“Eli said to her, ‘How long are you going to stay drunk? Stop drinking your wine!’ But Hannah answered, ‘No, my lord, I am a very unhappy woman. I have not drunk either wine or other strong liquor; rather, I’ve been pouring out my soul before Adonai.'”-1 Samuel 1:14-15
When Eli saw Hannah pouring her soul out before the Lord in front of the tabernacle, he thought she was drunk.
Now why in the world would he think that?
There can only be one reasonable answer.
Because he had experience with other worshippers in the past getting high on the ritual wine before they came before the Sanctuary Tent to pray to God.
Remember, this was a time when Israel had fallen into darkness, confusion and apostasy.
There was probably a ton of craziness that went on during this time we’ll never know anything about simply because it wasn’t recorded.
Onward.
So Eli assumes Hannah is drunk out of her mind forcing Hannah to defend herself.
Hannah responds by saying “I have not drunk either wine or other strong liquor“.
Let’s examine those words “wine” and “strong liquor” for a sec.
In Hebrew, what Hannah is saying is “I haven’t drunk YAYIN or other SHEKAR“.
YAYIN or יַיִן means wine…
And SHEKAR or שֵׁכָר means strong drink.
YAYIN is the normal word used to refer to wine throughout the Hebrew Bible.
And SHEKAR refers to that hard good stuff like that will make you tipsy after just one or two shots.
Now here’s the thing.
Whenever you come across Christian denominations that teach the wine in the Bible didn’t contain alcohol, that’s pure nonsense.
Understand that…
The wine used in the priestly rituals at the Tabernacle and later at the Temple…
The wine that was transformed by Yeshua from water at the wedding in Cana…
The wine that Yeshua and the apostles drank during passover…
Understand that in every one of those instances, the wine contained alcohol homies!
Why in the world do you think Eli suspected Hannah of being drunk if that wasn’t the case?
So don’t listen to those who say Biblical wine was really grape juice or some other stupidity like that.
It was totally possible to get drunk from drinking wine…
And I betcha it happened more often than you can imagine.
The Scripture doesn’t condemn drinking alcohol…
And I’d go so far as to say it doesn’t even condemn getting a little tipsy on a couple of glasses of whatever alcoholic beverage one might be partaking of.
I mean that’s what the purpose of alcohol is anyway…
To relax and escape a little from the stresses of daily life.
Ya feel me?
Over and out.
I agree completely with the assertion that wine as it is spoken of in the Scriptures, contained alcohol – and quite naturally at that. The juice of the grape naturally ferments into wine even if leaven (yeast) is not deliberately introduced into it. The presence of yeasts on the grape skins themselves and that in the ambient air is enough to cause fermentation of the grape juice all by its lonesome. Left to its natural processes, grape juice naturally ferments into wine, and it time, into vinegar. No special action needs to be taken to cause the the natural yeasts of the grape and in the air to convert the sugars in the juice to alcohol and carbon dioxide. (The production of the carbon dioxide being the reason why “old wine skins” unable to stretch and expand like new, pliable skins, might well burst during fermentation of the juice.) Wine mentioned in the Scriptures was definitely leavened (naturally at the least) definitely fermented, and definitely contained alcohol. Which, of course, raises a curious situation – the prohibition of leaven during Passover and the Feast of Unleaven Bread and the consumption of wine – it, wine, being leavened grape juice!
I am not yet convinced “wine” was consumed at Paasover as opposed to reconstituted, previously boiled and non-fremented grape juice. It seems to me a bit contradictory to forbid leaven in any form at Passover and the Feast of Unleavened bread, and yet have a leaven product (wine, leavened grape juice) be an integral part of it all. Such would appear to be a bit inconsistent.
Here’s an excerpt from a Wikipedia article on Kosher wine that might address your concern:
“Kosher wine (Hebrew: יין כשר, yayin kashér) is wine that is produced in accordance with halakha, and more specifically kashrut, such that Jews will be permitted to pronounce blessings over and drink it. This is an important issue, since wine is used in several Jewish ceremonies, especially those of Kiddush.
To be considered kosher, Sabbath-observant Jews must supervise the entire winemaking process and handle much of it in person, from the time the grapes are loaded into the crusher until the finished wine product is bottled and sealed. Additionally, any ingredients used, including finings, must be kosher.[1] Wine that is described as “kosher for Passover” must have been kept free from contact with leavened or fermented grain products, a category that includes many industrial additives and agents.[2]”
Thanks for your comments. Always very enlightening!