I recently heard what I considered was an absurd statement: "People only drank wine in biblical times because water was dirty." And I am seriously questioning the validity. Personally, it sounds like the perfect "explanation" as to why consuming alcohol was okay then, but in some religions, isn't okay now. Is there any truth to this belief?
You may be interested in our FAQ section on "water, wine and beer" which can be found here; although this does not address "biblical times" the answer is generally no. People were quite able to find sources of fresh water.