They served only for matters of food and drink ¹  and various washings; they are external regulations ²  imposed until the new order came. ³ 

For the ground that has soaked up the rain that frequently falls on ¹  it and yields useful vegetation for those who tend it receives a blessing from God.

For though you should in fact be teachers by this time, ¹  you need someone to teach you the beginning elements of God’s utterances. ²  You have gone back to needing ³  milk, not ⁴  solid food.