The meaning of Dear; Dearly in the Bible
(From International Standard Bible Encyclopedia)
der, der'-li ("held at a great price," "highly valued"): In Acts 20:24, Paul does not hold his life "dear" (timios, "at a price"); compare I Corinthians 3:12, "costly stones"; I Peter 1:19, "precious blood." Luke 7:2, the servant was "dear" to the centurion (entimos, "highly prized"; compare Philippians 2:29; I Peter 2:6). I Thessalonians 2:8, "very dear to us" (agapetos, "beloved"). In the Revised Version (British and American), agapetos is generally translated "beloved." "Dearly" before "beloved" of the King James Version is omitted in all passages in the Revised Version (British and American). The word "dear" occurs but once in the Old Testament, namely, Jeremiah 31:20. the Revised Version (British and American) correctly changes "dear Son" of the King James Version (Colossians 1:13) into "the Son of his love."
H. E. Jacobs
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