Bible Strands
Proverbs 31:5
lest they drink and forget what is decreed, depriving all the oppressed of justice.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The mother of King Lemuel addresses him directly, warning rulers against alcohol consumption as they prepare to exercise judicial authority.
The words — The Hebrew term מְחֻקָּק (me.chu.Kak) literally means "what is decreed" or "the written law," while דִּין (din) denotes "the cause" or "legal right" owed to the vulnerable.
The thread — The text explicitly links intoxication to judicial failure, running parallel to Habakkuk 2:5's depiction of an arrogant leader whose expanding appetite betrays him and leaves him perpetually unstable.
Why it lands — It requires leaders to abstain from substances that impair judgment, ensuring legal rulings remain clear and do not strip the marginalized of their rightful cause.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Lest they drink, and forget the law, and pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted.
Cross-references
- Habakkuk 2:5 and 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 collects all the peoples as his own.