​And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece. Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it. When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was (but the servants which drew the water knew); the governor of the feast called the bridegroom, and saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now.” (John 2:6–10)

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If we assume Jesus created alcoholic wine, He would have produced dozens of gallons of alcohol. A firkin is defined as “a small barrel … normally holding 9 imperial gallons or around 41 liters.”¹ If half the containers contained two firkins a piece and half of the containers contained three firkins apiece, Jesus would have created in total approximately 162.47 gallons of alcohol. Remember, John 2:10 indicates that the guests had already “well drunk,” meaning that, if this were alcohol, Jesus would have just created a prime opportunity for intoxication. 

 

The first biblical issue is that Jesus would have undoubtedly tempted people to sin at the wedding by giving them ample opportunity to get drunk. The Bible records in James 1:13: “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man.” If the wine at the wedding were truly alcoholic, then the guests were being offered a large quantity of the finest wine, with no stipulations, even after they had already “well drunk.” Had this wine been alcoholic, it would have presented a significant temptation for the guests to sin by becoming drunk, which, had they done so, would have been against the biblical commands against drunkeness. (Romans 13:13–14, Galatians 5:21, Ephesians 5:18).

 

 

Secondly, had the wine at the wedding been truly alcoholic, Jesus would have created a major provision for the flesh to sin. Romans 13:14 records: “But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.” Well over 100 gallons of alcohol, created by Jesus Himself, would have been an incredible provision for the flesh to participate in sin. 

 

Another issue with Jesus creating wine at the wedding is that Jesus is the Word of God (John 1:1). Hence, if the Bible says something is wrong, that’s just another way to say that Jesus said that it was wrong - meaning, had Jesus created wine at the wedding of Cana, He would have contradicted the rules that He set forth in His own Word! 

 

For example, consider Habakkuk 2:15: “Woe unto him that giveth his neighbour drink, that puttest thy bottle to him, and makest him drunken also, that thou mayest look on their nakedness!” In other words, would Jesus contradict the Word of God by giving alcohol to His neighbor at the wedding of Cana? The answer must be a resounding no.

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Additionally, would Jesus contradict the warnings in Proverbs? Proverbs 20:1 states, “Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.” Proverbs 23:31 warns, “Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright.” The same God who gave these warnings in Proverbs is the same God of John 2.

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Furthermore, would Jesus contradict the warning in Ephesians 4:27, which instructs, “Neither give place to the devil”? Creating and offering over 100 gallons of unstipulated alcohol to wedding guests who had already “well drunk” would have been a perfect opportunity to give place to the devil in the sin of drunkenness. It is hard to reckon that Jesus, the living Word, would have contradicted the numerous warnings.

 

Further, the ample biblical warnings against drunkenness alone (Ephesians 5:18, Galatians 5:19,21, Romans 13:13-14) are enough believe that Jesus would not have created alcohol at this wedding. 

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Therefore, because wine (oinos) can mean either grape juice or alcohol, and because mu biblical evidence points to Jesus’ abstinence, it is reasonable to conclude that Jesus did not create alcoholic wine at the wedding of Cana.

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Endnotes

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1. Cambridge Dictionary, s.v. “firkin,” https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/firkin.

2. All Scripture from the KJV