen complete abstinence as the safest, most holy path — not because the Bible forbids a single sip, but because they want nothing to hinder full surrender to the Holy Spirit. If your goal is to live a life that is unmistakably holy, set apart, and Spirit-filled, the consistent biblical counsel is to avoid anything that risks intoxication or causes others to stumble.

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