Greek word · G3542
νομή
nomē
pasture
Pasture, grazing ground, the act of feeding. In medical writers it also means the "spreading" or "eating away" of a sore, which is its sense in its only other New Testament use (2 Tim 2:17, "their talk will spread like gangrene").
Appears 2 times in 2 verses of the Greek New Testament. ·
What it means
νομή, -ῆς, ἡ
(νέμω, to pasture), [in LXX chiefly for מִרְעֶה, also for נָוֶה, etc. ;]
1. a pasture, pasturage: figuratively, John 10:9
2. a grazing, feeding; metaphorically, of a spreading sore, 2 Timothy 2:17 (Polyb.).†
(AS)
From G. Abbott-Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (1922), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).
In depth
- Range of meaning
Pasture, grazing ground, the act of feeding. In medical writers it also means the "spreading" or "eating away" of a sore, which is its sense in its only other New Testament use (2 Tim 2:17, "their talk will spread like gangrene").
- Against the English
"Pasture" is accurate. Some paraphrases add "good" or "green", which brings in Ezekiel 34 and Psalm 23 openly where John only hints at them.
- Used elsewhere in the period
In the LXX it is used for grazing land. Ezekiel 34:14 reads "I will feed them in good pasture (ἐν νομῇ ἀγαθῇ)", in the chapter where God condemns Israel's self-serving shepherds and promises to shepherd his flock himself. Compare also Ps 74:1 and 79:13 ("sheep of your pasture") and 1 Chr 4:40. Documentary papyri use the word for grazing land and grazing rights.
Where it appears
John · 1
-
John 10:9 νομὴν pasture
I am the gate. If anyone enters through Me, he will be saved. He will come in and go out and find pasture.
Here: Grazing ground, food for the flock. It is placed before its verb, so the word stands out. It recalls God's promise in Ezekiel 34:14 to feed his scattered flock "in good pasture".
2 Timothy · 1
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2 Timothy 2:17 νομὴν pasture to grow
and the talk of such men will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus,
Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.