Wine [is] a mocker, strong drink [is] raging
Wine deceives a man; it not only overcomes him before he is aware, but it promises him a pleasure which it does not give; but, on the contrary, excessive drinking gives him pain, and so mocks him; yea, it exposes him to reproach and disgrace, and to the mockery and derision of others; as well as it sets him to scoff at his companions, and even to mock at religion, and all that is good and serious; see ( Hosea 7:5 ) ; and strong drink not only disturbs the brain, and puts the spirits in a ferment, so that a man rages within, but it sets him a raving and quarrelling with his company, and everybody he meets with; such generally get into broils and contentions, and get woe, sorrow, and wounds, ( Proverbs 23:29 Proverbs 23:30 ) . Aben Ezra gives this as the sense of the words,
``a man of wine''(that is, one that is given to wine, a wine bibber), so Ben Melech,
``is a mocker, and he cries out for strong drink, that it may be given him;''which is not a bad sense of the words. and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise;