Commentaries:
Weddings in the ancient Near East included a strong legal side, especially regarding providing the appropriate wedding gift, of which the wedding feast was a part. When the supply of wine failed at this wedding, more than social embarrassment was at stake. The bridegroom and his family could have become financially liable for inadequate wedding provisions. The seriousness of the lack of wine (symbolizing a lack of joy) helps us to appreciate the blessing contained in the miracle Jesus performed (Ecclesiastes 9:7-9).
This situation relates to the common problems couples experience in marriage, even among God's people. We cannot always stop problems from developing, but we can overcome them with the help of Christ who dwells in us and therefore within our marriages (Romans 8:10).
Martin G. Collins
The Miracles of Jesus Christ: Water Into Wine (Part One)
The "beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee" (John 2:11) tells us something of God's creative effort. In Cana, Christ turned water to wine. Mankind had an essential part of this miracle, for, at His command, those at the wedding feast "[f]ill[ed] the waterpots with water" (verse 7). Nevertheless, the miracle was God's, who works through Christ (John 5:19). Tasting the new wine, the master of the feast tells the bridegroom, "You have kept the good wine until now" (verse 10). The wine God created—with man's help—is better than the wine made by man alone.
Charles Whitaker
Choosing the New Man (Part Three)
Not only did Jesus condone the proper use of wine, but He knew what the qualities of a good wine were, a fact confirmed in Luke 5:39: "And no one, having drunk old wine, immediately desires new; for he says, 'The old is better.'"
Some have argued that, at the Cana wedding, Jesus changed the water into unfermented grape juice, not wine. However, the Greek word translated "wine" throughout John 2:1-10 is oinos, which means "fermented wine."
John Plunkett
Is It a Sin to Drink Alcoholic Beverages?
The first miracle Jesus Christ performs during His ministry is changing water into wine at a marriage feast in Cana (John 2:1-11). When we compare what Christ and Moses each did with water, Jesus' miracle shows the contrast between law and grace. Moses changes water to blood, and Christ changes it into wine. Earlier, in John 1:17, the apostle John writes, "For the law was given through Moses, [and] grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." Moses' turning of water into blood suggests judgment (Exodus 7:14-17), while Jesus' turning of water into wine implies generosity and joy. In John 3:17, John comments, "For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world [what the law does to sinners], but that the world through Him might be saved [what grace does for those who repent]."
This miracle demonstrates at the earliest possible time that Christ's ministry would be one of grace and truth, as an extension and complement of the Law and the prophets (Matthew 5:17-19). Jesus had come to fulfill God's law, that is, to teach it and live it as an example of how to apply it to everyday life (Luke 24:44-45).
Martin G. Collins
The Miracles of Jesus Christ: Water Into Wine (Part One)
Other commentary entries containing this verse:
John 2:1-10
John 2:1-11
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