A sacrificial offering of wine poured out at the foot of the altar, to accompany a burnt, fellowship or grain offering.
The drink offering was an ancient custom
So Jacob set up a pillar in the place where God had spoken with him— a stone marker— and he poured out a drink offering on it and anointed it with oil.
Drink offerings were proportionate to the size of animal sacrificed
See also Numbers 15:5, Numbers 15:7, Numbers 15:10
Drink offerings were required on feasts and sacred days
As part of the daily offerings: Exodus 29:41; Numbers 28:7–8; Leviticus 23:13 Firstfruits; Leviticus 23:18; Numbers 28:31; Leviticus 23:37; Numbers 29:30–31; Numbers 28:24 Passover; Numbers 28:9–10 Sabbath offerings; Numbers 28:14 monthly offerings; Numbers 29:6 Feast of Trumpets; Numbers 29:11 Day of Atonement
Occasions for making a drink offering
To accompany sacrifices for unintentional sins
To mark special occasions
Numbers 6:17 after taking a Nazirite vow; 1 Chronicles 29:21 at the accession of a king; 2 Chronicles 29:35 during a religious reformation; Ezekiel 45:17 in Ezekiel's vision of restored worship
God's displeasure when drink offerings were poured out to idols
Jeremiah 7:18 See also Isaiah 57:6; Jeremiah 19:13, Jeremiah 32:29, Jeremiah 44:17–19, Jeremiah 44:25; Ezekiel 20:28
The sons gather wood, the fathers light the fire, and the women knead the dough to make cakes for the Queen of Heaven; they pour out drink offerings to other gods to provoke Me to anger.
Drink offerings as a symbol
Of restoration after a locust plague
Of devotion and sacrifice
Philippians 2:17 See also 2 Samuel 23:15–17; 2 Timothy 4:6–8
But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you.
Related themes
Dictionary of Bible Themes © 1999 Martin Manser, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Bible Aquifer. Formatted for this site, with Scripture from the Berean Standard Bible.