Give strong drink to him who is perishing, and wine to him whose life is bitter. Let him drink and forget his poverty, and remember his trouble no more. Proverbs 31:6, 7.
Proverbs 31:6, 7 has long perplexed readers of the Old Testament since it appears not only to condone the use of “strong drink” (shekar) and “wine” (yayin) but actively to promote it.1 A superficial reading of the text could give the impression that under certain circumstances it is permissible to drown one’s troubles in alcohol.
A mother’s counsel – Most scholars divide Proverbs 31 into two sections: Proverbs 31:1-9, which contains the wise counsel of king Lemuel’s mother to her royal son, and Proverbs 31:10-31, which includes the hymn of the noble woman, organized as an acrostic poem, i.e., an alphabetic poem in which each verse begins with a different letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The main focus of the chapter, and of the book as a whole, is concerned with practical life choices, mostly presented in a didactic format of instruction.
The first prohibition for the king in verse 3 states that he is not to focus his energy solely on women, a concept easily understood by the ancient Israelites listening to this text, particularly in view of the prevalent practice of acquiring and maintaining a royal harem of wives and concubines. After all, the purpose of kingship was not to serve oneself (by maintaining a large harem), but to serve the people.
The prohibition against wine and strong drink – Neither wine nor strong drink is advisable for kings and rulers because these beverages would impair their remembrance of the law and consequently their ability to establish and execute justice (Prov 31:5). The perversion of justice is one of the major topics in Old Testament theology. Perverted justice or lack of justice is strongly rebuked by the prophets (Isa 1:17, 23; 5:7; Amos 5:7, 12; etc.), particularly when it concerns a king because he is the one who administers justice (2 Sam 8:15). So, anything that may cause him to pervert justice should be shunned by him like the plague, especially when his action will affect the poor, as suggested by Proverbs 31:5. This focus upon those in positions of authority who administer justice seems to be central to this first section of Proverbs 31.
The exception – In verse six the tone suddenly changes from the strong prohibition against wine and strong drink (Prov 31:3, 4) to an order that is quite the opposite, “Give strong drink to him who is perishing” (31:6, NKJV). The contrast is quite pronounced.
A. No wine (yayin) … (31:4a)
B… . nor strong drink (shekar) to kings or leaders (31:4b)
X. Since it will lead to injustice for the needy (31:5)
B’. Give (pl.) strong drink (shekar)… (31:6a)
A’… . and wine (yayin) to the perishing and bitter (31:6b)
This type of literary device is typical in biblical Hebrew and is called a chiasm, which basically means an inverted structure in which the center is considered to be of major importance.
The text under consideration refers to those who are “perishing” and those whose life is “bitter.” Both terms in Hebrew denote a desperate and hopeless situation. The particular form of the Hebrew verb meaning “to perish” (’abad) can refer to a nation who has entirely lost all rationality (Deut 32:28) or to people lost in a foreign country (Isa 27:13) or to an animal that has wandered off the track and has gotten lost (1 Sam 9:20), which would ultimately lead to its death. Lions may perish if they do not eat (Job 4:11), as do human beings, though not always for that particular reason (Job 31:19). All of these examples paint a sad picture.
The Jews interpreted the text to refer to people who are being executed. “When one is led out to execution, he is given a goblet of wine containing frankincense, in order to benumb his senses, for it is written, Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, and wine unto the bitter in soul.”2
An ironic counsel – “Give strong drink to him who is perishing, And wine to him whose life is bitter.” What an ironic statement, considering the fact that the queen mother has just admonished her royal son not to touch wine or strong drink (Prov 31:3, 4). In light of this categorical prohibition it seems hardly possible that in verse 6 the inspired writer now recommends alcoholic beverages to relieve common pain, stress, and tension. Samuele Bacchiocchi suggests that this imperative should be viewed as a conditional imperative. “The sense would then be, ‘[If you are going to give alcoholic beverages to anyone, then] give strong drink to him who is perishing …’“3 to relieve him of his misery. In that case verse 6 must be understood as a satirical and ironical statement.
An additional argument for the ironic understanding of the statement can be found in the larger context of the book of Proverbs as a whole. How does the rest of the book view the use of wine and strong drink? Proverbs 20:1 strongly discourages its use, since it makes the person indulging in it unwise, i.e., unfit to distinguish the real life issues and crucial choices of his life. It was already noted that Proverbs 31:4 strongly discourages its use. In Proverbs 4:17 wine is employed in a metaphorical way as a characteristic of the wicked. Proverbs 21:17 admonishes that the love of wine will result in poverty, while Proverbs 23:20-31 repeatedly warns against its consumption and any communion with those indulging in it. As can be seen from the many references found in the book, Proverbs’ perspective concerning wine and strong drink is entirely negative—the only exception being the statement in Proverbs 31:6, 7, which in turn should be understood as an exercise in irony, employed by the wise mother of Lemuel to teach more effectively one of the main points of royal responsibility in ancient Israel: to judge fairly and to give a voice to those who are downtrodden and powerless. Both the immediate, as well as the larger context, suggest this interpretation, which is also in harmony with other scriptural advice concerning the use or abuse of alcohol.
Gerald A. Klingbeil
The text is an ironic statement which means, “If you are going to give alcoholic beverages to anyone, then give strong drink to him who is perishing to relieve him of his misery.”
1 The translation of the term “strong drink” (shekar) follows the translation of the NKJV. Another translation of the term is “beer” (NIV). The term denotes an alcoholic beverage that is not based on grapes but most probably involved a fermentation process based upon grains. However, it should not be forgotten that this beverage is not distilled liquor. Distillation is a relatively late development in the history of alcoholic beverages.
2 Talmud, Sanhedrin 43a.
3 S. Bacchiocchi, Wine in the Bible (Berrien Springs, MI: Biblical Perspectives, 1989), 235.