ISBE
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International Standard Bible Encyclopedia · 1915

Privy

priv'-i, priv'-i-li:

These words are obsolete in modern English and are replaced by "secret," "secretly," rather than by the cognates "private," "privately." the Revised Version (British and American) usually has not altered the King James Version's use of the word, but in Psalms 11:2 has substituted "in darkness" and in Judges 9:31 uses "craftily," margin "in Tormah" (see TORMAH). In Ezekiel 21:14, the King James Version "entereth into their privy chambers," "privy" is a gloss, omitted in the Revised Version (British and American). "To be privy to a thing" (1 Kings 2:44; Acts 5:2) is simply "to know" it; in The Wisdom of Solomon 8:4, the Revised Version (British and American) has changed the phrase into "be initiated into."

The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, James Orr, general editor (Chicago: Howard-Severance, 1915). Public domain. Text as published by biblestudytools.com. From the Encyclosphere, the open network of encyclopedias run by the Knowledge Standards Foundation. Changed for Deep Dive Bible: links to 1, 2, and 3 John that our source pointed at the Gospel of John corrected; our source’s section marks set as headings.