Because epiousios is in Matthew 6:11 and Luke 11:3 it is the second best-known bread in the Bible. Those references are in the center of the Lord’s Prayer, along with forgiveness, and they contain the special Greek word epiousios. How special? It is only used twice in the corpus of Greek writings and literature. Okay, I did not say just the Bible, I said all of Greek literature before the time of Jesus. (God bless translators.) It has been rendered “daily”. Never have I heard this word or how special it is; take some time and check out these links. O the verse- Give us this day our DAILY bread. (Mark translation.)
- Strong’s Greek: 1967. ἐπιούσιος (epiousios) — for the coming day, for subsistence (biblehub.com)
- Strong’s Greek: 1909. ἐπί (epi) — on, upon (biblehub.com)
- The Greek prefix “epi-” means “on top of” or “on, upon, near, at”
- Strong’s Greek: 3776. οὐσία (ousia) — substance, property (biblehub.com) This is in Luke 15:12,13
- Ousia – Wikipedia
- And for comparison Strong’s Greek: 3669. ὁμοίωσις (homoiósis) — a making like, likeness (biblehub.com) Words around this in Strong’s are used to describe God and the Trinity.
Since there is nothing to compare it to, my first reaction was MANNA! What is this special concept in the Lord’s Prayer that is sandwiched between “give us this day” and “bread”? “Daily” has worked; “for the coming day” may be just as good, or is there even more? As this is a study, I will put it in context with the Sermon on the Mount and then break that compound word down. After all of that, I will share my crust with you (The crust on a loaf of bread is special to me.).
Luke – Only Matthew and Luke recorded this prayer by the guiding hand of the Holy Spirit. Luke had heard this prayer many times before he wrote it to Theophilus. There are slight variations between the two in the Greek text but that should be expected. Others have added more and bigger changes than these slight variations. (I am working on a study on the Lord’s Prayer.) Luke 11 to me is the start of his version of the Sermon on the Mount, it does go for a few chapters.
Thoughts on the Word
The Author of Creation and the Word of Life coined a word. Epiousios was not a mistake or an accident. If you look at verse 11, it could have been said “Give us today our bread” and the meaning would have been clear.
I thank the Father for the food we have to eat and His grace for willingly taking care of my family. Do I have a simple explanation for epiousios. No, but the study has moved some “tent pegs” because my God has pushed my box out of shape. I will try to put this compound word into the context of Jesus’ sermon and His teachings for His Kingdom. Now, let’s think above our possessions.
The Sermon – I need to start/mention the baptism of Jesus (3:13), which compares to the Children passing through the Red Sea. He then goes into the wilderness and is tempted (4:1-4). The first temptation is about bread or what He needs to live on. (If it is just a number reference it is from Matthew.) Jesus then picks up and adds to John the Baptist’s message; the good news that the kingdom of heaven/God is near (4:17) and He is healing every disease (4:23). Remember that the Children came out of Egypt healed. Relax take a breath and view the Sermon as a Jesus version of the Ten Commandments and the Law. Now consider how food, water, manna, and quail played into the trip to the mountain where they met God. A note to myself – they had gold, silver, and possessions but no food or water; what did they complain about?
The Sermon has several references to food, eating, and what is needed to maintain our lives. I decided the best way to study these was to list them.
- 5:6 – those who hunger and thirst for righteousness
- 5:13 – you are salt (needed for life) stay flavorful
- 5:42 – help those who need to borrow from you
- 6:11 – gives us bread every day and “more”. We could be praying every day for what we need tomorrow. It could be a statement to give us above what we need so we can share.
- 6:19 – watch what you are storing up
- 6:25 – life is more important than food, Father knows we need it so don’t worry
- 6:31 – don’t worry about what to drink or eat
- 7:9 – if you ask Father for bread or fish, He is not going to give you something harmful
- 7:16-20 – good fruit comes from good trees
Actual and metaphorical these verses help to open the Kingdom and show the righteous relations that God wants with the Body of Christ and that we are to have with the other parts of the Body. Luke 6:38 with the “good measure” being poured for us, then pressed, shaken, and running over is exhorting us to get out of our box and give above what is sufficient. I am beginning to feel that is a good picture of epiousios.
The Parts
Epi is a prefix in Greek, and I have seen it as a word. It can mean upon or above. We are talking about Father God, the owner of the cattle on a thousand hills.
Ousios in our “modern” jargon carries the concept of substance or being. In the Wiki article above that concept was part of the trinitarian doctrine and the controversy that arose in the early church. See Luke 15:12+13.
My Musings
I may say “daily” but I am not sure I can go that small in my thinking ever again.
Metaphorically I can see epiousios as the crust on a loaf of bread. It is on top of the substance that most people like. It has formed from the heat changing the dough to make a shield for the soft inner part. The crust can have a pleasant color. It gives me something to chew on while I enjoy the softer inside. Personally, I like to eat the crust.
Many kernels of grain are needed to make a loaf of bread. They are picked, ground up, and mixed together to make bread. The Body of Christ has many individual “kernels” that are being prepared so we can be the Bride and be presented spotless and perfect.
