Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations:
Parallel translations
- WEB “You and your sons are not to drink wine or strong drink whenever you go into the Tent of Meeting, or you will die. This shall be a statute forever throughout your generations.
- BSB “You and your sons are not to drink wine or strong drink when you enter the Tent of Meeting, or else you will die; this is a permanent statute for the generations to come.
- NKJV “Do not drink wine or intoxicating drink, you, nor your sons with you, when you go into the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations,
- NASB “Do not drink wine or strong drink, neither you nor your sons with you, when you come into the tent of meeting, so that you do not die—it is a permanent statute throughout your generations—
- NLT “You and your descendants must never drink wine or any other alcoholic drink before going into the Tabernacle. If you do, you will die. This is a permanent law for you, and it must be observed from generation to generation.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Priests must not drink wine or strong drink when serving in the Tent, on pain of death. Those who minister before God must do so with clear-headed reverence.
Overview
Coming right after Nadab and Abihu's transgression, this command (which some connect to their failure) requires that priests serve sober and self-controlled, never careless before the holy God. It is a 'statute forever' for the priesthood. The principle that ministers must be sober and reverent carries into the New Testament's qualifications for leaders (1 Timothy 3:2-3).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 15
- Luke 1:15For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb.
- 1 Tim 3:3Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous;
- Isa 28:7But they also have erred through wine, and through strong drink are out of the way; the priest and the prophet have erred through strong drink, they are swallowed up of wine, they are out of the way through strong drink; they err in vision, they stumble in judgment.
- Ezek 44:21Neither shall any priest drink wine, when they enter into the inner court.
- Eph 5:18And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
- Titus 1:7For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre;
- Num 6:3He shall separate himself from wine and strong drink, and shall drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of strong drink, neither shall he drink any liquor of grapes, nor eat moist grapes, or dried.
- 1 Tim 3:8Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre;
- Prov 31:4–5It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine; nor for princes strong drink:
- Hos 4:11Whoredom and wine and new wine take away the heart.
- Prov 20:1Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.
- Num 6:20And the priest shall wave them for a wave offering before the LORD: this is holy for the priest, with the wave breast and heave shoulder: and after that the Nazarite may drink wine.
- 1 Tim 5:23Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach’s sake and thine often infirmities.
- Jer 35:5–6And I set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites pots full of wine, and cups, and I said unto them, Drink ye wine.
- Lev 3:17It shall be a perpetual statute for your generations throughout all your dwellings, that ye eat neither fat nor blood.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Every sacrifice, every priest, and every day of atonement points beyond itself to the one perfect offering and the great High Priest who, by his own blood, makes the unclean holy once for all.
How Leviticus 10:9 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.