Excellency
King James Dictionary [1]
Excellency n. L. excellentia. The state of possessing food qualities in an unusual or eminent degree the state of excelling in any thing.
1. An valuabale quality any thing highly laudable, meritorious or virtuous, in persons, or valuable and esteemed, in things. Purity of heart, uprightness of mind, sincerity, virtue, piety, are excellencies of character symmetry of parts, strength and beauty are excellencies of body an accurate knowledge of an art is an excellence in the artisan soundness and durability are excellencies in timber fertility, in land elegance, in writing. In short, whatever contributes to exalt man, or to render him esteemed and happy, or to bless society, is in him an excellence. 2. Dignity high rank in the scale of beings. Angels are beings of more excellence than men men are beings of more excellence than brutes. 3. A title of honor formerly given to kings and emperors, now given to embassadors, governors, and other persons, below the rank of kings, but elevated above the common classes of men.
Webster's Dictionary [2]
(1): ( n.) A title of honor given to certain high dignitaries, esp. to viceroys, ministers, and ambassadors, to English colonial governors, etc. It was formerly sometimes given to kings and princes.
(2): ( n.) Excellence; virtue; dignity; worth; superiority.
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia [3]
ek´se - len - si ( גּאון , gā'ōn , גּאוה , ga'ăwāh ; ὑπερβολή , huperbolḗ ): "Excellency" in the Old Testament is chiefly the translation of gā'ōn , "mounting," "swelling" ( Exodus 15:7; Job 37:4 the King James Version; Psalm 47:4 the King James Version; Isaiah 13:19 the King James Version, etc.); ga'ăwāh , rising, is thrice so rendered ( Deuteronomy 33:26 , Deuteronomy 33:29; Psalm 68:34 ); se'ēth , "rising" (twice) ( Job 13:11 the King James Version; Psalm 62:4 the King James Version); yether , "superabundance" (twice) ( Genesis 49:3 the King James Version; Job 4:21 the King James Version), and ḥādhār , "honor," "beauty," "majesty" (twice) ( Isaiah 35:2 ); gōbhah , "uplifted" ( Job 40:10 ); yı̄thrōn , "advantage" ( Ecclesiastes 7:12 ); sı̄' , "elevation" ( Job 20:6 , the Revised Version (British and American) "height"). In the New Testament huperbolē , "surpassing," "a casting beyond," occurs ( 2 Corinthians 4:7 , "that the excellency of the power may be of God," the Revised Version (British and American) "exceeding greatness"); huperochḗ , "a holding over" or "beyond," is translated "excellency" ( 1 Corinthians 2:1 ), and tó huperéchon , "the pre-eminence" ( Philippians 3:8 ), "the excellency of the knowledge of Christ."
Instead of "excellency" the Revised Version (British and American) has "pride" ( Isaiah 13:19; Ezekiel 24:21 ), "majesty" ( Job 37:4 and the American Standard Revised Version Job 13:11; Job 31:23 ), the American Standard Revised Version has "pre-eminence" ( Genesis 49:3 , Genesis 49:4 ), "glory" ( Psalm 47:4 ), "dignity" ( Psalm 62:4 ); for "the fat of lambs" ( Psalm 37:20 ), the English Revised Version has "the excellency of the pastures," with margin, "the fat of lambs"; the American Standard Revised Version retains the King James Version rendering with the English Revised Version in the margin; instead of "Doth not their excellency which is in them go away?" ( Job 4:21 ), the Revised Version (British and American) has "Is not their tent-cord plucked up within them?" margin, "Is not their excellency which is in them removed?"
