Delicacy (Hastings' Dictionary)

Trench {Select Glossary, p. 52 i.) says, ' In the same way as self-indulgence creeps over us by unmarked degrees, so there creeps over the words that designate it a subtle change ; they come to contain less and less of rebuke and blame ; the thing itself being tolerated, nay allowed, it must needs be that the words which express it should be received into favour too. It has been thus with luxury ; it has been thus also with this whole group of words.'

The words are 'delicacy,' ' delicate ' (adj. and subst.), ' delicately,' ' delicate- ness,' ' delicious,' ' deliciously,' all of which except ' delicious ' are found in AV. Delicacy. — Rev 18' ' the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies' {(rrpfivos sing., RV ' wantonness,' RVm ' luxury '). ' Delicacies ' is Rhemish tr., after Vulg. delicice, so Wyclif ; butTind. and others 'pleasures.'

Voluptuousness is the oldest meaning of ' delicacy'; see Delicate, and cf. Chaucer, Former Age, 58 — 'Jupiter the likerous, [ = lecherous] That first was fader of delicacye.' Delicate. — The adj. has two meanings in AV. 1. Softly nurtured, as Sus " ' Now Susanna was a very d. woman, and beauteous to behold' (Tpv<t)epii); Bar 4^ ' my d. ones ' (ol Tpv<t>€pol piov) ; and probably Dt 28"-", Is 47' (all j;v, LXX rpv^xpds), Jer e"' a comely and d. woman ' (.

ijjy-in, LXX different read- ing), and Mic 1" (juj^b, LXX Tpv(pep6s). 2. Luxuri- ous, as Wis 19" 'they asked d. meats' (io^v/j-ara rpv(f>7Ji, RV ' luxurious dainties ') ; Sir 29^ ' Better is the life of a poor man in a mean cottage, than d. fare in another man's house ' {idiirnaTa \aij.irpd, RV ' sumptuous fare ') ; and Pr 19'" RV ' delicate living ' (msiP, A V ' delight '). As a subst. delicates occurs Jer 51" ' he hath filled his belly with my d.' (o";'iy,, Amer.

RV ' delicacies ') ; Sir 30'" {ayaOi, RV 'good things'), 3V (Tpvip-^iiara, RV ' good things'). Cf. Ps 141* Gen. 'let mee not eate of their delicates' (AV 'dainties'); W. Brough (1050), ' Hunger cooks all meats to delicates,' which Herrick seems to copy (Country Life), 'Hunger makes coarse meats delicates.'

Delicately means ' luxuriously ' in the foil, passages in AV, La 4' (ni',")> P'' '^^*' ' ^^ ^^^^ '^- Sringeth up his servant from a child, shall have him become bis son at the length' (p35 = ' fondle,' 'induljze'; 'delicately ' is Wyclif's tr., who, followinf^ Vulg., renders 'who delicatli fro childbed nursliith his seruaunt, after- ward shal feelen hym vnobeisaimt,' V.

contumacem) ; Lk 7" ' they which are gorijeously apparelled, and live delicately, are in kings courts ' {rpvipJi, as LXX La 4», and at 2 P 2'» where AV ' riot,' RV ' revel '); 1 Ti 5' AVm 'she that liveth delicjitely (text 'in fileasure,' Gr, 17 <r7raTaXuJ(ra), is dead while she iveth • ; and add 2 S 1" Ja 5' RV. But in Ad. Est 15»(AVm and RV 'carrying lierself d.,' AV 'daintily,' Gr. TpiKptptvofun) the meaning is 'as one that was tender (Cov.)

, that is, weak; and so perliaps 1 S 15'-' 'Agag came unto liira delicately.' The last is the onlv doubtful pa-tsage. AV took 'delicately' from the Bishops' Bible; Cov. 'tenderly,' Oen. 'pleasantly.' The Bishops' marg. is * in bondcs,' and KVm 'cheerfully.' The LXX gives rfiifjLttf ; Vulg. pinguiigimiu, tt trenu-jul, whence Douay 'very fatto, trembling'; Luther, getrost {eonfldontly^; Oetervald, ga\einn\t. The possible ways of taking the lieu. (nl"iy v) are given by Driver (NoUt on Sam. p.

90), who decides that it Is safest, on the whole, to acquiesce in ' delicately,' ' voluptuously.' And, undoubtedly, voluptuously or luxuriously is the most natural meaning of the Heb. (for which ie« La i^X 5SS DELIGHTSOME DEMAND but its use in this place is not verj' apparent. The Eng. expression 'delicately' is probably meant to express weakness %nd fear (as Ad. Est 153) rather than pride or voluptuousness. Delicateness.— Only Dt 28" ' the tender and delicate woman . .

which would not adventure to set the sole of her foot upon the ground for d. (:;irin5) and tenderness,' i.e. not 'weakness,' but ' lineness.' Deliciously = luxuriously, Rev 18'-" 'lived deliciously ' (uT-pijuciu, RV ' lived wantonly '). Cf. Latiiner, li. 412, ' I am more inclined to feed many grossly and necessarily, than a few deliciously and voluptuously'; and Lk 16" Tind. ' a certaine rich man, which . . fared deliciously every daye.' J. Hastings.

DELIGHTSOME, now only poet, for 'delightful,' was once good prose, and occurs in Mai 3''^ ' ye shall be a d. land ' (y^n j-in). Davies {Bible En^. p. 236) quotes appositely from T. Adams, Works, i. 273, ' If tliis gentle physic make thee madder. He hath a dark chamber to put thee in — a dungeon is more light- some and delightsome — the grave.' J. Hastings.