Friday Night Message: Got Milk?

Feb. 10, 2023

Good evening brethren,

I was born and raised in Wisconsin, America’s Dairyland.  Half the kids in my class were from dairy farms.  And I did my best to help the dairy industry survive, yea even thrive.  I had cold cereal and milk for nearly all my breakfasts, and would usually have another bowl or two by bedtime.  

As an adult, I continued to have cereal for most breakfasts.  I really like Sue’s chocolate chip and peanut butter cookies, but they are twice as good when accompanied by a big glass of cold milk…likewise for other desserts, such as cobblers, berry pies, apple crisp, carrot cake, cheesecake, etc.

A few months back, I noticed that I was having some digestive discomfort.  We will pick up this thread at the end of this message.  For now, all we have done is to introduce the subject for tonight … MILK!

Milk products were among the staples of the diet in Biblical times, but fresh milk was not commonly drunk.  Rather, the milk was usually made into cheese and curds and butter.

Isa. 7:22 – So it shall be, from the abundance of milk they give, that he will eat curds; For curds and honey everyone will eat who is left in the land.
 

Prov. 30:33 – For as the churning of milk produces butter… 

Goat’s milk was the most widely used, however we also read of milk from the flock and herd:

Deut. 32:14 – Curds from the cattle, and milk of the flock, with the fat of lambs;

Milk was usually kept in skins (similar to wine).  Frequently guests were offered milk.  

Gen. 18:8 – So he took butter and milk and the calf which he had prepared and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree as they ate.

Although all of the verses above refer to actual milk itself, the term milk is also commonly used in a figurative sense as well:  In the Bible, milk can mean abundance, vindication, the rudiments of teaching and pure Christian doctrine.  Notice below the scripture that demonstrate these four comparisons:

Joel 3:18 – And it will come to pass in that day that the mountains shall drip with new wine, the hills shall flow with milk, and all the brooks of Judah shall be flooded with water; …

Isa. 60:16 – You shall drink the milk of the Gentiles, and milk the breast of kings.  You shall know that I, the Lord, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.

Heb. 5:12-14 – For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food.  For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for the is a babe.  But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. 

I Pet. 2:2 - … as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby.

Let me expand further on the symbolism of abundance [“flow with milk”] briefly mentioned above.

The frequently used phrase (occurring in the books of Exodus, Numbers, Deuteronomy and Jeremiah) “a land flowing with milk and honey” was a description of the Promised Land, Canaan on the other side of the Jordan River.  I believe that there is a broader meaning that we are missing if we view this simply as having large quantities of actual milk and actual honey.

We have already seen that milk can be generated by the flocks and herds of sheep, goats and cattle.  So perhaps, the word milk in the above famous description of the Promised land is really saying that the Promised Land would support any/all clean animals that produce milk.

We could likewise take a broader view of the word honey.  We all know that honey is made in part by the pollination process, which is vital for most plant life to bear fruit.  Therefore, instead of being limited to simply actual honey, the word could be symbolic of all crops and produce (grains, olives, fruit, nuts, etc.).  So for a nation or region that “flows with milk and honey” it can be a general or broader term for overall agricultural abundance.

Now back to the story above about my indigestion.  My wife mentioned to me that eggs, nuts and milk are among the foods that are most frequently responsible for distress in the lower tract.  So I gave up cow’s milk [using almond milk for cereal], in order to avoid the digestive discomfort.  That was a sad day in my life... having to give up something that made cookies and desserts even better. 

Then Sue suggested that I try Lactose free milk, to see if that would avoid the digestive issue.  Guess what … I have been using Lactose free milk for about a month, and I seem to be OK now.  So I can return to using cow’s milk with cereal and desserts.  Life is good!

Have a fruitful Sabbath,

Fred