Proverbs 31:4
in Proverbs 31It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, or for rulers to crave strong drink,
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine; Nor for princes to say, Where is strong drink?
KJV
It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine; nor for princes strong drink:
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This verse in Proverbs 31
Commentary
7 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Some read: “nor for princes to say, Where is strong drink?” The “strong drink” Pro 20:1 was distilled from barley, or honey, or dates.
This site's exposition
It is not for kings
on Proverbs 31:4-7
It is not for kings to drink wine, nor for princes strong drink states the counsel plainly: rulers whose task is to judge cannot afford a clouded mind, lest they drink, and forget the law, and pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted. The verses that follow give strong drink to a different use entirely, to him that is ready to perish and to those of heavy hearts, so he may forget his poverty and remember his misery no more, wine as relief for the dying rather than daily counsel for the ruling. The commentators note the contrast is deliberate: the same drink that unfits a king for justice is offered as mercy to a man with nothing left to judge.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
We read in another place: "And wine gladdens the heart of man." We read also in the Song of Songs: "Come, brothers, drink and be inebriated." And wine which gladdens the heart of man. This fleshly wine does not gladden the heart of man, but overwhelms it, and makes it mad. Indeed, it is written that those who are powerful should not drink wine. The apostle too writes that we ought not to drink wine and eat flesh. Again it is said to us: And wine gladdens the heart of man.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
It is not for kings, O Lemuel,....
No, they are worse than the beasts that perish. All Christians are made to our God kings and priests, and must apply this to themselves. It is not for Christians, it is not for Christians, to drink to excess; they debase themselves if they do; it ill becomes the heirs of the kingdom and the spiritual priests, Lev. x.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
The proper use of such drinks is to restore tone to feeble bodies and depressed minds (compare Ps 104:15). Open . . . cause--Plead for those who cannot plead for themselves, as the orphan, stranger, &c. (compare Ps 72:12; Isa 1:17). appointed to destruction--who are otherwise ruined by their oppressors (compare Pr 29:14, 16).
It is not for kings - to drink wine - An intemperate man is ill fit to hold the reins of government.
The words behind it
10 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| אַ֤ל | ʾal | may not [it be] | H408 → | 724 times |
| לַֽמְלָכִ֨ים׀ | lamlakhim | for <the> kings | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| לְֽמוֹאֵ֗ל | lemoel | O Lemuel | H3927 → | |
| אַ֣ל | ʾal | may not [it be] | H408 → | 724 times |
| לַֽמְלָכִ֣ים | lamlakhim | for <the> kings | H4428 → | 2525 times |
| שְׁתוֹ־ | shetov- | to drink | H8354 → | 217 times |
| יָ֑יִן | yayin | wine | H3196 → | 141 times |
| וּ֝לְרוֹזְנִ֗ים | uleroznim | and for rulers | H7336 → | |
| אֵ֣י | ʾov | where? | H335 → | |
| שֵׁכָֽר׃ | shekhar | strong drink | H7941 → | 23 times |
אַ֤לmay not [it be]
ʾalH408 →724 times
לַֽמְלָכִ֨ים׀for <the> kings
lamlakhimH4428 →2525 times
לְֽמוֹאֵ֗לO Lemuel
lemoelH3927 →
אַ֣לmay not [it be]
ʾalH408 →724 times
לַֽמְלָכִ֣יםfor <the> kings
lamlakhimH4428 →2525 times
שְׁתוֹ־to drink
shetov-H8354 →217 times
יָ֑יִןwine
yayinH3196 →141 times
וּ֝לְרוֹזְנִ֗יםand for rulers
uleroznimH7336 →
אֵ֣יwhere?
ʾovH335 →
שֵׁכָֽר׃strong drink
shekharH7941 →23 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Proverbs 20:1Wine is a mocker, strong drink is a brawler, and whoever is led astray by them is not wise.
it leads to
- Isaiah 28:7
These also stagger from wine and stumble from strong drink: Priests and prophets reel from strong drink and are befuddled by wine. They stumble because of strong drink, muddled in their visions and stumbling…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Ephesians 5:18
Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to reckless indiscretion. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.
- Hosea 4:11
Promiscuity, wine, and new wine take away understanding.
- 1 Corinthians 6:10
nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.
- Galatians 5:21
and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
- Isaiah 28:7
Through
Habakkuk 2:5and wealth indeed betrays him. He is an arrogant man never at rest. He enlarges his appetite like Sheol, and like Death, he is never satisfied. He gathers all the nations to himself and…
it leads to
- Proverbs 31:4–5
It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine, or for rulers to crave strong drink,
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Proverbs 31:4–5
Through
Isaiah 5:22Woe to those who are heroes in drinking wine and champions in mixing strong drink,
it leads to
- Isaiah 5:11
Woe to those who rise early in the morning in pursuit of strong drink, who linger into the evening, to be inflamed by wine.
- Habakkuk 2:15
Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbors, pouring it from the wineskin until they are drunk, in order to gaze at their nakedness!
- Isaiah 5:11
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Proverbs
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, HOMILIES ON THE PSALMS 42 (PSALM 127); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.