Ephesians 5:18

Ephesians 5:18 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
• New International Version (NIV)Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit,
• English Standard Version (ESV)And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,
• New King James Version (NKJV)And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,

Context of Ephesians 5:18

16making the most of the time, because the days are evil. 17So don’t be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. And don’t get drunk with wine, which leads to reckless living, but be filled by the Spirit: 19speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music with your heart to the Lord, 20giving thanks always for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,

Ephesians 5:18 word by word

καὶ μὴ μεθύσκεσθε οἴνῳ, ἐν ᾧ ἐστιν ἀσωτία, ἀλλὰ πληροῦσθε ἐν πνεύματιRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Andκαίkai · andG2532
• beμεθύσκωmethuskō · to get drunkG3182
• notμήmē · notG3361
• withἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• wineοἶνοςoinos · wineG3631
• whereinὅςhos hē ho · whichG3739
• isεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• excessἀσωτίαasōtia · debaucheryG810
• butἀλλάalla · butG235
• be filledπληρόωplēroō · to fulfillG4137
• the Spiritπνεῦμαpneuma · spirit/breath: spiritG4151

Cross-references for Ephesians 5:18

• Genesis 9:21He drank some of the wine, became drunk, and uncovered himself inside his tent.
• Genesis 19:32Come, let’s get our father to drink wine so that we can sleep with him and preserve our father’s line.”
• Deuteronomy 21:20They will say to the elders of his city, ‘This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious; he doesn’t obey us. He’s a glutton and a drunkard.’
• Psalms 69:12Those who sit at the city gate talk about me, and drunkards make up songs about me.
• Proverbs 20:1Wine is a mocker, beer is a brawler; whoever goes astray because of them is not wise.
• Proverbs 23:20Don’t associate with those who drink too much wine or with those who gorge themselves on meat.
• Isaiah 5:11Woe to those who rise early in the morning in pursuit of beer, who linger into the evening, inflamed by wine.
• Matthew 24:49and starts to beat his fellow servants, and eats and drinks with drunkards,
• Luke 12:45But if that servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying his coming,’ and starts to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and get drunk,
• Luke 21:34“Be on your guard, so that your minds are not dulled from carousing, drunkenness, and worries of life, or that day will come on you unexpectedly
• Romans 13:13Let us walk with decency, as in the daytime: not in carousing and drunkenness; not in sexual impurity and promiscuity; not in quarreling and jealousy.
• 1 Corinthians 5:11But actually, I wrote you not to associate with anyone who claims to be a brother or sister and is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or verbally abusive, a drunkard or a swindler. Do not even eat with such a person.
• 1 Corinthians 6:10no thieves, greedy people, drunkards, verbally abusive people, or swindlers will inherit God’s kingdom.
• 1 Corinthians 11:21For at the meal, each one eats his own supper. So one person is hungry while another gets drunk!
• Galatians 5:21envy, drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar. I am warning you about these things — as I warned you before — that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
• 1 Thessalonians 5:7For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night.

Commentaries on Ephesians 5:18

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 18Be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess - This is a farther allusion to the Bacchanalian mysteries; in them his votaries got drunk, and ran into all manner of excesses. Plato, though he forbade drunkenness in general, yet allowed that the people should get drunk in the solemnities of that god who invented wine. And indeed this was their common custom; when they had offered their sacrifices they indulged themselves in drunkenness, and ran into all kinds…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 18And be not drunk with wine - A danger to which they were exposed and a vice to which those around them were much addicted. Compare notes on Luke 21:34. It is not improbable that in this verse there is an allusion to the orgies of Bacchus, or to the festivals celebrated in honor of that pagan god. He was “the god of wine,” and during those festivals, men and women regarded it as an acceptable act of worship to become intoxicated, and with wild songs and…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-21Verses 15-21 Another remedy against sin, is care, or caution, it being impossible else to maintain purity of heart and life. Time is a talent given us by God, and it is misspent and lost when not employed according to his design. If we have lost our time heretofore, we must double our diligence for the future. Of that time which thousands on a dying bed would gladly redeem at the price of the whole world, how little do men think, and to what trifles they…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 18The Holy Spirit, not wine, should have the most influence in the lives of believers (see Proverbs 23:29–35; compare Acts 2:15–18). be filled: The grammar here suggests a repeated, ongoing process of letting the Holy Spirit guide and influence the lives of believers, not a single event.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1818. excess--worthless, ruinous, reckless prodigality. wherein--not in the wine itself when used aright (1Ti 5:23), but in the "excess" as to it. but be filled with the Spirit--The effect in inspiration was that the person was "filled" with an ecstatic exhilaration, like that caused by wine; hence the two are here connected (compare Ac 2:13-18). Hence arose the abstinence from wine of many of the prophets, for example, John the Baptist, namely, in order to…Read the comment

Topics related to Ephesians 5:18

• Commandments
• Drunkenness
• Holy Spirit
• Joy
• Wine

In the dictionaries

• Arise
• Awake
• Dear
• Drunk
• Fellowship
• Flesh
• Fruit
• Light
• Melody
• Redeem

Commentaries on Ephesians 5

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings