WINE and STRONG DRINK

1. There are several words used for wine in the Bible.

a. יַ֫יִן, H3516. This is the usual word for the fermented juice of the grape and is generally rendered “wine” in RSV and KJV. It is used 141 times in the OT, appears in the cognate languages, but perhaps is not of Sem. origin. The Gr. equivalent is οἶνος, G3885.

b. תִּירﯴשׁ, H9408. The usual tr. of this word is “wine,” but RSV and KJV occasionally render it “new wine,” which is its actual meaning. It was a specific reference to comparatively fresh grape juice which was not fully aged. References to tirōsh indicate that when incontinently used it was intoxicating. Hosea 4:11 says that both “yăyĭn and tirōsh take away the understanding” (cf. Judg 9:13; Acts 2:13). The LXX renders the word tirōsh by oinos.

c. חֶ֫מֶר, H2815. This word is derived from a root meaning “to ferment.” It is a poetic term for wine in the Heb. (Deut 32:14), and appears in the cognate Aram. (Ezra 6:9; 7:22; Dan 5:1, 2, 4, 23).

d. עָסִיס, H6747. This is a poetical synonym for tirōsh, but is derived from the root “to crush, to press.” Like tirōsh it was intoxicating as in Isaiah 49:26 where the prophet says the oppressors of Israel, “shall be drunk with their own blood as with äsis.”

e. שֵׁכָר, H8911. This word usually tr. “strong drink,” is from a root that means “to be or become drunk.” This word is used to denote any intoxicating drink made from any fruit or grain, and in the early period included wine (Num 28:7; cf. 28:14). In Isaiah 5:11 shākär is used in parallel with yăyĭn in referring to intoxicating beverages in general. The term shākär eventually became restricted to intoxicants other than wine from grapes. Both shākär and yăyĭn were forbidden to priests and Nazarites (Lev 10:9; Num 6:3: cf. Judg 13:4, 7, 14; Luke 1:15). In Proverbs 20:1 “Wine (yăyĭn) is a mocker, strong drink (shākär) a brawler” (cf. Prov. 31:4, 6). When Eli accuses Hannah of being intoxicated she responds, “I have drunk neither wine (yăyĭn) nor strong drink (shākär)” (1 Sam 1:15).

2. Mixed wine. In the OT period, wine was used at full strength because diluting it with water was considered undesirable. Wine diluted with water became symbolical of spiritual adulteration (Isa 1:22). In Rom. times it was sometimes mixed with water because some believed this improved it (2 Macc 15:39). Red wine was generally considered to be better and stronger than white wine (Ps 75:8; Prov 23:31). The wines of Lebanon (Hos 14:7) and of Helbon (Ezek 27:18) were prob. white wines. The vineyards of Hebron were famous for their large clusters of grapes (Num 13:23). Samaria was the center of viticulture (Jer 31:5; Mic 1:6) but the Ephraimites had the reputation for being heavy wine drinkers (Isa 28:1).

There was also yăyĭn hä-rěḵäh, “spiced wine” (Song of Solomon 8:2). This represented a variety of wines referred to as mixed or mingled wine. They were prepared with different kinds of herbs after the manner of the non-Israelite peoples of the Near E and were much more intoxicating than the regular wine. This fact made it popular at banquets and festive occasions (Prov 9:2, 5). The Biblical injunctions against its use are clear (Prov 23:29, 30). When wine was mixed with myrrh, it was used as a drug for its anaesthetic and stupefying effects. It was this that was offered to Jesus at the time of His crucifixion (Matt 27:34; Mark 15:23). The rabbinical writers refer to several mixtures of wine, which were known in Pal. and throughout the Near E. There was a mixture made of old wine with very clear water and balsam, which was used esp. after bathing. There was a raisin wine and a wine mixed with a sauce of oil and garum. A popular mixed wine was that mixed with honey and pepper, and recommended by the rabbis was a special emetic wine taken before a meal. There were many other mixtures of wine. Good vinegar was made by mixing barley in the wine.

3. Biblical attitudes to the use of wine. The attitude reflected throughout the Bible to the use of wine as a beverage is accurately expressed by Jesus the Son of Sirach, “Wine measurably drunk and in season bringeth gladness of the heart, and cheerfulness of the mind” (Ecclus 31:28, 29). Its use was universal except in the case of the priest ministering in the sanctuary, the Nazirites, and the Rechabites, in which instances its use was prohibited. There is also a constant awareness of the danger of incontinence in the use of wine and this is denounced as sinful (Prov 20:1; 23:29-35; Isa 5:11, 22; 28:7, 8; Hos 4:11). Apparently the principle to be followed in the use of wine is that of moderation in the light of Paul’s rule of conduct as formulated in 1 Corinthians 8:8-13 and Romans 14:13-21.

Wine receives special commendation in the Bible. There is reference to the “wine which cheers gods and men” (Judg 9:13; cf. Ps 104:15; Eccl 10:19). Used metaphorically wine represents the essence of goodness. The drinking of wine was sometimes accompanied by singing (Isa 24:9). The desirable wife is compared to “a fruitful vine within your house” (Ps 128:3). The blessing of wine is illustrated by the figure in which Israel is compared to a vine which God brought from Egypt and planted in the promised land where “it took deep root and filled the land” with prosperity (Ps 80:8-11). Prosperity was sometimes symbolized by an abundance of wine as when Jacob blessed Judah, saying that “he washes his garments in wine and his vesture in the blood of grapes” (Gen 49:11). A time of peace and affluence is described as a situation in which every man dwells “under his vine and under his fig tree” (1 Kings 4:25). Isaiah uses wine as a symbol of spiritual blessing (Isa 55:1, 2) and it is extolled in such passages as Ecclesiastes 10:19. It appears that a temperate use of wine is not reprehensible (Esth 1:10; Ps 104:15; Eccl 10:19; Zech 10:7). References to wine in the Bible make it clear that its use was a common everyday affair and a part of the regular diet (Gen 14:18; Judg 19:19; 1 Sam 16:20; 2 Chron 11:11).

On the other hand, there are repeated warnings in the Scriptures against the intemperate use of wine. Isaiah warns those who “run after strong drink, who tarry late into the evening till wine inflames them” (Isa 5:11, 22). He condemns the priests and the prophets who “reel” and “are confused” with wine (28:7) and the shepherds who “have no understanding” because they say “let us get wine, let us fill ourselves with strong drink” (56:11, 12). Some of the strongest warnings against intemperance are in the Book of Proverbs. “Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler” (20:1). An intemperate use of wine leads to poverty (Prov 21:17; cf. 23:20, 21). Proverbs warns, “Do not look at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup and goes down smoothly” (23:31). This is followed by a description of the hallucinations that follow immoderate drinking of wine (23:32-34). Micah chides the people of his time for preferring a preacher who will preach of “wine and strong drink” (Mic 2:11). Habakkuk says that “wine is treacherous” and suggests that its intemperate use is characteristic of a person who has other character weaknesses (Hab 2:5). The real undesirable possibilities in the abuse of wine led to the prohibitions against its use by Nazirites and also priests when performing their duties (Lev 10:9; Num 6:3; Ezek 44:21).

There is no direct or absolute prohibition of the use of wine in the NT. The moderate and appropriate use of wine is recommended to Timothy by Paul, “No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments” (1 Tim 5:23). The intemperate use of wine is condemned in the NT just as it is in the OT. The Christian should “not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery” (Eph 5:18). Christians should avoid living like non-Christians who are characterized as practicing drunkenness among their other vices (1 Pet 4:3). Leaders in the church are exhorted to practice temperance (1 Tim 3:3, 8). On one occasion Paul suggests total abstinence, if the use of wine even in moderation is a stumbling block to another (Rom 14:21).

4. Viticulture in Palestine. Viticulture and the production of wine was important in the ancient Near E and is described in the Bible. There are many references to the process of making wine in the Bible (Gen 40:11; Deut 18:4; Josh 9:4; 1 Chron 27:27; Ezek 17:5-10). The vineyards were protected against vandalism by watchmen located in observation towers and were carefully cultivated. No other plants were permitted to grow between the vines. An owner of a vineyard was exempt from military service at the time of the grape harvest in September which was the season apparently for great festivity (Jer 25:30; 48:33). The vintage is referred to in connection with the Feast of Booths (Deut 16:13). Travelers were permitted to help themselves to the new wine and the poor could take what grapes remained on the ground, as they could with the harvest of all the crops. In the Sabbatical year the vineyards, as in the case of all farmlands, were to lie fallow.

The grapes were brought from the vineyards in baskets and were usually spread out for a few days in the sun, the effect of which was to increase their sugar content. The grapes were then placed in wine vats and trodden with bare feet. It seems to have been usual for several people to tread out the grapes together which is the point of Isaiah’s statement about the Messiah treading the wine press alone (Isa 63:3). The usual wine vat consisted of three sections, two rectangular or circular rock-hewn pits at different levels connected with a channel. The upper pit was the larger one and here the grapes were trodden, the juice accumulating in the lower vat. The upper vat was usually twice the size in area as the lower, but only about half as deep. The wine vats varied in size. Even after the appearance of mechanical wine presses the wine from trodden grapes was preferred and continued to be produced.

After the grapes were trodden, the husks that remained were pressed by means of a wooden plank, one end of which was secured to a socket in the side of the vat and the other end weighted with stones. Numbers of wine presses from Bible times have been discovered in the Holy Land and they vary in size and the number of vats. A wine press might have as many as four vats. The additional vats would allow for the settling of the “must” in the intermediate levels before the wine entered the final one. Usually the new wine was left in the vat to undergo the first fermentation which took from four to seven days. It was then drawn off (Hag 2:16, lit. “baled out”). If the vat had a spout the wine was run off into jars or wineskins to complete the process of fermentation (Matt 9:17). The whole period of fermentation would last from two to four months when the wine would be ready for use. It would then be placed in smaller jars and skins. At this time the wine was strained through an earthenware, metal, or linen strainer to eliminate such things as grit and insects. Isaiah refers to this straining process when he mentions “wine on the lees well refined” (Isa 25:6; cf. Matt 23:24).

To aid in further maturing the wine and to guard against undesirable thickening on the lees it was periodically poured from one vessel to another. Jeremiah has an allusion to this practice, “Moab has been at ease from his youth and has settled on his lees; he has not been emptied from vessel to vessel, nor has he gone into exile; so his taste remains in him, and his scent is not changed” (Jer 48:11; cf. Zeph 1:12). When the wine was refined and ready to be stored for long periods of time it was poured in jars lined with pitch which were sealed and placed in the “wine cellers” (1 Chron 27:27). There apparently were no attempts made to preserve wine in an unfermented state. The Mishna, for example, does not refer to any such attempts. Some scholars are of the opinion that unfermented wine was impossible in ancient times in Pal.

5. Uses of wine in the Biblical world. Wine was universally used in the ancient world of the Near E in libation offerings to the gods of paganism. The Hebrews were constantly warned against becoming involved in these sacrifices to foreign gods (Deut 32:37, 38; Isa 57:6; 65:11; Jer 7:18; 19:13). The “drink offerings” which sometimes were a part of the Levitical sacrifices were of wine (Exod 29:40; Lev 23:13; Num 15:7, 10; 28:14). The worshiper customarily brought wine among other requirements when he went to offer sacrifice (1 Sam 1:24; 10:3, 8). A supply of wine was kept in the Temple for sacrificial purposes (1 Chron 9:29).

Besides its customary use, wine was important in various special occasions and for particular reasons. It was used for medicinal purposes, for example, to revive the faint (2 Sam 16:2), and as a sedative “to those in bitter distress” (Prov 31:6). It was the custom in Talmudic times to give ten cups of wine to mourners with the “meal of consolation” (Prov 31:6). Later this quantity of wine was reduced. Paul’s prescription of “a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments” (1 Tim 5:23) was widely practiced. The rabbis used a widely quoted saying, “Wine is the greatest of all medicines; where wine is lacking, there drugs are necessary.” It was used in the dressing of wounds of the man who had fallen among robbers “pouring on oil and wine” (Luke 10:34). Wine was also used at special occasions such as banquets. At the great banquet given by King Ahasuerus, the wine given to each guest according to Jewish tradition was from the king’s home province and of the vintage of the year of his birth (Esth 1:3, 7). The Heb. word for “feast” or “banquet” is מִשְׁתֶּה, H5492, “a drinking,” from the root שׁתה, “to drink” (Esth 2:16; 8:17). Wine also figures prominently as a desirable gift for important people as when David received “skins of wine” from Abigail (1 Sam 25:18) and Ziba (2 Sam 16:1). Because of its importance in every area of the life of Pal., it was inevitable that wine should become an important commodity in business and commerce. When Solomon built the Temple in Jersualem, he paid Hiram, king of Tyre, among other things, 20,000 bottles of wine for timber from Lebanon and the help of Hiram’s experts.

The use of wine has been a part of religious ceremonies and festive occasions in the Jewish home and in the synagogue throughout Heb. history. Viticulture soon became the most important agricultural activity in Pal. in the colonies established by Zionism. The cellars of the Rothchilds at Rishon le-Ziyyon controlled almost the entire produce of the Zionist colonies and was distributed through the Carmel Wine Company in all parts of Europe, Russia, and the United States. The 1904 vintage in the Rothchild cellars was more than 7,000,000 bottles of which 200,000 went to Warsaw. The income of this trade in wine was of primary importance for the early economy of the Jewish homeland. During the period of prohibition in the United States (1920-1933) the production and sale of wine for sacramental purposes was permitted by the federal government. Orthodox rabbis insisted upon the use of wine although Conservative and Reform rabbis in the country held on the basis of Talmudic law, that for Jewish ritual grape juice could be used instead of wine.

Bibliography' M. Jastrow, Jr., “Wine in the Pentateuchal Codes,” JAOS, XXXIII (1913), 180-192; H. F. Lutz, Viticulture and Brewing in the Ancient Orient (1922); A. C. Haddad, Palestine Speaks (1936), 60-67.