Freely

Freely - (Webster's 1828 Dictionary)

FREE'LY, adv.

1. At liberty; without vassalage, slavery or dependence.

2. Without restraint, constraint or compulsion; voluntarily. To render a moral agent accountable, he must act freely.

3. Plentifully; in abundance; as, to eat or drink freely.

4. Without scruple or reserve; as, to censure freely.

5. Without impediment or hinderance.

Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat. Gen 2.

6. Without necessity, or compulsion from divine predetermination.

Freely they stood who stood, and fell who fell.

7. Without obstruction; largely; copiously. The patient bled freely.

8. Spontaneously; without constraint or persuasion.

9. Liberally; generously; as, to give freely to the poor.

10. Gratuitously; of free will or grace, with out purchase or consideration.

Freely ye have received, freely give. Mat 10.

fre'-li (chinnam, nedhabhah; dorean parrhesiazomai):

"Freely" occurs in three senses:ts two slightly different words. In 1Co 7:22 the word is apeleutheros, "a freeman," one who was born a slave and has received freedom. In this case it refers to spiritual freedom. He that was in bondage to sin has been presented with spiritual freedom by the Lord. In Re 6:15 the word is simply eleutheros, "a free man" as opposed to a slave.

(1) Gratis, for nothing (Nu 11:5, chinnam, "for nought," "the fish which we did eat in Egypt freely," the Revised Version (British and American) "for nought"); Mt 10:8, dorean, "Freely ye have received, freely give," the Revised Version (British and American) omits "have"; Ro 3:24, "being justified freely by his grace"; 2Co 11:7, "I have preached to you the gospel freely," the Revised Version (British and American) "for nought"; Re 21:6; 22:17, "Take the water of life freely"; charizomai (Ro 8:32) is translated "freely give," ta charisthenta (1Co 2:12), "the things that are freely given," the American Standard Revised Version has "were" for "are."

(2) Willingly, spontaneously: nedhabhah, "willing offering" (Ps 54:6, "I will freely sacrifice unto thee," the Revised Version (British and American) "with a freewill-offering"; Ho 14:4, "I will love them freely"); nadhabh, "to give willingly'' (Ezr 2:68, the Revised Version (British and American) "willingly offered"; compare 1:6); nedabh Aramaic (7:15; compare 7:13,16).

(3) Without hindrance or restraint, 'akhal, "to eat" is rendered in Ge 2:16, "Thou mayest freely eat," the King James Version margin" Hebrew, eating thou shalt eat"; 1Sa 14:30, "if .... the people had eaten freely"; parrhesiazomai, "to speak freely, openly, boldly" (Ac 26:26, "Unto whom also I speak freely"); meta parrhesias, "with full speech" (Ac 2:29, "I may say unto you freely").

Revised Version has "have drunk freely" for "well drunk" (Joh 2:10). The word is methusko, Pass. "to become drunk." Comparison with Lu 12:45; Eph 5:18; 1Th 5:7; Re 17:2, where the same word is translated the King James Version "made drunk," the Revised Version (British and American) "made drunken" (Mt 24:49; Ac 2:15; 1Co 11:21; Re 17:6, "drunken"), will show that the meaning is "drunk," which was the rendering of Tyndale and Cranmer; Vulgate (Jerome's Latin Bible, 390-405 A.D.) has cum inebriati fuerint; Plummer renders "have become drunk, are drunk."

W. L. Walker