Please explain the phrase"..it grinds exceeding small"

Question

Of course it is from the Bible. Please explain the words in plain prose.

Answer 1

No, it is not from the Bible.   But it's part of an extremely old quotation, sometimes ascribed to an ancient Greek, as noted in the Source below.   There are various versions of it, a common one being, "The mills of the gods grind slowly, but they grind exceeding fine."

The meaning of the entire quotation is that it may take a long time, but eventually a person's past will catch up with him and he will get his comeuppance.   Or, in other words, the gods may take their time about it but they will eventually see that someone gets his just deserts.

It is often said, with satisfaction, when someone has gotten away with his misdeeds for a long time but eventually gets caught.   And sometimes it's said to mean, "Well, he's gotten away with it so far, but he can't get away with it forever and eventually he'll get caught."

A similar Biblical saying is at Galatians 6:7:   "Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.