References to wine and wine-related themes abound in the Bible, and yet few understand how deeply the theme of wine is woven into God’s story of creation, provision, and redemption. Wine in the Bible is presented as a gift and tangible blessing from God. It is to bring us joy (Psalm 104:15) and help us connect more deeply with God, each other, and the land the God provides for his people.
1 Kings 4:25 presents a beautiful yet humble vision of how God desires his people to live: Israel and Judah, under the rule of Solomon, live in peace and safety, each under their own vine and fig tree. It is not a vision of grand landowners but of small farmers with just enough land to provide for their daily needs and a little extra for feasts and celebrations and to share with those in need.
In Biblical times wine was understood not as a luxury or elitist beverage but as the primary drink, a food item and a daily necessity. Wine is nutritious and was used for medicinal purposes. It had important religious and economic roles, and the enjoyment of wine was deeply woven into the social fabric of God’s people living on God’s land:
- The Israelites offered wine at the temple as a sacrifice, and it had an important role in the religious celebrations such as the Sabbath, the Passover meal, and the Feast of Harvest (Lev. 23).
- It was enjoyed regularly at family meals and celebrations such as weddings, birthdays, and the weaning of children.
- Jesus’ first miracle was transforming water into wine at the wedding feast of Cana.
- And in the Lord’s Supper Jesus elevates wine to new heights as this tangible and precious gift of wine now speaks of Christ’s precious blood shed on the cross.
But to fully understand the complex way the theme of wine is woven throughout the Bible we must go all the way back to the beginning.
Wine in Genesis: God the Master Farmer
The Bible presents God as the Creator of the whole world, including all fruit-growing trees and plants that serve to feed both humans and animals (Genesis 1-2, Psalm 104).
Scripture envisions God as the master farmer who enables all things to grow and flourish upon his earth (Gen. 2:9, Psalm 104:10-16). Agricultural abundance is a sign of God’s blessing upon his people who are called to live in covenant faithfulness with him.
This is foundational for understanding the theme and role of wine in the Bible: a gift from God and an expression of God’s benevolence upon his people whom he set apart to reflect his presence and character on the earth so that all the nations might blessed.
Noah, Man of the Earth and the Vine
The first person in the Bible to plant a vineyard and craft wine is Noah, who like Adam, is called a man of the earth (Gen. 9). After the flood, God makes a covenant with Noah and all living creatures and reiterates his command to Noah to be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth.
It is striking that Noah, rather than planting grains, a fast-yielding crop, plants a vineyard. It takes years before a vineyard produces significant fruit.
Planting a vineyard was an act of faith in God’s future. Wine would bring comfort, joy and elevate simple feast and the celebrations of an agrarian community weighed down by heavy labor and strenuous life conditions.
Noah is also the first person to get drunk in the Bible, and like all people and cultures had to learn how to handle alcohol and drink wine with wisdom.
Wine in Proverbs: Wisdom and Warnings
In Proverbs we see how the Hebrew tradition had evolved and gained wisdom and guidelines for how to enjoy wine wisely (Prov. 3:9-10; 9:1-6; 20:1; 23:20-21, 30-35; 31:4-7, 10-20). Proverbs reminds us that wine is a gift and an agricultural blessing from God that we are not to take for granted (3:9-10). Proverbs even compares wisdom to a woman who prepares a feast that includes rich food and wine (9:1-6).
Given that wine was held in such high esteem, it is not surprising that Proverbs includes some stern warnings against drunkenness and the abuse of wine (20:1; 23:20-22). It even describes the state of drunkenness and the consequential hangover to deter the young from getting drunk (23:30-35). It also discourages leaders from consuming too much wine and alcohol lest they are tempted to abuse their position and oppress the poor (31:4-5). But to the dying and those experiencing severe suffering Proverbs commends drinking wine and strong drink as it can bring comfort and some relief (31:6-7).
Finally, Proverbs celebrates the noble, wise, and industrious wife who exemplified wisdom in all she does. Like Noah, she plants a vineyard and invests in God’s future for the well-being of her family and community (31:10-20). This is a rather nuanced and wise approach to wine that sets solid boundaries around wine and alcohol consumption.
Wine in Israel’s History: The Fruitfulness of the Land
From the time of Noah, wine, vines, and vineyards becomes regular features in the biblical narrative.
Jacob’s Blessings: Washing His Garments in Wine
When Jacob serves game and wine to (deceptively) seek the firstborn’s blessing from his father, blind Isaac passes on the family inheritance and God’s blessing to Jacob, saying “May God give you of the dew of heaven, and of the fatness of the earth and plenty of grain and wine (Gen. 27:28,37). For the first time wine is directly associated with God’s blessing upon a family clan.
Agricultural abundance is not a secular matter in the Bible but a gift and direct blessing from God’s benevolent hands. When Jacob in turn blesses his son Judah, the abundance of vines and wine gains even more significance: “The scepter will not depart from Judah … He will tether his donkey to a vine, his colt to the choicest branch; he will wash his garments in wine, his robes in the blood of the grapes” (Gen. 49:10-12, NIV). The bounty that his poetic blessing invokes now focuses solely on vines and wine with extravagant visions of tree-like vines with a great abundance of wine flowing like a river in which to wash clothes.
The Valley of Grapes and the Fruit of the Land
When the Israelites arrive at the border of the Promised Land Moses sends out spies — and interestingly this happens during harvest time (Num. 13:20). The spies come across a valley with massive vines and grape clusters on them. They name this valley Wadi Eshkol (Hebrew for ‘grape cluster,’ Num. 13:24). Surely this land was blessed by God!
When Moses declares God’s blessing on the Israelites just before they are to enter the Promised Land, this blessing includes the fruitfulness of the land — especially grain, wine and olive oil (Deut. 6:11-12; 7:12-13; 8:8; 33:28).
The vision of 1 Kings 4:25 that each tribe was to live in peace and safety with each family under their own vine and fig tree was the life that God wanted to provide for his people. At the temple the Israelites brought sacrificial offerings (Exod. 29:40; Lev. 23:9-14; Num. 15:5,7,10; 18:12,27; 28:14, Deut. 14:22-23). It reminded the Israelites that all the fruit of the land was a gift from God and part of the covenant blessings, not to be hoarded but to be shared. Those that had plenty were to share it with those in need such as the poor, the widows, and orphans (Lev. 19:9-10; Deut. 23:24; 24:21).
The Prophets: Sour Grapes Yield Bitter Wine
The sad oracles of the prophets, however, tell the story of a people unfaithful to God’s covenant as they turned justice into violence and self-indulgence and neglected the poor and needy. Here the prophets use the vine, vineyard, and wine to speak metaphorically of God’s people as an unfruitful vineyard and vine that only produces sour grapes. God’s judgment is compared to a wine press, bitter wine, and a bitter cup of wine (God’s wrath). He will remove his protection from his people (a vineyard) and they will have to go into exile (Isa. 3:13-15, 5:1-8,11-13,22, 51:17,22; 63:1-6; Jer. 2:21; 6:9; 8:13; 25:15-18, 27-28, Lam. 1:15; Ezek. 15:1-6; 17:1-12, 19:10, 23:32-34; Hosea 2:8-10, 10:1-2; Joel 3:13).
And yet, the prophets also speak of God’s redemption and restoration of his people. God will heal their disloyalty, and his people shall flourish once more like a vine (Isa. 27:1-6; Hosea 14:1,4-7). When the prophets speak of God’s future redemption they speak of a new messianic age with a renewed outpouring of God’s Spirit. Peace will return and God will restore his people to the land and its fruitfulness. God will bless them once more with abundant harvests of grain, oil, and plenty of wine. Feast and celebrations, and wine flowing in great abundance will be a mark of this coming age (Isa. 2:4, 25:6-8, 55:1-3; Jer. 31:3-6,12; Hosea 2:18-23; Joel 2:18-19, 21-24, 3:18; Amos 9:13-15; Mic. 4:3-4; Zech. 3:10, 8:12-13, 9:16-17).
Wine in the New Testament: The One True Vine
It is to these prophetic expectations that Jesus speaks and acts when he performs his first miracle at Cana and transforms an abundance of water into choice wine (John 2:1-11). On one level this miracle is a profound affirmation of the importance of family celebrations. The Son of God joins in the celebrations of ordinary people, shares their joys, and deepens their joys. Let that sink in for a while.
On another level this first of Jesus’s signs revealed that in Jesus God’s presence and kingdom has come once more to his people. Jesus is the Messiah, the anointed one, whom God sent to deliver his people. Wine, with its great potential for beauty, complexity, subtlety, and aging, speaks to God’s eternal purposes in bringing life, salvation, and blessings in the form of abundant agricultural provision to his people.
Jesus and his family enjoyed wine regularly, like most Israelites, and his ministry was shaped by eating and drinking wine with sinners and saints alike. This was probably the reason his fellow Hebrews accused him of being a drunkard: “Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!” (Matt. 11:19; Luke 7:34 NRSVUE).
Jesus drew on the world of agriculture — including wine — to teach about the Kingdom of God, using wine skins, new and old wine, and the vine to speak about his own life and mission as he gathered disciples to follow and remain in him (Matt. 9:17; Mark 2:22; Luke 5:37-39, John 15).
The apostle Paul, too, affirms wine as a gift from God and emphasizes the health benefits of wine (1 Tim. 4:3-4) while also warning against drunkenness (1 Cor. 5:11; Gal. 5:21).
Jesus and his family celebrated the Passover annually and enjoyed four cups of wine as the evening unfolded and they retold the story of the Exodus. When Jesus reinterprets the Passover celebrations in light of his own life, ministry, and sacrificial death, he elevates wine to new heights as wine now speaks of Christ’s blood shed on the cross (Matt. 26:17-29; Mark 14:12-26; Luke 2:14; John 13:1-4; 1 Cor. 11:23-25).
And just like Jews reserved a cup of wine for Elijah at the Passover celebrations, expectant that God would deliver them once more, so does Jesus use the cup of wine to stir expectations for the future: “I tell you, I will never again drink of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom” (Matt. 26:29 NRSVUE). The future lies in God’s hand and Christ will return to complete the work that he has begun.
Conclusion: A Healthier and Wholesome Relationship With Wine
It is from this biblical foundation that we can and must ask what it means to embrace wine as an agricultural gift from God and allow it to elevate our meals and celebrations. Using the Bible as a blueprint, we must develop and implement guidelines to heal from our broken relationship with alcohol and discern what it means to develop a healthier and wholesome relationship with wine and alcohol more widely — around the table with food and fellowship.
Begin your journey of developing a God-ordained, Scripturally grounded relationship with wine in Cup Overflowing by Gisela H. Kreglinger. Or, go deeper into the Bible’s vast, intricate, and ultimately affirming account of alcohol in Wine in the Word, a video Bible study with Kreglinger and Randy Frazee. Watch Session 1 free below!
Gisela H.Kreglinger(PhD) grew up on a winery in Franconia, Germany, where her family has been crafting wine for many generations. She holds twoMaster’s degrees in Biblical Studiesfrom Regent College and a PhD in historical theology from the University of St. Andrews. She teaches Christian Spirituality in the academy, churches, on her annual wine pilgrimages, and every time an opportunityopens uparound the dinner table, preferably with a glass of well-crafted wine to inspire her musings on wine, faith, and the importance of cultivating joy and conviviality.Kreglingeris theco-author of the Bible studyWine in the Wordand author of Cup Overflowing, The Spirituality of Wine, and The Soul of Wine.
