Why does Peter use the metaphor of newborn infants in 1 Peter 2:2? Canonical Text “Like newborn infants, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation.” — 1 Peter 2:2 [BSB] Immediate Literary Context Peter has just reminded believers that they have been “born again … through the living and enduring word of God” (1 Peter 1:23). The simile of infancy naturally follows the language of new birth. By shifting from birth (vv. 1:3, 23) to infancy (2:2), Peter builds a coherent argument: regeneration must be followed by nurtured growth. Cultural–Historical Background Greco-Roman literature often used infancy to describe moral formation (cf. Philo, On the Decalogue 168). Jewish tradition likened Torah to milk (b. Niddah 30b), so Peter’s Jewish-Christian readers would recognize the metaphor. Unlike pagan mystery cults, Christian initiation (baptism) did not finish maturity; it began it. Catacomb Fresco XXVII in Rome (late 2nd c.) depicts an infant at the breast beside a baptismal scene, visually reinforcing this early Christian interpretation. Theological Motifs 1. New Creation: Creation theology (Genesis 1; John 1) frames life emerging from divine speech. Infants symbolize design—dependent yet purpose-filled—consistent with intelligent design arguments showing specified complexity from the earliest stages of human development (cf. Meyer, Signature in the Cell, ch. 6). 2. Sanctification: Peter couples initial justification (new birth) with progressive sanctification (growth). Milk is not optional nutrition; it is requisite for survival. Old Testament Echoes • Psalm 34:8 “Taste and see that the LORD is good” is cited in 1 Peter 2:3. Newborns “taste” first. • Isaiah 55:1 “Come, buy milk … without cost” links freely given sustenance to God’s word (Isaiah 55:11). Pastoral Purpose Peter addresses suffering exiles (1 Peter 1:1). Spiritual immaturity would leave them vulnerable. Craving the Word equips them to endure persecution, just as physical milk builds antibodies in an infant—an observable design feature that mirrors spiritual reality. Practical Application • Intake: Regular, undiluted Scripture reading rather than syncretistic mixtures (cf. 2 Corinthians 6:14). • Attitude: “Crave” (ἐπιποθήσατε) denotes intense desire, challenging complacency. • Outcome: “Grow up” (αὐξηθῆτε) is passive; God effects growth, man receives means. Parallels in Pauline Literature • 1 Corinthians 3:1-2 and Hebrews 5:12-14 also employ milk, but Paul contrasts it with meat to rebuke stagnation, whereas Peter uses milk positively to commend foundational nourishment. No contradiction—different pastoral aims, unified canonical harmony. Early Church Reception • The Didache 10.3 urges daily “spiritual milk” after baptismal instruction. • Irenaeus, Against Heresies 4.38.1, interprets 1 Peter 2:2 as encouragement to receive the apostolic preaching “pure, unadulterated, and simple.” Summary Peter employs the newborn-infant metaphor to link regeneration with sanctification, to highlight the purity and sufficiency of Scripture, to exhort earnest desire for God’s Word, and to present a divinely engineered picture of growth from new life to mature faith—all undergirded by the historical, bodily resurrection of Christ that guarantees the reality and necessity of that growth. |
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