Proverbs 23:31
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Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright.
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Wine is very good (Gen 1:31). God created it to cheer the heart of man (31:6; Ps 104:14-15); Moses commended it for family worship before God (Deut 14:26); Jesus drank it and supplied it for a wedding (Luke 7:33-35; John 2:1-11); Paul endorsed it for communion (I Cor 11:20-22); and faithful ministers defend its moderate use (I Tim 3:8; 5:23; Tit 2:3).
But unguarded or excessive affection for wine is wisely condemned. Any thoughts toward drunkenness are sin (24:9; Eph 5:18), and only fools drink without sober regard for the danger and results of drunkenness (20:1; 23:29-30). Wine can be dangerous, if it is not kept in its proper place and used for its designed purpose, just like other creations.
After warning about wine, there are two other lessons - how Pharisees pervert God's word and how to rightly divide it. Solomon wrote, "Look not thou upon the wine when it is red." Pharisees are literalists - they cannot see a figure of speech, even if it were in blazing neon! They condemn even looking at red wine from a Bible verse like this!
Assume their abuse of the verse is correct. Then we may freely guzzle red wine as long as we don't look at it! Bring on the blindfolds! And we may both look at and guzzle white wine! Bring on the white zinfandel! The chardonnay! The sauvignon blanc! The riesling!
If we literally apply this clause to looking at red wine, we condemn God, Moses, Jesus, Paul, and faithful ministers. The literalists are wrong. Solomon did not condemn looking at red wine. He condemned unguarded or excessive affection for any wine; and he used the color of the basic wine of Israel, which was very red, like blood (Deut 32:14; Is 63:2). There is a figure of speech here, whether you see an ellipsis or a metonym of the adjunct.
Job said about marriage, "I made a covenant with mine eyes; why then should I think upon a maid?" (Job 31:1). Did Job never think about his maids? Could he think about a maid when hiring her? Could he bless her on her birthday? Could he think about giving her a raise? Of course! The condemnation of thinking here is to be understood sexually! Job's covenant of marriage did not allow sexual thoughts or fantasies about a maid.
Jesus said about mental adultery, "But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman ... hath committed adultery with her already in his heart" (Matt 5:28). He did not condemn simply looking at another woman, for that is approved and necessary in ordinary society. But He did condemn looking at another woman "to lust after her." And it is this sense that is the proper and true sense of our proverb. Let God be true!
Wine in Solomon's day had several attractive features - red color; depth, reflection, and shades of color in a good cup; and bubbles moving to the surface. These same features make wine visually attractive today, especially in a beautiful wine glass with appropriate sunshine, room lighting, or candlelight to enhance it. As he admits a strange woman may be beautiful (6:25), he admits wine has an appeal that we must soberly guard against.
Our proverb is in the middle of a passage where Solomon condemned drunkenness (23:29-35). He did not condemn moderate drinking, which God and the Bible approved and commended: he condemned those who "tarry long at the wine" (23:30) and those who have the symptoms of severe drunkenness (23:29,34-35). If a man's religion is based on the Bible, he knows God commends moderate drinking, but condemns drunkenness.
Neither God nor the Bible recognizes alcoholism - there really is no such condition. Such persons are properly called drunkards in Scripture. Drunkenness is drinking past reason until your senses no longer rightly recognize good and evil. Your imagination and speech are degraded to folly and sin (23:33) - the opposite goal of this book of wisdom. Because drunkenness is deceiving, it is generally only others who can perceive your drunkenness.
Reader, take heed. Wine is very good. It is beautiful in a goblet. Its properties to relax your central nervous system and cheer you are very pleasant. But Solomon is teaching wisdom in Proverbs, and wise men will guard against excessive infatuation with wine and drink it only with prudent discipline. For wine can make a wise man a fool, quickly!
The lesson of this proverb applies indirectly to all creations and their abuse as well. Bread and butter are just as dangerous as wine, in that gluttony is as much a sin as drunkenness. Infatuation with food or intemperate eating must also be avoided, for a person preoccupied with eating, or eating more than he needs, will sin with this good creation. We are to be moderate and temperate in all things (Eph 5:18; Phil 4:5; I Cor 9:24-27).
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