Limitless Word
They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine.
Proverbs 23:30 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Those who stay long at the wine; those who go to seek out mixed wine.
  • BSB Those who linger over wine, who go to taste mixed drinks.
  • NKJV Those who linger long at the wine, Those who go in search of mixed wine.
  • NASB Those who linger long over wine, Those who go to taste mixed wine.
  • NLT It is the one who spends long hours in the taverns, trying out new drinks.

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

Such misery belongs to those who linger over wine, always seeking the next drink.

Overview

The previous questions are answered: it is the habitual drinker who reaps these sorrows. "Lingering long" and "seeking mixed wine" describe a life increasingly enslaved to drink. The verse exposes the bondage of addiction, from which true freedom comes only through the mastery of self-control given by the Spirit (Gal. 5:1, 23).

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 7

  • Eph 5:18And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
  • Isa 5:11Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; that continue until night, till wine inflame them!
  • Prov 20:1Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.
  • Amos 6:6That drink wine in bowls, and anoint themselves with the chief ointments: but they are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph.
  • Prov 9:2She hath killed her beasts; she hath mingled her wine; she hath also furnished her table.
  • Ps 75:8For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup, and the wine is red; it is full of mixture; and he poureth out of the same: but the dregs thereof, all the wicked of the earth shall wring them out, and drink them.
  • Gen 9:21And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (4)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Proverbs videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Proverbs 23:30YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on ProverbsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Wisdom personified, with God before creation and the agent of all things, anticipates Christ 'in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom' — the wisdom of God made flesh.

How Proverbs 23:30 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.