This simply isn't true. I don't even know how you came to this conclusion. It is very absurd to me. I will begin by using the first book of the Old Testament to explain the illegitimacy of your claim. In the Book of Genesis, in the ninth chapter, we read the story of Noah's life following the Great Flood. In the aftermath of the flood, Noah settles down with his family and plants a vineyard. During one of the nights on this vineyard, we then hear the tale of Ham gazing upon Noah's nakedness. Why was Noah unclothed in this circumstance, however? Well, he is described as having become drunk through the consumption of wine.
Indeed, wine instead of grape juice. Quite clearly, the Hebrew word used here for "the wine" is "hay-ya-yin". If you look at other occurrences of hay-ya-yin in the Old Testament scriptures, it becomes more apparent that this is not some non-alcoholic grape juice we are talking about. I will quote a few examples:
>In the Book of Judges, chapter thirteen, the mother of Samson is given the command to "drink no hay-ya-yin" or "anything that comes from the vine" during her pregnancy with little Samson. Directly after either is mentioned, she is then forbidden from consuming anything else that is unclean. Why would she be forbidden from drinking grape juice, or, for that matter, why would grape juice in particular be paired with any other beverage that "comes from the vine" if its being used in the context of an unclean substance?
>In the Book of Proverbs, chapter twenty-three, the wisdom is given to avoid tarrying with the consumption of hay-ya-yin, lest a person cause themselves "woe", "sorrow", "strife", "complaining", "wounds without cause", and a "redness of eyes". As far as I know, chugging a bottle of grape juice may make your stomach upset, but the rest of these symptoms don't add up.
>In the Book of Isaiah, chapter twenty-eight, the prophet Isaiah denounces the "drunkards" of the tribe of Ephraim. Particularly, he calls out their constant consumption of hay-ya-yin. "They have erred through hay-ya-yin", he says, and also "they are swallowed by hay-ya-yin, they stagger [In Hebrew, "ta-u", also used in the contexts of going astray or wandering aimlessly] with strong drink [In Hebrew, "has-se-kar", seemingly the literal translation of this is "intoxicating substance"], they err in vision, they stumble in judgement." Once again, if someone chugs a bottle of grape juice, they will obviously not stumble in their moral judgement.
So, the usages of "hay-ya-yin" clearly tell us that it is a fermented substance that can cause drunkenness, and that it is derived from grapes by the context of Noah's vineyard. I really need you to tell me how you came to the conclusion that there was no wine being consumed in the Middle East in these times, because trying to figure out the reasoning for that claim myself only leaves me more baffled the more I think on it.
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