Woe to that wreath, the pride of Ephraim's drunkards, to the fading flower, his glorious beauty, set on the head of a fertile valley-- to that city, the pride of those laid low by wine (Isa 28:1)

This “Ephraim” refers to the Northern Kingdom, and the “wreath” signifies the palace in Samaria, its capital. Note that this wreath is also expressed as “fading flower” because it was being oppressed by the Assyrians that time. And all people in this land were “drunkards” in God’s sight.

And these also stagger from wine and reel from beer: Priests and prophets stagger from beer and are befuddled with wine; they reel from beer, they stagger when seeing visions, they stumble when rendering decisions. All the tables are covered with vomit and there is not a spot without filth (vv. 7-8).

According to the Bible, there are two kinds of wine: one comes from Satan, and the other comes from God. With the first kind, the drunkards become senseless to the spiritual things of God, have difficulty understanding his word, lose ability to render correct decisions according to God’s will, and live in the world of false visions and dreams. This is, in fact, how all people came to live today.

Who is it he is trying to teach? To whom is he explaining his message? To children weaned from their milk, to those just taken from the breast? For it is: Do and do (tsav la-tsav), do and do (tsav la-tsav), rule on rule (qav la-qav), rule on rule (qav la-qav); a little here, a little there (vv. 9-10).

So then, to teach something just and righteous to such unteachable people is like to teach Hebrew alphabets to little children. This was the step God had to take in bringing righteousness to this corrupt human world. These tsav’s and qav’s were the Law given to Israel, which they failed to keep, and resulted in judgments.

So this is what the Sovereign Lord says: "See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who trusts will never be dismayed (v. 16).”

This scripture is quoted in Rom 9:33 and 1 Pet 2:6 as a prophesy concerning Christ becoming the foundation. Note that in the context of this chapter in Isaiah, the oracle began with a picture of drunkards. It so happened that the foundation stone laid in the Second Temple in the place of the lost Ark was called shetiyyah, which comes from the verb shatah meaning to drink. It meant an order concerning how to drink wine in a royal feast (cf. Esth 1:8). Keep in mind that worship is a meal with God, and this stone symbolizes a new system of worship in a new kingdom with new citizens. It even gives a new kind of wine, with which those who believe get drunk and become senseless to all activities of destruction happening around them, and are saved from them. The important change from the way people sought righteousness by keeping the Law is expressed in the statement, “the one who trusts (believes) will never be dismayed.” To believe means to accept the spirituality that has become available to us through Christ—the righteousness of God, upon which our life is now being built under God’s grace. The former stone was carried out as prophesied in Zech 4, and now a new stone, called also “a distinction stone,” was carried in. This stone serves as a distinction between those who believe and those do not, and the distinction between the Jews and the Gentiles are no longer valid. And most importantly, those who believe will come to understand the heart of God and freely do his will. How can we live that way?

Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit (Eph 5:18).

When you get drunk with this new wine, you become senseless to the worldly things, and bold to do the will of God.