How much wine did Jesus make? Six stone jars with 20 to 30 gallons of wine in them total 120 to 180 gallons. Jesus made nearly 1,000 bottles of wine! By all accounts, this is a lot of wine for a wedding of this size.
The miracles of Jesus certainly provoke awe and reverence, but they also prompt questions. One such scene is Jesus’s first public miracle at the wedding at Cana (John 2). In this passage, Jesus was at a wedding, and the hosts ran out of wine. After some discussion with his mother, Mary, Jesus astonishes everyone by turning the purification water into wine.
The question I want to consider is, Why did Jesus make so much wine?
John includes details that let us know that Jesus made a lot of wine. In verse 6 we read, “there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.” Jesus, wanting to ensure they were full, instructs the servants to fill up what was lacking in the jars to the brim (v.7).
Then, in verse 8, Jesus instructs them to “draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” The people were amazed. The purification buckets had turned into vintage wine bottles. With the astonishment that attends a surprise party, they celebrate together declaring, This is the good stuff!
How much wine did Jesus make? Six stone jars with 20 to 30 gallons of wine in them total 120 to 180 gallons. Jesus made nearly 1,000 bottles of wine! By all accounts, this is a lot of wine for a wedding of this size.
Furthermore, John tells us this was his first sign in Galilee, and it manifested his glory. This fact prods us along with our question, Why so much wine?
In the Bible wine is a sign of God’s blessing (Ps. 104:15; Prov. 3:10). The widespread abuse of wine does not dilute the biblical testimony that wine in the Bible is primarily positive.
But, there’s more than this.
In many cases, an abundance of wine demonstrates the abundance of God’s blessings. Two passages are particularly helpful here. The first is in Genesis 49 when Jacob is blessing his sons. Jacob comes to Judah and announces that from Judah there will come a very important king (Gen. 49:8-10). Further,
Binding his foal to the vine and his donkey’s colt to the choice vine, he has washed his garments in wine and his vesture in the blood of grapes. His eyes are darker than wine, and his teeth whiter than milk. (Gen. 49:11-12)
