Marriage, Water, and Wine (Proverbs 5:15–20)

In life, love can play the purest note, reminiscent of the yearning in Huey Lewis’ “I Want a New Drug” for a connection that uplifts without the aftermath of sorrow. This longing mirrors the essence of marital love—unadulterated, enriching, and free from the bitterness of betrayal. Just as Proverbs 5:15–20 draws a stark contrast between the purity of drinking from one’s well and the peril of indulging in polluted streams, so does marriage stand as a safeguard against the desolation of infidelity.

Picture the anticipation of sweet tea, only to be met with the starkness of unsweetened tea — Yankee bilge water! This describes the stark disparity between the fulfillment found in the sacred covenant of marriage and the shallow, fleeting pleasures of adultery. By divine design, marriage acts as the riverbank, preserving the sanctity of love from devolving into a stagnant swamp. The allure of waters beyond this sacred bond proves shallow, easily disturbed, and ultimately unfulfilling.

Within this discourse emerges a more profound revelation, as Proverbs implores us to be “intoxicated“ with our spouse’s love (Proverbs 5:19–20), a profound love transforming the mundane into the miraculous, akin to water turning into wine. This transformation, celebrated in John 2:1–11 at the wedding feast in Cana, is not merely poetic but rooted in the divine act where Jesus showcased His glory, elevating marital love from the ordinary to the extraordinary.

This act of turning water into wine, Jesus’s first miracle, contrasts Moses’s first sign of turning water into blood (Exodus 7:19ff), a narrative of judgment versus grace. It underscores a lesson in divine service—through cooperation with the Divine, we partake in miracles. The Gospels are replete with such cooperative acts, from feeding thousands (John 6) to raising the dead (John 11), highlighting our role as servants and co-participants in the divine plan.

So, let it be a testament to the transformative power of love within marriage. May our love be turned from water to wine (John 2:1–11), ever deepening, ever enriching, as we become wholly “addicted to love” in the purest, most divine sense.

~PW 🌮🛶

“Drink water from your own cistern, flowing water from your own well.” (Proverbs 5:15, ESV)