First Timothy 5:23 is a short, practical line in which the apostle Paul tells his young coworker Timothy to stop drinking only water and to take a little wine for the sake of his stomach and his frequent illnesses. The verse is a personal health note tucked into a letter mostly about church leadership, and it shows that Paul cared about the physical well-being of the people he worked with. Paul wrote it to Timothy, a trusted companion he had mentored and placed in charge of the church in Ephesus.
Be no longer a drinker of water only, but use a little wine for your stomach’s sake and your frequent infirmities.
1 Timothy 5:23 (WEB)
What 1 Timothy 5:23 Means
The phrase “be no longer a drinker of water only” tells us that Timothy had been following a strict personal habit of drinking nothing but water. Paul is not condemning that habit as sin. He is gently asking Timothy to loosen it because it is hurting his health. The word “only” matters here, since Paul is not telling Timothy to become a heavy drinker, just to add a small amount of wine to his routine.
The reason Paul gives is practical: “for your stomach’s sake and your frequent infirmities.” In the ancient world, wine was often used as a mild remedy for digestive trouble and for general weakness, and Paul speaks in that common-sense way. The verse does not promise that wine will cure anything, and it does not set a rule for every believer about drinking. It is advice fitted to one man’s body and one man’s recurring sicknesses.
The Context of 1 Timothy 5:23
First Timothy is one of the Pastoral Letters, traditionally attributed to Paul and written to a younger leader serving a congregation in Ephesus. Paul’s aim in the letter is to guide Timothy in choosing elders, correcting false teaching, and caring for widows and other members of the church. The surrounding verses in chapter 5 are full of instructions about how to handle sin in the community, how to avoid favoritism, and how to avoid rushing into decisions about people.
Verse 23 sits in the middle of that serious discussion and feels almost out of place, which is part of its value. Paul moves from warnings about sins that are visible and hidden to a sudden, personal note about Timothy’s body. Reading it this way shows that spiritual leadership and physical care were not separate concerns for Paul, and that a leader’s health can affect the work he is called to do.
Key Phrases in 1 Timothy 5:23
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
19 Or don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.
(WEB)
Paul reminds believers that their bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit and belong to God. Reading this next to 1 Timothy 5:23 helps explain why Paul cared about Timothy’s stomach and frequent sicknesses, since looking after the body is a way of honoring the God who dwells within it.
Ephesians 5:18
Don’t be drunken with wine, in which is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit…
(WEB)
This verse warns against drunkenness and calls for being filled with the Spirit instead. Placed beside 1 Timothy 5:23, it shows the balance Scripture keeps: wine is not forbidden in itself, but excess is dangerous, and the believer’s deepest fullness comes from God.
A Short Prayer From 1 Timothy 5:23
Lord, thank you that you care about the whole of our lives, including our bodies and the small weaknesses we carry every day. Give us wisdom to take our health seriously, humility to listen to those who love us, and self-control to avoid every kind of excess. Where we have become rigid or fearful, loosen our grip and teach us to rest in your provision. Help us serve you faithfully in the strength you give, one day at a time. Amen.
