Practical English

An ordinary reader of our time cannot without assistance fully understand these passages, because the words “earing,” “leasing,” and “let” convey to his mind either no idea at all or a wrong idea. Two hundred and eighty years ago, when this translation of the Bible was made, these words were common words with plain meanings; but “earing” and “leasing” have since dropped out of common use, and “let” has acquired a different meaning; consequently an ordinary reader of the present time must consult a dictionary before he can be sure what the passages mean. Words and meanings which have gone out of use are called obsolete.