Answer:
When Jesus performed His very first public miracle
at Cana and "manifested His glory," did He merely make grape juice
(John 2:11)? If the wedding at Cana was conducted according to Jewish custom,
the guests were certainly drinking fermented wine at the wedding feast. When
the guests ran out of wine in their time of rejoicing, Jesus helped them by
turning water into what Scripture calls "wine." If Jesus had made
grape juice for the guests, they never would have said to the bridegroom what
is reported in Scripture: "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!" (John 2:10).
In the above verse, John used the Greek word
oinos for "wine"—and it is important to recognize that oinos
always refers to a fermented beverage. The Bible uses 13 Hebrew and Greek
words for "wine," and we can find their meanings by noting the
contexts in which they are used. The word "wine" is first used in
the Old Testament when Noah "drank of the wine and was drunk"
(Genesis 9:21). The Hebrew word used here is yayin. That wine caused Noah to
become intoxicated. Yayin always means "fermented wine." God Himself
gave "wine" to Abraham—the father of the faithful: "Then
Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine [yayin]; he was the
priest of God Most High" (Genesis 14:18). Melchizedek was the one who
became Jesus Christ, the God of the Old Testament; if you are not familiar
with Melchizedek’s identity, please write to the regional office nearest you
to request, absolutely free, our reprint article, Who Was the God of the Old
Testament?
The phrase "fruit of the vine" is only
used three times in the Bible—Matthew 26:29; Mark 14:25 and Luke 22:18—in
reference to the Passover service Jesus instituted on the night before He
died. Passover was held in the spring, long before the annual grape harvest,
so any "fruit of the vine" consumed on that evening would have had
to be fermented, as grape juice would long since have spoiled in the
containers used for storage in Jesus’ day. Some ludicrously claim that the
item consumed was "molasses"—another way of preserving grapes
without making wine. This does not make sense, if we remember that this was a
meal, and Jesus and His disciples would not have been drinking molasses with
their meal.
The same Greek word oinos used in John 2:3–10
is also used in Ephesians 5:18: "And do not be drunk with wine, in which
is dissipation." Grape juice does not cause "dissipation." Note
also this description of the Apostles on the day of Pentecost: "Others
mocking said, ‘They are full of new wine [oinos]’" (Acts 2:13):
Furthermore: "It is good neither to eat meat nor drink wine [oinos] nor
do anything by which your brother stumbles or is offended or is made
weak" (Romans 14:21). Paul wrote to Timothy: "A bishop then must
be… not given to wine [oinos], not violent, not greedy for money, but
gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous" (1 Timothy 3:2–3). Were we to
substitute "grape juice" into these contexts, the verses would make
no sense. When Paul explained to Timothy the medicinal value of wine, he
wrote: "No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for your
stomach’s sake and your frequent infirmities" (1 Timothy 5:23). Once
again, the Greek word used is oinos—fermented wine, not grape juice. As you
can see, while the Bible condemns drunkenness, Scripture also teaches that
it is acceptable to drink alcohol in moderation.
For a further analysis on this issue go to http://www.yahweh.com/Booklets/onlinebooklets.htm
and download the pdf booklet Drugs and Drinking - what does
scripture really teach. www.yahweh.com
is one of the most legalistic sites out there, believing that we should still
be keeping all 613 of God's laws. But they totally agree with what is stated
above.
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