Greek word · G1051

γάλα

gala

milk

Milk, literally. Figuratively, the first and easiest nourishment, so elementary instruction suited to beginners.

Appears 5 times in 5 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·

What it means

γάλα, -ακτος, τό

[in LXX for חלב ;]

milk: 1 Corinthians 9:7. Metaphorical, of elementary Christian teaching: 1 Corinthians 3:2, Hebrews 5:12, 13; τὸ λογικὸν ἄδολον γ., the rational (spiritual) genuine milk (see Hort, in l.), 1 Peter 2:2 (in support of AV, milk of the word, see ICC, in l.).†

(AS)

From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Hebrews 5:13

Range of meaning

Milk, literally. Figuratively, the first and easiest nourishment, so elementary instruction suited to beginners.

Against the English

No real translation difference. The modern Christian pair "milk and meat" tends to make "milk" mean "simple, nothing wrong with it." Here it is a rebuke.

How it drifted

Popular devotional use ("milk Christians" vs "meat Christians") has made the image a neutral ranking of levels of doctrine. In Hebrews 5 it functions as a reproach to adults still on the bottle.

Used elsewhere in the period

Philo and Epictetus (above); Paul, 1 Corinthians 3:2. 1 Peter 2:2 uses milk positively ("long for pure spiritual milk"), which shows the image could cut different ways depending on the author's purpose.

From the study of 1 Peter 2:2

Range of meaning

Milk, literally. In metaphor: (1) basic or elementary instruction, as in Philo, 1 Cor 3:2 and Heb 5:12–13; (2) nourishment and life given by a nursing parent, sometimes God, as in Isa 66:11–12 and the Qumran Hymns (1QH 15/7.20–22), where the teacher is like a nurse with a child at the breast.

Against the English

All versions say 'milk'. The English word is accurate. What drifts is the imported meaning 'beginner's food that you should grow out of'.

How it drifted

Because Paul and Hebrews use milk-versus-meat contrasts, readers carry that contrast into 1 Peter, where it does not appear.

Used elsewhere in the period

1 Cor 3:2 and Heb 5:12–13 contrast milk with solid food. Philo, On Agriculture 9, says milk is for infants and wheat-bread for the mature. In Isa 66:11, Jerusalem nurses her children. Later Christian sources (Odes of Solomon 8, 19, 2nd century; and from around 200 AD, milk and honey given to the newly baptized) show the image was taken up widely, though they come later than 1 Peter.

From the study of 1 Corinthians 3:2

Range of meaning

Milk of any animal, and especially breast milk as the infant's only food. Used as a figure of speech, it stands for first, simple nourishment suited to beginners.

Against the English

"Milk" is accurate. The danger is not the word but what modern readers assume milk stands for, usually a short list of "basic doctrines".

Used elsewhere in the period

Milk versus solid food was a stock image in Greek and Jewish teaching. Philo (On Agriculture 9) says milk is food for infants and wheat-cakes for grown men, so the soul is first given milk-like elementary schooling and later the stronger food of philosophy. Epictetus (Discourses 2.16.39) asks his students whether they are not willing at last to be weaned like children and take more solid food. Hebrews 5:12–14 and 1 Peter 2:2 use the same image for believers.

Where it appears

1 Corinthians · 2

  1. 1 Corinthians 3:2 γάλα Milk

    I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for solid food. In fact, you are still not ready,

    Here: Breast milk, the food of a nursing infant. It comes first in the sentence for emphasis ("milk is what I gave you") and picks up "infants" (nēpioi) from verse 1.

  2. 1 Corinthians 9:7 γάλακτος milk

    Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its fruit? Who tends a flock and does not drink of its milk?

    Here: Milk. It was a staple of pastoral life and was also made into curds and cheese, which helps explain why the verb is 'eat.'

Hebrews · 2

  1. Hebrews 5:12 γάλακτος of milk

    Although by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to reteach you the basic principles of God’s word. You need milk, not solid food!

    Here: The nursing infant's food. It is an image for the first, elementary instruction in the faith.

  2. Hebrews 5:13 γάλακτος of milk

    For everyone who lives on milk is still an infant, inexperienced in the message of righteousness.

    Here: The nursing infant's food, a common image in ancient teaching for elementary instruction. In context it stands for "the basic principles" of verse 12, listed in 6:1–2.

1 Peter · 1

  1. 1 Peter 2:2 γάλα milk

    Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,

    Here: A baby's only food and its lifeline. Here it is the whole of what feeds the believer. Unlike Hebrews 5 or 1 Corinthians 3, it is not set against 'solid food'.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.