Quick answer
Eli mistakes Hannah for a drunken woman and tells her to put away her wine. In the very next verse Hannah answers that she has drunk neither wine nor strong drink. Taken together, the two verses are a vivid reminder that godly prayer and intoxication point in opposite directions.
1 Samuel 1:14 (KJV)
“And Eli said unto her, How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee.”
This verse falls into the warning-side and sobriety-side group because context matters more than a quick word lookup.
How we read this verse
Difficult passages should be read carefully, neither erased nor forced into proving more than they actually say. The safest method is to read them beside the clearest blessing texts, the clearest warning texts, and the broader definition studies.
That is why we pair this verse with Is drinking a sin?, Is drinking alcohol biblical?, and Sober-minded verses.
1 Samuel 1:15 (KJV)
“And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit: I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the LORD.”
Frequently asked questions
Why include a passage about a false accusation?
Because Hannah’s answer still matters. She presents wine and strong drink as things she has not taken while standing in a scene of earnest spiritual devotion.
Does this prove every use of wine is sinful?
No. It adds weight to the holiness-and-sobriety side of the pattern rather than settling every verse by itself.