παιδαγωγός

From the study of Galatians 3:24

Range of meaning

Literally a 'boy-leader' (pais, boy + agōgos, leader). In Greek and Roman households it was a slave, often older and sometimes foreign, put in charge of a freeborn boy from about six until adolescence. He escorted the boy to and from school, carried his things, guarded him from danger and moral corruption, taught manners, and enforced discipline, often with a rod. The school teacher was a different person: grammatistēs or didaskalos. Once the boy came of age the paidagōgos had no more authority over him.

Against the English

KJV 'schoolmaster' and WEB 'tutor' make him a teacher, which he was not. BSB 'guardian', ESV/NIV 'guardian' and NASB 'tutor/guardian' come closer. YLT 'child-conductor' is the most literal. No English word quite fits, because the role no longer exists.

How it drifted

Tyndale and the KJV (1526/1611) used 'schoolmaster', likely under the Latin paedagogus/'pedagogue', which had come to mean a teacher. That suggested the law's job was to instruct. The Greek image is about custody and supervision for a limited time.

Used elsewhere in the period

Plato, Lysis 208c: the boy Lysis is 'ruled' by a paidagōgos who is a slave. Plato, Laws 7.808d–e: boys should no more be without paidagōgoi than sheep without a shepherd. Xenophon, Constitution of the Lacedaemonians 2.1–2 describes the custom. Plutarch, On the Education of Children 7 (Moralia 4a–b), complains that worthless slaves are given the job. Philo uses the figure both positively and negatively. Rabbinic texts borrowed the word (פדגוג). Ancient depictions alternate between a kindly protector and a harsh disciplinarian with a stick (N. H. Young, NovT 29, 1987).

From the study of 1 Corinthians 4:15

Range of meaning

Literally 'boy-leader' (pais + agōgos). In Greek and Roman households of means, this was usually a trusted slave assigned to a boy from about age six into his teens. He walked the boy to and from school, carried his things, watched his manners and morals, and corrected him, often with a cane. He might help with lessons, but he was not, as a rule, the schoolteacher (didaskalos or grammatistēs). His role was guardianship and discipline, and it was temporary: it ended when the boy came of age.

Against the English

KJV 'instructers' and NLT's 'teach' make him sound like a teacher. 'Tutor' (WEB, NASB) suggests a private academic coach in modern English. 'Guardian' (BSB, NIV) and 'guide' (ESV) are closer. YLT's 'child-conductors' is clumsy but the most literal. None of these English words carries the original's lower social rank, its strictness, or its temporary nature.

How it drifted

Latin borrowed the word as paedagogus, and over the centuries 'pedagogue' came to mean 'teacher'. Early English translators then rendered the job as teaching, though originally it was supervision.

Used elsewhere in the period

Plato, Lysis 208c: the boy Lysis is ruled by a paidagōgos who is a slave and leads him to the teacher. Xenophon, Constitution of the Lacedaemonians 2.1, contrasts other Greeks, who put slaves over their sons as paidagōgoi, with Spartan practice. Plutarch and many vase paintings and grave reliefs show paidagōgoi, sometimes with a stick. Paul uses the same image in Gal 3:24–25: the Law as a paidagōgos until Christ. The classic study of the background is N. H. Young, NovT 29 (1987).