At its end it bites just like a serpent, and it secretes poison just like a viper.”​—Prov. 23:29-32.

His intemperance in the use of alcoholic beverages has the same effect upon him as the poison of a viper. It can make him physically sick, causing, for instance, cirrhosis of the liver. It can also harm him mentally by producing delirium tremens. Like a serpent’s poison, heavy intake of alcoholic beverages may be death-dealing.