Dragon Master - (Neal & Neaniskos)

Video: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToBvK6xED60]

Neaniskos is a pre-pubescant or just-pubescant male. According to Philo of Alexandria, it doesn't imply an age, but a biological maturity. Puberty is that phase when reproductive organs begin working. As we all know, that's pretty young, between 10-13 (5th and 8th grade) today. It's at least much younger than a neanias. Hesychius claims a neaniskos is "small" which would imply "size", for boys, that's 5-13yrs old.

What follows is an in depth analysis of neaniskos

• On the Age of the Νεανίσκος (Neaniskos)
• On the Diminutive -ίσκος in νεανίσκος
  • A look at a biblical Lexicon which explains diminutive, with examples
• Hesychius Lexicon for neaniskos - very young, small
  • ἀρτίηβος (arti hebos)
• Philo of Alexandria - 7 stages of life - with neaniskos as pubertal to teen
  • Supporting Context
• ARISTOPHANES, Fragmenta. {0644.003}
• Hesychius Lexicon for meirax
• ANCIENT AUTHORS WHO SHOW ἀρτίηβος = JUST PUBESCENT
• Mark 14:51-52 (From Nestle1904)
• ἡλικιῶν - Stages of Life in Ancient Greek Terminology:
  • Early Development
  • Approaching Adolescence & Puberty:
  • Late Adolescence & Young Adulthood:
• Select Terms directly from the Lexicons: Hesychius vs LSJ
• Examples of Young men of the holy bible

On the Age of the Νεανίσκος (Neaniskos)

Contrary to later Christian apologetic reframings, the Greek term νεανίσκος does not mean a “late-teen young man.” In classical and Koine Greek, as confirmed by LSJ and Hesychius, νεανίσκος denotes a pre or newly fertile male, one who is "small", small would be 5-13, and fertile would be between 10 and 14 years old, one who is before or just entered ἥβη (puberty).

Thus in Mark 14:51-52 the νεανίσκος is not an adult or even an ephebe, but a just-pubescent youth, matching the age group documented in Greek venom-conditioning traditions (Nicander, Galen, Aelian) and providing the proper anthropological context for the σίνδων-bound pharmacological initiation rites implied in the passage.

At a Glance:

• Hesychius Lexicon (5th cent CE) Says:
  • νεανίσκος (Neaniskos): nepios (a child, one not yet mature)
  • νήπιος (Nēpion): newborn (νεόγυον), very young (νεώτερον), small (μικρόν). Generally: without understanding (ἀνόητον) senseless/foolish (ἄφρον) or most foolish (ἀφρονεστάτον).
• LSJ Lexicon (1800's) says:
  • μικρόν (mikron) - means 'small'. Compared to "newborn" or "very young", "small" would imply 5-13yrs from pre to early pubescent
• Ancient biological writers — including Hippocratic corpus — place male puberty between:
  • 5-13 for "small" age range
  • 11 (start), 14-15 (end) when boy's pubertal growth spurt begins and ends, no longer “small” (μικροί)
  • 11–14 for first semen
  • 12–15 for pubic hair
  • 12–14 for first erections capable of ejaculating
  • Full “youth” (νεανίσκος) begins immediately upon fertility, not at “late teens”
• **νεανίσκος (neaniskos) = 10–14 pre or newly pubescent
• ἀρτίηβος (arti-ebos) = 12–14 just-entered puberty, freshly fertile, first-beard-fuzz stage.
• ἐφήβοι (ephebes) = 17–20
• νεανίας (neanias) = prime of youth (typically 15–21)
• νεανίσκος (neaniskos), being the younger diminutive, skews downward
  • pre-neanias or pre-ephebe, younger, newly fertile males
• Christian apologists have pushed the age up to “late teen” to avoid cultic implications
  • Greek lexica and usage do not support a “late teen” reading
  • A νεανίσκος is nowhere near “late teen.”
• the Markan neaniskos (νεανίσκος) fits exactly within the venom-conditioning evidence chain (Nicander - Galen - Aelian)
  • this strengthens both the male initiation model and its parallel to female Echidnaic rites
  • The apologists' reframing is an attempt to drag him out of the 10–14 range because the Markan scene is otherwise too uncomfortable.

Read on for more supporting background.

On the Diminutive -ίσκος in νεανίσκος

The form νεανίσκος is undeniably a diminutive of νεανίας, formed with the productive Classical suffix -ίσκος, which in Greek regularly creates “a smaller, younger, or lesser form of X.” In material nouns, the suffix can mean “little X” (e.g., κιθάρισκος, “small kithara”), but in anthropological and age-graded vocabulary the diminutive performs a more specific semantic function: it denotes a less mature, not-yet-fully-developed stage of the base term. Thus παῖς → παιδίον / παιδάριον, ἀνήρ → ἀνδρίσκος, νεανίας → νεανίσκος all map onto predictable Greek age-hierarchies, where the diminutive marks a younger, fresher, pre-prime state relative to the simplex noun. The claim sometimes made that “diminutives don’t imply youth” is linguistically incorrect for Greek age-terms; while diminutives can express affection or smallness in other semantic domains, in human age categories they consistently track developmental stage. This is precisely why Hesychius glosses νεανίσκος with ἀρτίηβος—“newly pubescent”—rather than with ἐφήβος or νεανίας. In the lexicographical tradition, the diminutive is not ornamental: it encodes the crucial distinction between a mature youth (νεανίας) and a just-pubescent youth (νεανίσκος), reflecting the finely-graded anthropological vocabulary of the Greek world.

A look at a biblical Lexicon which explains diminutive, with examples

The "Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament" (1889) uses paidiskos to explain neaniskos:

παιδίσκη, ης, ή, (fem. of παιδίσκος, a young boy or slave; a dimin. of παîς, see νεανíσκος)

See this:

• paidiskos (παιδισκος), a young boy or slave; a diminutive of pais

• pais (παις) - a child, boy or girl, servant, slave, attendant

Do you see how the age got younger, with the diminutive?
Now look at neaniskos:

• neaniskos (νεανίσκος), a young man, youth, "boys", "lads", used of a young attendant or servant; a diminutive of neanias

Keep in mind a "young man" to the ancient world could be pretty young.
Us moderns call to our kids "get over here young man".
What's telling here is "youth", "boys", "lads", "young attendant or servant"...

Notice how neanias is older?

• neanias (νεανίας) - young man; In other lexicons this is "youth"
  • NOTE: do we really believe that 24-40 yrs old is a "young man" or a "youth"?

Bottom Line
It's ambiguous from these lexicons, but neaniskos here is pointing to a "boy" or "youth".
However, what these lexicons REALLY show us is how a diminutive works. It's always Smaller / Younger...

In the context of age:

⚠️ However, next, we're going to see that Hesychius defines them as nepion (very young, small) or mikron (small).

Hesychius Lexicon for neaniskos - very young, small

νεανίσκος (neaniskos) is a "very young to small" male (5-13 range), classed by Hesychius (5th c. CE) not as an adult “youth” but as a νήπιος (nepios), e.g., a child or small boy not yet mature.

• Biological immaturity is the core issue here; this typically corresponds to the pre-pubescent or early-pubescent range, roughly the years leading into fertility.
• Small (μικρόν) implies size, not biological maturity, so we need to look at the size of males when they're considered still small vs finished growing to get the upper bound, 5-13 years is typical, 13 at a maximum.

In the lexicon of Hesychius (5th c. CE), the term νεανίσκος is explicitly equated with νηπίος (“a small child, a very young one, one not yet mature”). Hesychius further defines νηπίον as νεόγυον, νεώτερον, μικρόν — “newborn, very young, small.” Thus, in the ancient Greek lexicographical tradition represented by Hesychius, νεανίσκος cannot denote an adult or late teen, but belongs to the semantic field of childhood and early boyhood, extending at most to the liminal years approaching ἥβη.

This definition aligns with Greek usage where νεανίσκος is a diminutive form (-ίσκος) indicating smallness, youth, and immaturity, in contrast to νεανίας (an adolescent or young man).

Hesychius tells us that a neaniskos is, quite literally, a νήπιος (nepios) — a child, a “small one,” not yet at the stage of full ἥβη (hebe - puberty).

Crucially, Hesychius glosses νεανίσκος (neaniskos) with νήπιος (nepios), demonstrating that the Markan νεανίσκος (neaniskos) cannot be a “late teen,” but is a small boy or early-pubescent youth (mikron (μικρόν) or earlier), linguistically grouped with children who are not yet of ἥβη (puberty maturity). This perfectly fits the profile of early initiands in Greek pharmakon- and venom-based rites.

• nepios (νήπιος) - an infant, little child; a minor, not of age; childish

Hesychius tells us that a neaniskos is, quite literally, a νήπιος (nepios) — a child, a “small one,” not yet at the stage of full ἥβη (hebe - puberty).

• Ancient biological writers - including Hippocratic corpus - place male puberty between:
  • 5-13 for "small" age range
  • 11 (start), 14-15 (end) when boy's pubertal growth spurt begins and ends, no longer “small” (μικροί)
  • 11–14 for first semen
  • 12–15 for pubic hair
  • 12–14 for first erections capable of ejaculating
• νεανίσκος (neaniskos) - a small, immature boy, not yet adult. immediately before or at fertility, not at “late teens”.
  • That is not 17–19 years old
  • That is closer to 11–14 years old, small means size
• μικρόν (mikron) - means 'small'. Compared to "newborn" or "very young", "small" would imply 11-14yrs pre-early pubescent; Small, little, undeveloped, not yet grown to proper size or maturity. Physically immature / childlike / pre-adult, too small / too young / too immature to be adult. (e.g. not an ἀρτίηβος)
  • In classical Greek, μικρός (of a person) almost always implies: “not fully developed, not yet mature,”. Size / Smallness implies immaturity.
• ἀρτίηβος (arti hebos) - just-entered puberty, freshly fertile, first-beard-fuzz stage.
• He does NOT gloss νεανίσκος with ηβος (puberty 12–14)
• He does NOT gloss νεανίσκος with ἐφήβος (17–20)
• He does NOT gloss νεανίσκος with νεανίας (adult youth, late teens or 20s)
• He glosses it with μικρόν (very young, small), meaning:
  • pre or just-becomming fertile
  • before puberty
  • early-adolescent stage
  • too young to be an ηβος or ephebe
  • a boy ≈ 5–13 years old, not yet grown, not in full puberty

ἀρτίηβος (arti hebos)

The form ἀρτίηβος is not lemmatized in LSJ, but is morphologically transparent: ἄρτι (“just, newly”) + ἥβη (“puberty, generative prime”). It therefore denotes “one just entering puberty / just come into ἥβη.” This is how later lexicographical tradition and modern scholars understand the term, rather than a specific LSJ definition.

Later erudite sources and grammarians treat ἄρτι / ἀρτίως as “just now / newly”
So, we can look for ἄρτι-ἥβη (arti-ebe)

1. Base lemma: Suda ἥβη = “beginning of generative power” → puberty defined functionally as the onset of fertility.
2. Adverbial root: ἄρτι / ἀρτίως = “just now, newly, only just now.”
3. Compound: ἀρτί-ηβος = “one who has just come into ἥβη,” i.e. a just-pubescent youth.

Later lexicographical tradition glosses ἀρτίηβος conceptually as ‘ὁ τὴν πρώτην ἥβην ἔχων’, one who has the first stage of ἥβη.

Philo of Alexandria - 7 stages of life - with neaniskos as pubertal to teen

• As reminder a neaniskos (little youth) goes from pubertal (9-12 yrs old) up to teen when they stop being little youth and simply are neanias (youth), of course, much overlap in neaniskos and neanias, since they’re defined in biological function, NOT IN YEARS.
• As reminder a man (ἀνὴρ) in ancient times was quite early. Military service was (source??) when puberty is showing (for us that’s around 12-15?) and adulthood coincides with military service. For girls, gyne womanhood (motherhood + wife responsibilities) can be quite young right after puberty (9-14). So “man” quite generously could be between 14-18yrs old!...
• Heyschius defines neaniskos as mikron (small), typical boy's full height is achieved 15-18, with growth spurt at 12-15.

So, Instead of tetrakis hepta (τετράκις ἑπτά) strictly meaning "4 × 7 years" (28 years old), it should instead be understood as "the fourth stage out of seven" (neaniskos is 4/7ths of the way through life, after: baby, toddler, educational ages).

1. τετράκις (tetrákis) means "four times" or "fourfold," but in some contexts (as philo set up with ἑπτὰ ὡραι - seven stages), it can also indicate the fourth instance of something rather than strict multiplication. So in this case τετράκις = the fourth instance of
2. ἑπτά (heptá) means "seven," but under this context (Philo’s ἑπτὰ ὡραι - seven stages) it references a seventh-based division of life rather than a strict numeric calculation.

Supporting Context

• The passage explicitly divides life into seven stages (ἑπτὰ ὡραι), which suggests a structured framework of development. Rather than 7 year increments, they’re stages that are 1/7th of a person’s life… Still an overgeneralization avoiding the biological definitions, but this 1/7th division is much more general in spirit when not taken literally… Rather than literal equal 7-year timespans, they’re 7 stages of life, a subtle but very large difference.
• ἐτῶν == years??? No… not single year increments, but “general time span of years”
  • In most cases, ἐτῶν refers to years in a straightforward sense. However, in philosophical and developmental contexts, Ancient Greek often used "years" metaphorically to represent broader life stages.
  • So, while ἐτῶν typically means "years," in a structured sevenfold division of life, it could be read as “life divisions” or "age periods" rather than a strict numerical count.
  • In the context of the seven stages (ἑπτὰ ὡραι), it definitely means “general span of years”, rather than specific quantity of years.

ARISTOPHANES, Fragmenta. {0644.003}

On the naming of stages of life.
The old man (Γέρων), the elder (πρεσβύτης), and the advanced (προβεβηκώς) differ. Alexion explains in the summary of the Twins' Mixed Works, saying as follows: From Aristophanes' work on human generation and growth to old age: For a newborn (Βρέφος) is one who is born immediately; a small child (παιδίον) is one who is being nourished by a nurse; a toddler (παιδάριον) is one who already walks and begins to speak; a boy (παιδίσκος) is one in the present stage of life; a child (παῖς) is one able to go through the general studies. The following stages are referred to by some as πάλλαξ (youth before adulthood), βούπαις (herdsman), ἀντίπαις (slightly older than a child), and μελλέφηβος (near puberty). After this, one becomes an ἔφηβος (youth). Youth has a long span: In Cyrene, they bathe the youths who are thirty years old; in Crete, they are not yet participating in the common paths of life. After this (becoming an ἔφηβος (youth)), one becomes a μειράκιον or μείραξ, then a νεανίσκος, then a νεανίας, then a man of middle age (ἀνὴρ μέσος), then one who has advanced in years (προβεβηκώς), whom they call an old man (ὠμογέροντα), then a γέρων (elder), then a πρεσβύτης (presbyter), and finally, an extremely old man (ἐσχατόγηρως)."

Remember that given the lower life expectancy and higher mortality in ancient times, a person in their 30s could already be considered to be approaching the later stages of life. considered to be in their prime until their early 40s. reaching 40 or 50 years old would have been seen as a mark of wisdom and experience. Therefore middle age could be 20-30yrs old... Putting neanias earlier and neaniskos earlier still.

These all have overlapping age ranges, though!!

To examine the cult… focus on what the youth can produce chemically.

Women are evaluated differently, in Ancient Greek literature (maturing younger, to take responsibilities of marriage at a young age) and with different words used to describe their phases.

Hesychius Lexicon for meirax

The term μείραξ occupies a neighboring but distinct position in the Greek age-vocabulary relative to νεανίσκος. In the lexicon of Hesychius, we find μεῖραξ· παῖς—“meirax: a boy”—placing the word at the boundary between childhood (παῖς) and youth. Grammarians and lexica treat μείραξ and its diminutive μειράκιον as denoting youths who have recently passed out of childhood but have not yet reached full ἥβη, the stage of full generative maturity. By contrast, νεανίσκος—as Hesychius explicitly glosses with ἀρτίηβος (“newly pubescent”)—denotes a boy who has just entered puberty. Thus the developmental sequence implied by the Greek age terms is: παῖς → μεῖραξ / μειράκιον → νεανίσκος → νεανίας → ἀνήρ. In this system, the diminutive suffixes (-άκιον, -ίσκος) do not simply make “cute” or “small” forms; they mark precise physiological and social gradations within youth. The ancient lexica therefore preserve a finely-grained anthropology: the μείραξ is a child transitioning toward puberty, while the νεανίσκος, explicitly equated with ἀρτίηβος, is the youth who has just crossed the pubertal threshold. This gives us an internally consistent semantic field for placing the Markan νεανίσκος exactly where the Greek tradition puts him: a newly fertile initiate, not yet a νεανίας nor an ἐφήβος.

Meirax vs Neaniskos in Greek Age-Grammar
The Greek μείραξ (glossed by Hesychius as simply “παῖς”) marks the threshold before puberty, whereas νεανίσκος (glossed by Hesychius as “ὁ ἀρτίηβος”) marks the youth who has just entered puberty. Thus in Greek developmental language, the diminutive endings (-άκιον, -ίσκος) signal not “affection” but precise physiological sub-stages. A μείραξ is a transitioning child; a νεανίσκος is a newly fertile youth.

This distinction is critical for understanding the Markan scene: the σίνδων (sindon)-bearing νεανίσκος (neaniskos) must be pubescent, not a pre-pubescent meirax.

ANCIENT AUTHORS WHO SHOW ἀρτίηβος = JUST PUBESCENT

Mark 14:51-52 (From Nestle1904)

Given what we now know, we can see that Mark has consistently been mistranslated in non-greek editions, to "soften" the meaning away from cultic συνηκολούθει (following as an attendant, with a sense of obeying).

• see Mark 14:51-52 for full translation

ἡλικιῶν - Stages of Life in Ancient Greek Terminology:

Early Development

1. Βρέφος (Bréphos) – Infant, newborn. This refers to a baby at the stage of birth and immediately after.
2. Παιδίον (Paidíon) – A small child, toddler. This is the stage where the child is being nourished and cared for, often given to a nurse for upbringing.
3. Παιδάριον (Paidárion) – A young child who has begun walking and is acquiring speech.
4. Παιδίσκος / Παιδίσκη (Paidískos/Paidiske) – A diminutive form, often referring to young boys or girls. It can be a general term for prepubescent youth. the general term for all of those stages before
5. Παῖς (Paîs) – A child, encompassing the stages of learning and discipleship. This is the stage where the child is going through encyclic ἐγκύκλιος παιδεία (enkýklios paideía), recurrent cycles, ****the foundational education that precedes specialized / professional studies.

Approaching Adolescence & Puberty:

1. Πάλλας (Pállas) / Πάλληξ (Pállēx) – A youth below the age of ἐφηβος (éphēbos). An early adolescent or prepubescent stage. (Pallas Athena), generally this is youth before adulthood.
2. πάλλαξ / πάλλακα (pállax / pállaka). youths, adolescents, often just before full adulthood. It aligns with the idea of a young person in early adolescence
3. Βούπαις/βούπαιδα (Boúpais) – A youth who herds cattle (hence, "cowboy"). The meaning suggests a stage in life where one is still youthful but has responsibilities.
4. Ἀντιπαῖς (Antipaîs) – "Instead of a boy" or "no longer quite a child." This likely represents a transition phase from childhood to youth, where one is still young but no longer merely a child.
5. Μελλέφηβος (Melléphēbos) – Literally "about to be an ἐφήβος." This term describes someone on the cusp of puberty. Near puberty. (ἐφηβος is hebe, she is youth) about to be in puberty.
6. μεῖραξ (Meírax) / μειράκιον (Meirákion) – A youth in the midst of puberty. παίς
7. Κόρη (Kórē) – A young girl or maiden, often used in classical texts to describe an unmarried young woman. This term is famous in mythological contexts (e.g., Persephone, the daughter of Demeter, was referred to as Κόρη before her abduction). generally associated with the period before full maturity, specifically pre-pubescent or early pubescent, or who is in the early stages of puberty. also carries associations of virginity and innocence. she would not yet be considered fully mature (either physically or socially). This means Κόρη is closer to pre-pubescence, with some overlap into early puberty, but not yet fully developed as an adult woman.
8. Παιδίσκη (Paidiskē) - female equivalent to neaniskos or neanias. Refers to a young woman or girl in the adolescent stage of life. a girl transitioning from childhood to adolescence, and could be used for females who are in their mid-to-late adolescence implying approaching marriageability or entering the sphere of womanhood (transitioning into adulthood)
   1. At puberty: τιτθεον - to evoke the image of small, youthful, “grape-like” breasts (τιτθεον) —that is, the early, budding (λαχνώσεως) stage of female breast development. τιτθεον is understood as a diminutive of τίτθος (“breast”), implying small, immature breasts typical of early puberty
   2. Later Adolescence: The stage is characterized by the continued growth and maturation of the breasts, at the later stage the breasts become more fully developed, signaling further progression toward womanhood.
   3. While Κόρη focuses on virginity and youth, Παιδίσκη is a bit more neutral, often referring to girls who are mature enough to be considered for marriage or other social roles.
9. Γυνή (Gynē) – A woman, specifically a married woman. used for a woman of any age after marriage, regardless of whether she is in her teens or older. Once a girl enters marriage, even in her teens, she would be referred to as a Γυνή, as the term emphasizes her role as a wife and adult woman in society. Range from neanias to older….
10. Νεανίσκος (Neanískos) – A male youth just entering puberty, who is going through that initial change, beginning to mature physically and mentally. budding (λαχνώσεως) gonads (γονῆς) starting to generate seed (γενείου)
    1. the appearance of developed male organs is taken as a sign that the youth has entered his pubescent phase.
    2. Includes a range just entering puberty up to late teens, and, with some overlap with neanias youth
11. νεανίας (Neanías) – a male youth in the later stages of adolescence, well beyond the initial stages of puberty, who has progressed further in physical and mental maturation beyond the initial signs of puberty noted in νεανίσκος.
    1. This stage is marked by further development of the male organs, with more pronounced secondary sexual characteristics.
    2. In classical literature, νεανίας is used to denote a youth who is well into the process of physical and mental maturation—often overlapping with the later teenage years—thus representing a continuum with νεανίσκος, but indicating a more advanced stage of development.
    3. Range: Although νεανίσκος begins with the initial onset of pubescence, νεανίας encompasses the period when these early changes consolidate, approaching the threshold of mature manhood or womanhood. Could cover early teens (post puberty) to early 20s (before maturing, and before middle age for antiquity)

Late Adolescence & Young Adulthood:

1. Ἔφηβος (Éphēbos) – youth. Ἥβη (Hḗbē), the goddess of youth, represents this stage of vigor and beauty. ἐφηβος is Ἥβη, who is Ἥβη? she is youth. Ἥβη - She is the constant beloved of Heracles. one who has reached puberty, a youth of military age (they took them at puberty!). one upon the threshold of manhood
   1. Associated Goddess:
      1. Ἥβη (Hḗbē), the goddess of youth, was associated with this stage of life. She was the cupbearer of the gods and the wife of Heracles, symbolizing eternal youth and vigor.
2. Ἀπότρομος (Apótromos) – A term possibly linked to those reaching a stage of self-sufficiency and independence.
3. τριακαδίους (Triakadiós) – Likely referring to someone in their late twenties or around the age of thirty.(a milestone in adulthood)
4. Ἀνὴρ - a man (puberty showing (12-15) is military age for boys becoming men). Related: female fertility is wife / womanhood age for girls; Both are still “youth”. Biological function here...
5. ἀνὴρ μέσος (anḕr mésos): A man of middle age.
6. προβεβηκώς (probebēkṓs): One who has advanced in years, an elderly man.
7. ὠμογέροντα (ōmogéronta): An old man, literally “one who is aged in the bones.”
8. γέρων (gérōn): Old man.
9. πρεσβύτης (presbýtēs): Elder or senior man, someone in the later stages of old age.
10. ἐσχατόγηρως (eschatógēros): The extremely old man, nearing the final stages of life.
11. Γέρων (Gérōn) – Old man
12. Πρεσβύτης (Presbýtēs) – Elder
13. Προβεβηκώς (Probebēkṓs) – Advanced in years

Select Terms directly from the Lexicons: Hesychius vs LSJ

• γονής
  • Hesychius "Narcissus, the plant."
    • The narcissus plant represents the first signs of male maturity, just as the plant blooms after a period of dormancy, similar to how puberty signals the beginning of a young man's reproductive capability. emergence of sexual maturity—specifically, the development of male genitalia and the ability to generate seed
  • LSJ “generation; that which engenders, seed; organs of generation, generally”.
    • directly linked to male sexual maturity, marking the stage where a young man becomes capable of producing reproductive seed (semen). can mean both "begetting" and "seed", it signifies the biological function that emerges during puberty, when a νεανίσκος (little youth) develops the ability to father offspring
• νεανίσκος
  • Hesychius defines νεανίσκος as “νήπιος”
    • νήπιον:
      • Hesychius defines as: νεογνόν (newborn), νεώτερον (younger), [μικρόν (small) (Illiad Ε 480) gn. ἀνόητον (without understanding, foolish), ἄφρον (senseless, lacking wisdom), ἢ *[ἀφρονέστατον (or most foolish) gn
      • LSJ defines as: infant, child, from a child, from infancy, of children up to puberty; of the understanding, childish, silly; of bodily strength, like that of a child
  • LSJ defines νεανίσκος as “youth, young man”
    • Sometimes it’s equivalent to neanias, sometimes it’s equivalent to μειράκιον
      • μειράκιον
• μεῖραξ
  • Hesychius defines μεῖραξ as “παίς”
  • LSJ: young girl, lass; sometimes lad, stripling; fem men
• μειράκιον:
  • LSJ: boy, lad, Dim. of μεῖραξ
• παίς
  • Hesychius: “πᾶς ὁ φύσει υἱὸς ὤν τινος. καὶ ὁ τῇ ἡλικίᾳ νέος. καὶ ἀντὶ τοῦ <παρθένος>. τάσσεται δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ δούλου. ἄρτι ἀκμάζων”
    • πᾶς ὁ φύσει υἱὸς ὤν τινος – "Anyone who is by nature the son of someone."
    • καὶ ὁ τῇ ἡλικίᾳ νέος – "And one who is young in age."
    • καὶ ἀντὶ τοῦ <παρθένος> – "And instead of (in place of) parthenos (virgin, unmarried youth)."
    • τάσσεται δὲ καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ δούλου – "It is also applied to a slave."
    • ἄρτι ἀκμάζων – "Just now reaching maturity."
  • LSJ: in relation to Age, child, boy or girl

Examples of Young men of the holy bible

Apologists always like to say you can't compare greek in the bible to greek from the ancient secular literature. So let's play their game. Why are they quoting Greek literature when they want to explain away the age of our little neaniskos in the garden at 2am?

In the bible what is the age range implied when using neaniskos in a sentence?

YE OLDE TESTAMENT

NEW TESTAMENT

• DUN DUN DUN Its Teenager. Exactly why Jesus and Peter paid the temple tax while the other little ones were obviously exempt. Not even hassled by the tax collector.