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English translation and notes by John Barach
Chapter 6
6:1 ὅτε οὖν ἐποίησεν τὴν ἐντολήν, τί λέγει;
Τίς ὁ κρινόμενός μοι;
ἀντιστήτω μοι·
ἢ τίς ὁ δικαιούμενός μοι;
ἐγγισάτω τῷ παιδὶ κυρίου.
 When therefore He gave the commandment, what does He say?
“Who is he that contends with me? Let him stand up against me.
Or who is he that is justified before me? Let him draw near to the servant of the Lord.
6:2 οὐαὶ ὑμῖν, ὅτι ὑμεῖς πάντες ὡς ἱμάτιον παλαιωθήσεσθε, καὶ σὴς καταφάγεται ὑμᾶς.
καὶ πάλιν λέγει ὁ προφήτης, ἐπεὶ ὡς λίθος ἰσχυρὸς ἐτέθη εἰς συντριβήν·
ἰδού, ἐμβαλῶ εἰς τὰ θεμέλια Σιὼν λίθον πολυτελῆ, ἐκλεκτόν, ἀκρογωνιαῖον, ἔντιμον.
 Woe unto you, for you all shall grow old like a garment, and a moth shall consume you.”
And again the prophet says, since He was placed as a strong stone for crushing:
“Look, I will lay into the foundations of Zion a precious, choice, cornerstone, held in honor.”
6:3 εἶτα τί λέγει;
Καὶ ὃς ἐλπίσει ἐπ' αὐτὸν ζήσεται εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα.
ἐπὶ λίθον οὖν ἡμῶν ἡ ἐλπίς;
μὴ γένοιτο·
ἀλλ' ἐπεὶ ἐν ἰσχύϊ τέθεικεν τὴν σάρκα αὐτοῦ κύριος.
λέγει γάρ·
Καὶ ἔθηκέ με ὡς στερεὰν πέτραν.
 Then what does he say?
“And whoever shall hope upon Him shall live forever.”
Is our hope, then, upon a stone? Far from it! But because the Lord has placed His flesh in strength.
For he says: “And He set me as a solid rock.”
6:4 λέγει δὲ πάλιν ὁ προφήτης·
Λίθον ὃν ἀπεδοκίμασαν οἱ οἰκοδομοῦντες, οὗτος ἐγενήθη εἰς κεφαλὴν γωνίας.
καὶ πάλιν λέγει·
Αὕτη ἐστὶν ἡ ἡμέρα ἡ μεγάλη καὶ θαυμαστή, ἣν ἐποίησεν ὁ κύριος.
 And again the prophet says: “The stone which the builders rejected, this has become the head of the corner.”
And again he says: “This is the great and marvelous day which the Lord has made.”
6:5 ἁπλούστερον ὑμῖν γράφω, ἵνα συνιῆτε·
ἐγὼ περίψημα τῆς ἀγάπης ὑμῶν.
 I am writing to you simply, so that you may understand: I am the offscouring of your love.
6:6 τί οὖν λέγει πάλιν ὁ προφήτης;
Περιέσχεν με συναγωγὴ πονηρευομένων, ἐκύκλωσάν με ὡσεὶ μέλισσαι κηρίον, καί·
Ἐπὶ τὸν ἱματισμόν μου ἔβαλον κλῆρον.
 What, then, does the prophet say again? “A congregation of evil-doers surrounded me, they encircled me like bees a honeycomb,” and: “For my clothing they cast lots.”
6:7 ἐν σαρκὶ οὖν αὐτοῦ μέλλοντος φανεροῦσθαι καὶ πάσχειν, προεφανερώθη τὸ πάθος.
λέγει γὰρ ὁ προφήτης ἐπὶ τὸν Ἰσραήλ·
Οὐαὶ τῇ ψυχῇ αὐτῶν, ὅτι βεβούλευνται βουλὴν πονηρὰν καθ' ἑαυτῶν, εἰπόντες·
Δήσωμεν τὸν δίκαιον, ὅτι δύσχρηστος ἡμῖν ἐστίν.
 Since He was about to be revealed in the flesh and to suffer, His passion was revealed beforehand.
For the prophet says against Israel:
“Woe to their soul, for they have plotted an evil plot against themselves, saying: ‘Let us bind the righteous one, for he is troublesome to us.’”
Land of milk and honey
6:8 Τί λέγει ὁ ἄλλος προφήτης Μωϋσῆς αὐτοῖς;
ἰδού, τάδε λέγει κύριος ὁ θεός·
Εἰσέλθατε εἰς τὴν γῆν τὴν ἀγαθήν, ἣν ὤμοσεν κύριος τῷ Ἀβραὰμ καὶ Ἰσαὰκ καὶ Ἰακώβ, καὶ κατακληρονομήσατε αὐτήν, γῆν ῥέουσαν γάλα καὶ μέλι.
 What does the other prophet, Moses, say to them?
“Look, thus says the Lord God: Enter into the good land which the Lord swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and inherit it, a land flowing with milk and honey.”
6:9 τί δὲ λέγει ἡ γνῶσις;
μάθετε.
ἐλπίσατε, φησίν, ἐπὶ τὸν ἐν σαρκὶ μέλλοντα φανεροῦσθαι ὑμῖν Ἰησοῦν.
ἄνθρωπος γὰρ γῆ ἐστιν πάσχουσα·
ἀπὸ προσώπου γὰρ τῆς γῆς ἡ πλάσις τοῦ Ἀδὰμ ἐγένετο.
 And what does knowledge (gnōsis) say? Learn!
“Hope,” it says, “upon Jesus who is about to be revealed to you in the flesh.” For man is earth that suffers, since the formation of Adam came from the face of the earth.
6:10 τί οὖν λέγει·
Εἰς τὴν γῆν τὴν ἀγαθήν, γῆν ῥέουσαν γάλα καὶ μέλι;
εὐλογητὸς ὁ κύριος ἡμῶν, ἀδελφοί, ὁ σοφίαν καὶ νοῦν θέμενος ἐν ἡμῖν τῶν κρυφίων αὐτοῦ·
λέγει γὰρ ὁ προφήτης παραβολὴν κυρίου·
τίς νοήσει, εἰ μὴ σοφὸς καὶ ἐπιστήμων καὶ ἀγαπῶν τὸν κύριον αὐτοῦ;
 What then does He mean by “Into the good land, a land flowing with milk and honey”?
Blessed is our Lord, brothers, who has placed in us wisdom and understanding of His secrets! For the prophet speaks a parable of the Lord:
“Who will understand, except one who is wise and discerning and loves his Lord?”
6:11 ἐπεὶ οὖν ἀνακαινίσας ἡμᾶς ἐν τῇ ἀφέσει τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν, ἐποίησεν ἡμᾶς ἄλλον τύπον, ὡς παιδίων ἔχειν τὴν ψυχήν, ὡς ἄν δὴ ἀναπλάσσοντος αὐτοῦ ἡμᾶς.
 Since, therefore, He renewed us in the forgiveness of sins, He made us into another type, so that we should have the soul of children, as though He were reshaping us.
6:12 λέγει γὰρ ἡ γραφὴ περί ἡμῶν, ὡς λέγει τῷ υἱῷ·
Ποιήσωμεν κατ' εἰκόνα καὶ καθ' ὁμοίωσιν ἡμῶν τὸν ἄνθρωπον, καὶ ἀρχέτωσαν τῶν θηρίων τῆς γῆς καὶ τῶν πετεινῶν τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ τῶν ἰχθύων τῆς θαλάσσης.
καὶ εἶπεν κύριος, ἰδὼν τὸ καλὸν πλάσμα ἡμῶν·
αὐξάνεσθε καὶ πληθύνεσθε καὶ πληρώσατε τὴν γῆν.
ταῦτα πρὸς τὸν υἱόν.
 For the Scripture says concerning us, as He says to the Son: “Let us make man according to our image and according to our likeness, and let them rule over the beasts of the earth and the birds of the heaven and the fish of the sea.”
And the Lord said, upon seeing our fine creation: “Increase and multiply and fill the earth.” These things were spoken to the Son.
6:13 πάλιν σοί ἐπιδείξω, πῶς πρὸς ἡμᾶς λέγει.
δευτέραν πλάσιν ἐπ' ἐσχάτων ἐποίησεν.
λέγει δὲ κύριος·
ἰδού, ποιῶ τὰ ἔσχατα ὡς τὰ πρῶτα.
εἰς τοῦτο οὖν ἐκήρυξεν ὁ προφήτης·
Εἰσέλθατε εἰς γῆν ῥέουσαν γάλα καὶ μέλι καὶ κατακυριεύσατε αὐτῆς.
 Again I will show you how He speaks to us.
He performed a second creation in the last times.
And the Lord says: “Look, I am making the last things like the first.”
To this end, therefore, the prophet preached: “Enter into a land flowing with milk and honey, and master it.”
6:14 ἴδε οὖν, ἡμεῖς ἀναπεπλάσμεθα, καθὼς πάλιν ἐν ἑτέρῳ προφήτῃ λέγει·
ἰδού, λέγει κύριος, ἐξελῶ τούτων, τουτέστιν ὧν προέβλεπεν τὸ πνεῦμα κυρίου, τὰς λιθίνας καρδίας καὶ ἐμβαλῶ σαρκίνας·
ὅτι αὐτὸς ἐν σαρκὶ ἔμελλεν φανεροῦσθαι καὶ ἐν ἡμῖν κατοικεῖν.
 See, then, we have been remade, as He says again in another prophet:
“Look, says the Lord, I will take out of these”—that is, those whom the Spirit of the Lord foresaw—“their stony hearts, and I will put in hearts of flesh.”
Because He Himself was about to be revealed in the flesh and to dwell in us.
6:15 ναὸς γὰρ ἅγιος, ἀδελφοί μου, τῷ κυρίῳ τὸ κατοικητήριον ἡμῶν τῆς καρδίας.
 For a holy temple to the Lord, my brothers, is the dwelling place of our heart.
6:16 λέγει γὰρ κύριος πάλιν·
Καὶ ἐν τίνι ὀφθήσομαι τῷ κυρίῳ τῷ θεῷ μου καὶ δοξασθήσομαι;
λέγει·
ἐξομολογήσομαί σοί ἐν ἐκκλησίᾳ ἀδελφῶν μου, καὶ ψαλῶ σοί ἀναμέσον ἐκκλησίας ἁγίων.
οὐκοῦν ἡμεῖς ἐσμέν, οὓς εἰσήγαγεν εἰς τὴν γῆν ἀγαθήν.
 For the Lord says again:
“And in what shall I appear before the Lord my God and be glorified?”
He says: “I will confess to You in the assembly of my brothers, and I will sing praise to You in the midst of the assembly of saints.”
Therefore, we are the ones whom He brought into the good land.
6:17 τί οὖν τὸ γάλα καὶ τὸ μέλι;
ὅτι πρῶτον τὸ παιδίον μέλιτι, εἶτα γάλακτι ζωοποιεῖται·
οὕτως οὖν καὶ ἡμεῖς τῇ πίστει τῆς ἐπαγγελίας καὶ τῷ λόγῳ ζωοποιούμενοι ζήσομεν κατακυριεύοντες τῆς γῆς.
 What, then, is the milk and the honey? Because the child is nourished first with honey, then with milk; so also we, being nourished by the faith of the promise and by the word, shall live, exercising dominion over the earth.
6:18 προειρήκαμεν δὲ ἐπάνω.
Καὶ αὐξανέσθωσαν καὶ πληθυνέσθωσαν καὶ ἀρχέτωσαν τῶν ἰχθύων.
τίς οὖν ὁ δυνάμενος νῦν ἄρχειν θηρίων ἢ ἰχθύων ἢ πετεινῶν τοῦ οὐρανοῦ;
αἰσθάνεσθαι γὰρ ὀφείλομεν, ὅτι τὸ ἄρχειν ἐξουσίας ἐστίν, ἵνα τις ἐπιτάξας κυριεύσῃ.
 Now we have said above: “And let them increase and multiply and rule over the fish.”
Who, then, is able now to rule over beasts, or fish, or birds of the heaven? For we ought to perceive that to rule belongs to authority, so that one gives orders and exercises dominion.
6:19 εἰ οὖν οὐ γίνεται τοῦτο νῦν, ἄρα ἡμῖν εἴρηκεν, πότε·
ὅταν καὶ αὐτοὶ τελειωθῶμεν κληρονόμοι τῆς διαθήκης κυρίου γενέσθαι.
 If, therefore, this does not happen now, He has told us when it will be: when we ourselves are perfected to become heirs of the covenant of the Lord.
Summary
In Chapter 6 of the Epistle of Barnabas, the author uses allegorical interpretation (gnōsis) to demonstrate that the Old Testament Scriptures foreshadow Christ’s suffering, incarnation, and the creation of the Church.
Citing Isaiah, the Psalms, and Genesis, he frames Christ as the foundation cornerstone (ἀκρογωνιαῖον) and solid rock (στερεὰν πέτραν), while identifying the suffering of the Messiah in passages describing encirclement and the casting of lots for garments.

Crucially, the author reinterprets the Promised Land ("flowing with milk and honey") typologically: entry into the land signifies the believer’s spiritual renewal through Christ.
Human beings, made from earth (γῆ), undergo a "second creation" (δευτέρα πλάσις) through the forgiveness of sins, receiving hearts of flesh in place of stone so their very hearts become a holy temple where God dwells.
Finally, the Genesis mandate of dominion over creation is explained escatologically—it will be fully realized when believers are perfected as heirs of God’s covenant.
Significant Greek Expressions
τῷ παιδὶ κυρίου (the servant of the Lord): A messianic title derived from the Servant Songs of Isaiah (LXX), applied directly to Jesus in early Christian liturgies and writings.

ἐγὼ περίψημα τῆς ἀγάπης ὑμῶν (I am the offscouring/scum of your love): A recurring expression of extreme humility by the author, echoing Paul in 1 Corinthians 4:13 (περίψημα), presenting himself as a servant at the lowest status for his community’s sake.

τί δὲ λέγει ἡ γνῶσις; (and what does knowledge say?): A characteristic formula in Barnabas where "gnōsis" does not refer to heterodox Gnosticism, but to the deeper, allegorical spiritual insight that unveils Christ hidden within the Old Testament scriptures.

ἄνθρωπος γὰρ γῆ ἐστιν πάσχουσα (for man is earth that suffers): A wordplay linking the physical creation of Adam from the earth (γῆ) with the land (γῆ) of promise, explaining why promises about the "land" secretly refer to human nature redeemed by Christ’s suffering.

δευτέραν πλάσιν ἐπ’ ἐσχάτων ἐποίησεν (He performed a second creation in the last times): Highlights the theology of new creation (ἀναπλάσσω / ἀνακαινίζω), viewing Christian redemption as an act of re-creation parallel to the original creation of Genesis.

ναὸς γὰρ ἅγιος ... τὸ κατοικητήριον ἡμῶν τῆς καρδίας (for a holy temple is the dwelling place of our heart): Shifts the concept of God’s sanctuary away from the physical Temple in Jerusalem to the inner spiritual heart of the renewed believer (cf. 1 Corinthians 3:16).
Epistle of Barnabas