4224. potos
Lexical Summary
potos: Drinking, banquet, feast

Original Word: πότος
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Transliteration: potos
Pronunciation: PO-tos
Phonetic Spelling: (pot'-os)
KJV: banqueting
NASB: drinking parties
Word Origin: [from the alternate of G4095 (πίνω - drink)]

1. a drinking-bout or carousal

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
carousal, banqueting.

From the alternate of pino; a drinking-bout or carousal -- banqueting.

see GREEK pino

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from pinó
Definition
a drinking bout
NASB Translation
drinking parties (1).

Thayer's Greek Lexicon
STRONGS NT 4224: πότος

πότος, πότου, (ΠΟΩ (cf. πίνω)), a drinking, carousing: 1 Peter 4:3. (Xenophon, Plato, Demosthenes, Josephus, Plutarch, Aelian, others; the Sept. for מִשְׁתֶּה.)

Topical Lexicon
Singular Appearance in the New Testament

The term occurs only once, in 1 Peter 4:3, where Peter lists behaviors characteristic of the Gentile lifestyle from which believers have been redeemed: “For you have spent enough time in the past carrying out the will of the Gentiles, living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing, and detestable idolatry”. Its placement between “drunkenness” and “orgies” highlights a form of communal excess distinguished from private inebriation, emphasizing a social setting devoted to unrestrained consumption.

Cultural and Ancient Context

Greco–Roman society prized convivial banquets (symposia) and festival gatherings honoring deities such as Dionysus (Bacchus). These events blended drinking, revelry, and often sexual immorality, functioning as both civic entertainment and religious observance. First-century converts, especially in Asia Minor where 1 Peter is addressed, would have felt social pressure to participate. Refusal could incur ostracism or economic loss (cf. 1 Peter 4:4: “They are surprised that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of reckless indiscretion, and they slander you.”).

Theological Emphasis

1. Identity in Christ: Peter frames abstention not as mere asceticism but as evidence of a decisive break with pagan life. The believer’s new allegiance to Christ renders former festivities incompatible with holy conduct.
2. Eschatological urgency: The surrounding passage (1 Peter 4:5–7) links sobriety to impending judgment and the “end of all things,” urging readiness through self-control and prayer.
3. Corporate witness: Distancing from public drinking parties preserved the early church from moral compromise and provided a counter-cultural testimony to surrounding communities.

Connections with Wider Biblical Teaching

Proverbs 23:29–35 warns against “lingering over wine,” portraying both the ruin and the seductive pull of excess.
Romans 13:13 exhorts believers to live “as in the daylight, not in carousing and drunkenness,” coupling public revelry with moral darkness.
Ephesians 5:18 contrasts being “drunk with wine” with being “filled with the Spirit,” establishing Spirit-produced joy as the God-given alternative to substance-induced euphoria.

Together these texts frame communal drinking excess as a counterfeit celebration that dulls spiritual perception and distorts fellowship.

Historical Reception in the Church

Early Christian apologists such as Tertullian and Clement of Alexandria cited Peter’s words when challenging pagan banquets. Medieval moralists echoed the warning, and Reformers applied it amid sixteenth-century tavern culture. Across eras, the verse has undergirded calls for temperance movements and contemporary recovery ministries.

Implications for Christian Living

1. Discipleship: New believers often need intentional guidance to replace former social habits with Christ-honoring fellowship (Acts 2:42-47).
2. Liberty and Love: Scripture allows moderate enjoyment of God’s gifts (Psalm 104:14-15) yet restrains any practice that leads others into sin (1 Corinthians 8:9–13).
3. Spiritual Vigilance: Because public drinking parties can erode moral judgment, elders are to be “temperate, self-controlled, respectable” (1 Timothy 3:2).

Practical Ministry Applications

• Teaching: Incorporate 1 Peter 4:3 in discipleship curricula addressing substance abuse, peer pressure, and holiness.
• Accountability: Small groups can replace former social spheres, offering joyful, sober fellowship and prayer.
• Evangelism: Believers who forgo excessive gatherings provide a living apologetic, illustrating the superior joy of life in Christ.

Forms and Transliterations
πότοι ποτοις πότοις ποτόν πότον πότος ποτου πότου ποτώ πότω potois pótois
Links
Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
1 Peter 4:3 N-DMP
GRK: οἰνοφλυγίαις κώμοις πότοις καὶ ἀθεμίτοις
NAS: carousing, drinking parties and abominable
KJV: revellings, banquetings, and
INT: wine-drinking revels drinkings and abominable

Strong's Greek 4224
1 Occurrence


πότοις — 1 Occ.

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