Topical Bible: Drunkenness: Punishment of

◄ Drunkenness: Punishment of ►

Jump to: Torrey's • Library • Subtopics • Terms

Topical Encyclopedia

Drunkenness, as depicted in the Bible, is consistently portrayed as a vice that leads to moral decay and spiritual downfall. The Scriptures provide numerous warnings against the excesses of alcohol and the resulting behavior, emphasizing the consequences that befall those who indulge in such practices.

Old Testament References

In the Old Testament, drunkenness is often associated with shame and divine judgment. One of the earliest accounts is found in Genesis 9:20-27, where Noah becomes drunk and lies uncovered in his tent. This incident leads to a curse upon Canaan, the son of Ham, highlighting the generational impact of such indiscretions.

Proverbs offers several admonitions against drunkenness, illustrating the folly and ruin it brings. Proverbs 23:20-21 warns, "Do not join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat, for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, and drowsiness will clothe them in rags." This passage underscores the material and social consequences of excessive drinking.

Isaiah 5:11-12 further condemns those who "rise early in the morning to pursue strong drink, who linger into the evening to be inflamed by wine." The prophet Isaiah warns that such behavior leads to a lack of regard for the deeds of the Lord, resulting in spiritual blindness and eventual judgment.

New Testament References

The New Testament continues to address the issue of drunkenness, emphasizing its incompatibility with a life led by the Spirit. In Luke 21:34 , Jesus cautions, "But watch yourselves, or your hearts will be weighed down by dissipation, drunkenness, and the worries of life, and that day will spring upon you suddenly like a snare." Here, drunkenness is linked to a lack of vigilance and preparedness for the coming of the Lord.

The Apostle Paul, in his epistles, frequently admonishes believers to abstain from drunkenness. In Romans 13:13 , he exhorts, "Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy." Paul contrasts the works of darkness with the call to live honorably, highlighting the moral degradation associated with drunkenness.

In Galatians 5:19-21 , drunkenness is listed among the "acts of the flesh," with a stern warning: "I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." This passage underscores the spiritual consequences of habitual drunkenness, equating it with other grave sins that bar entry into the kingdom.

Eschatological Implications

The eschatological teachings of the New Testament also address the issue of drunkenness. In 1 Thessalonians 5:6-8 , Paul urges believers to remain sober and alert, contrasting the children of light with those who are of the night and darkness. Drunkenness, in this context, symbolizes spiritual lethargy and unpreparedness for the return of Christ.

Conclusion

Throughout the Bible, drunkenness is consistently portrayed as a behavior that leads to both temporal and eternal consequences. The Scriptures warn of the shame, poverty, and spiritual blindness that result from excessive drinking, urging believers to live soberly and righteously in anticipation of the Lord's return.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Deuteronomy 21:20
And they shall say to the elders of his city, This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton, and a drunkard.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Joel 1:5,6
Awake, you drunkards, and weep; and howl, all you drinkers of wine, because of the new wine; for it is cut off from your mouth.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Amos 6:6,7
That drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the chief ointments: but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Matthew 24:49-51
And shall begin to smite his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Whether Drunkenness Excuses from Sin?
... For the Philosopher says (Ethic. iii, 5) that "the drunkard deserves double punishment."
Therefore drunkenness aggravates a sin instead of excusing from it. ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether drunkenness excuses from sin.htm

Whether Drunkenness is the Gravest of Sins?
... descendants, for having laughed at his father when the latter was made drunk.
But slavery was not the direct punishment of drunkenness. ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether drunkenness is the gravest.htm

Argument: the Religion of the Christians is Foolish, Inasmuch as ...
... as They Worship a Crucified Man, and Even the Instrument Itself of His Punishment. ...
and the fervour of incestuous lust has grown hot with drunkenness, a dog ...
/.../felix/the octavius of minucius felix/chapter ix argument the religion of.htm

How Another in Like Manner, Being at the Point of Death, Saw the ...
... like manner, being at the point of death, saw the place of punishment appointed
for ... But he was much given to drunkenness, and other pleasures of a careless life ...
/.../bede/bedes ecclesiastical history of england/chap xiv how another in.htm

The Heinous Sin of Drunkenness
... wanting to use the power given them from above, for the punishment and restraint
of ... thousands, fall daily at our right-hand, by this sin of drunkenness, in our ...
/.../selected sermons of george whitefield/the heinous sin of drunkenness.htm

Whether Ignorance Diminishes a Sin?
... Reply to Objection 4: The drunken man deserves a "double punishment" for the two
sins which he commits, viz. drunkenness, and the sin which results from his ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether ignorance diminishes a sin.htm

Drunkenness.
... Constitution: "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment
for crime ... it out of existence; then, and not until then, will drunkenness cease ...
/.../judy/questionable amusements and worthy substitutes/ii drunkenness.htm

Rom. xiii. 11
... but to prevent your behaving unseemly, and as wishing indulgence to be really
indulgence, and not a punishment, nor a vengeance, or drunkenness and revelling. ...
/.../chrysostom/homilies on acts and romans/homily xxiv rom xiii 11.htm

Whether those who Received Heretical Baptism, and have Afterwards ...
... hatred, variances, emulations, wrath, strife, heresies, envyings, drunkenness,
revellings, and ... they shall always be retained in eternal punishment; for there ...
/.../augustine/city of god/chapter 25 whether those who received.htm

The Martyrs whom Justin Mentions in his Own Work.
... to be temperate, repeating the teachings, and declaring the punishment in eternal ...
with the servants and hirelings, when she delighted in drunkenness and in ...
/.../pamphilius/church history/chapter xvii the martyrs whom justin.htm