Bible Verses

The Best 50+ Bible Verses About Alcohol

Created:
January 15, 2025
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Updated:
January 15, 2025
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Author:
Joseph Cox

Alcohol holds a significant place in the Bible, appearing in various contexts that range from celebration to cautionary tales. These verses are powerful because they offer timeless wisdom and insights into human behavior and spirituality.

By exploring these passages, readers can find inspiration and guidance on how to approach alcohol in their own lives. The Bible's nuanced perspective encourages moderation, responsibility, and a deeper understanding of one's actions.

Ultimately, these verses serve as a reminder of the importance of balance and mindfulness. They invite readers to reflect on their choices and the impact those choices have on their spiritual journey.

50 Bible Verses About Alcohol

10 Bible Verses on Alcohol and Moderation

Proverbs 20:1
  • "Wine is a mocker, Strong drink is a brawler, And whoever is led astray by it is not wise." — Proverbs 20:1
  • "Likewise deacons must be reverent, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy for money." — 1 Timothy 3:8
  • "The older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things." — Titus 2:3
  • "All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any." — 1 Corinthians 6:12
  • "For we have spent enough of our past lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles—when we walked in lewdness, lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries." — 1 Peter 4:3
  • "It is good neither to eat meat nor drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles or is offended or is made weak." — Romans 14:21
  • "And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit." — Ephesians 5:18
  • "Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." — 1 Corinthians 10:31
  • "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law." — Galatians 5:22-23
  • "No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for your stomach’s sake and your frequent infirmities." — 1 Timothy 5:23

10 Bible Verses on Alcohol and Wisdom

Proverbs 23:19-21
  • "Hear, my son, and be wise; And guide your heart in the way. Do not mix with winebibbers, Or with gluttonous eaters of meat; For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, And drowsiness will clothe a man with rags." — Proverbs 23:19-21
  • "Do not hasten in your spirit to be angry, For anger rests in the bosom of fools." — Ecclesiastes 7:9
  • "It is not for kings, O Lemuel, It is not for kings to drink wine, Nor for princes intoxicating drink; Lest they drink and forget the law, And pervert the justice of all the afflicted." — Proverbs 31:4-5
  • "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him." — James 1:5
  • "For the Lord gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding." — Proverbs 2:6
  • "Wisdom is the principal thing; Therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding." — Proverbs 4:7
  • "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord." — Colossians 3:16
  • "But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy." — James 3:17
  • "He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will be destroyed." — Proverbs 13:20
  • "Teach me good judgment and knowledge, For I believe Your commandments." — Psalm 119:66

10 Bible Verses on Alcohol and Consequences

Proverbs 23:29-35
  • "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; At the last it bites like a serpent, And stings like a viper. Your eyes will see strange things, And your heart will utter perverse things. Yes, you will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea, Or like one who lies at the top of the mast, saying: 'They have struck me, but I was not hurt; They have beaten me, but I did not feel it. When shall I awake, that I may seek another drink?'" — Proverbs 23:29-35
  • "Woe to those who rise early in the morning, That they may follow intoxicating drink; Who continue until night, till wine inflames them!" — Isaiah 5:11
  • "Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbor, Pressing him to your bottle, Even to make him drunk, That you may look on his nakedness!" — Habakkuk 2:15
  • "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life." — Galatians 6:7-8
  • "Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God." — 1 Corinthians 6:9-10
  • "But they also have erred through wine, And through intoxicating drink are out of the way; The priest and the prophet have erred through intoxicating drink, They are swallowed up by wine, They are out of the way through intoxicating drink; They err in vision, they stumble in judgment." — Isaiah 28:7
  • "Harlotry, wine, and new wine enslave the heart." — Hosea 4:11
  • "He who loves pleasure will be a poor man; He who loves wine and oil will not be rich." — Proverbs 21:17
  • "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." — 1 Peter 5:8
  • "Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy." — Romans 13:13

10 Bible Verses on Alcohol in Celebration

John 2:1-11
  • "On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, 'They have no wine.' Jesus said to her, 'Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.' His mother said to the servants, 'Whatever He says to you, do it.' Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. Jesus said to them, 'Fill the waterpots with water.' And they filled them up to the brim. And He said to them, 'Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.' And they took it. 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!' This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him." — John 2:1-11
  • "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
  • "And you shall spend that money for whatever your heart desires: for oxen or sheep, for wine or similar drink, for whatever your heart desires; you shall eat there before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your household." — Deuteronomy 14:26
  • "And in this mountain The Lord of hosts will make for all people A feast of choice pieces, A feast of wines on the lees, Of fat things full of marrow, Of well-refined wines on the lees." — Isaiah 25:6
  • "I will bring back the captives of My people Israel; They shall build the waste cities and inhabit them; They shall plant vineyards and drink wine from them; They shall also make gardens and eat fruit from them." — Amos 9:14
  • "Go, eat your bread with joy, And drink your wine with a merry heart; For God has already accepted your works." — Ecclesiastes 9:7
  • "But the vine said to them, 'Should I cease my new wine, Which cheers both God and men, And go to sway over trees?'" — Judges 9:13
  • "Moreover those who were near to them, from as far away as Issachar and Zebulun and Naphtali, were bringing food on donkeys and camels, on mules and oxen—provisions of flour and cakes of figs and cakes of raisins, wine and oil and oxen and sheep abundantly, for there was joy in Israel." — 1 Chronicles 12:40
  • "Then he said to them, 'Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.'" — Nehemiah 8:10
  • "For I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes." — Luke 22:18

10 Bible Verses on Alcohol and Sobriety

1 Thessalonians 5:6-8
  • "Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night. But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation." — 1 Thessalonians 5:6-8
  • "Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ." — 1 Peter 1:13
  • "Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age." — Titus 2:12
  • "And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God." — Romans 12:2
  • "But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry." — 2 Timothy 4:5
  • "Awake to righteousness, and do not sin; for some do not have the knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame." — 1 Corinthians 15:34
  • "And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown." — 1 Corinthians 9:25
  • "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." — 1 Peter 5:8
  • "But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness." — 2 Peter 1:5-6
  • "I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh." — Galatians 5:16

What Does the Bible Say About Alcohol

The Bible offers a multifaceted perspective on alcohol, emphasizing moderation, wisdom, and the consequences of overindulgence. Verses like Proverbs 20:1 and 1 Timothy 3:8 highlight the importance of moderation, warning that excessive drinking can lead to poor judgment and destructive behavior. These teachings encourage us to approach alcohol with a sense of responsibility and self-control.

Wisdom is another key theme, as seen in Proverbs 23:19-21 and James 1:5. The Bible advises us to seek wisdom from God and to avoid the pitfalls of excessive drinking, which can cloud our judgment and lead to negative outcomes. By embracing wisdom, we can make better choices that align with our spiritual values and lead to a more fulfilling life.

The consequences of alcohol abuse are starkly illustrated in verses like Isaiah 5:11 and 1 Corinthians 6:9-10. These passages serve as cautionary tales, reminding us that overindulgence can lead to physical, emotional, and spiritual harm. However, the Bible also offers hope and redemption, encouraging us to seek a balanced and mindful approach to alcohol.

Finally, the Bible acknowledges the role of alcohol in celebration, as seen in John 2:1-11 and Psalm 104:14-15. These verses remind us that alcohol can be enjoyed responsibly and in a way that brings joy and fellowship. By applying these teachings, we can navigate our relationship with alcohol in a way that honors our faith and promotes well-being.

How to Apply Alcohol Bible Verses in Daily Life

Applying the Bible's teachings on alcohol in daily life can lead to a more balanced and fulfilling existence. Start by practicing moderation in all things, including alcohol consumption.

Seek wisdom and guidance through prayer and reflection. This can help you make better decisions and avoid the pitfalls of overindulgence.

  • Set personal limits on alcohol intake and stick to them.
  • Engage in activities that promote mindfulness and self-control, such as meditation or journaling.
  • Surround yourself with a supportive community that shares your values.

Be mindful of the consequences of excessive drinking. Reflect on the potential physical, emotional, and spiritual harm that can result from overindulgence.

Celebrate responsibly by enjoying alcohol in a way that enhances joy and fellowship without leading to excess.

By incorporating these teachings into your daily life, you can honor your faith and promote well-being. For more prayers and Bible verses, visit PrayersFor or try our Bible Verse Generator to deepen your understanding and faith.

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