p- 161 «■ J. C. Lambert.
GRACIOUSNESS. — The word ' graciousness ' does not occur in the EV of the Gospels. The adjective 'gracious' occurs only once (Lk 4=^) j,, the AV and not at all in the RV. The idea, how- ever, covered by the noun is of very frequent occurrence, and may truly be said to be one of the leading characteristics of Jesus Himself, and of the gospel He came to proclaim.
1. The passage Lk 4-= is rendered in the AV, ' And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth.' The RV keeps more closely to the form of the Gr. expression, and renders ' wondered at the words of grace.' In so doin^ it departs from the general practice of the older English versions, which from Tindale onwards adopted the form of the AV. Wyclif and the Rhemish version support the ren- dering of the RV, following in all probability the example of the Vulg. in verbis gratia: which
* Besides the use of the word ' grace 'in the Pauline Epp. to designate the spontaneo\is favour of God to sinners as revealed and mediated by Jesus Christ, it is employed in various deriva- tive senses, such as (Ro 6=) the state of grace (stadts gratice), a particular gift of grace (Eph 4'), the special grace required for the Apostolic office (Gal 28- 9, Eph 3=- 7). The discussion of these, however, lies somewhat beyond the scope of this Dictionary.
they rendered literally. The best modern version (Weymouth's) paraphrases and expands the ex- pression thus, 'wondering at the sweet words of kindness which fell from his lips ' ; while Weiz- sacker's admirable German version translates .simply die liehlichen Wortc. The best rendering, where the phrase is thus understood, is probably that of Plunimer, ' winning words.' The words of the original, iirl tois \6yois t^s x'^P'''''"> suggest such a rendering, since the original meaning of xiip'Si as it is found in (ir. literature, is that of ' comeliness ' or ' winsomeness ' (see tlie Lexicons for examples). But general, popular, and attractive as sucfi an interpretation is, another is probably the correct one. See preceding article.
2. The Gr. word xa/"s occurs on several other occasions in the Gospels, and is variously rendered in the English versions. In order to gain a clearer idea of its meaning, it is necessary to examine these. Of the youthful John we read In Lk 2-'" ' the grace of God was upon him,' and of the child Jesus (2*2) that He 'advanced in favour (RVm 'grace') with God and men.' Weymouth uses 'favour' in both passages. On three occasions, in Lk 6^- ''• *", we have the expression, 'What thank have ye?' representing the Gr. iroia i/uf x<»/"s icrTtv ; and the same sense of the word is found in Lk 17^ The only other passage in the Gospels where the word occurs is in the prologue to the Fourth Gospel, where it is found three times (Jn !"• "*• "), and is rendered in each case 'grace.' See GRACE.
3. There remains for us to see how the quality of 'graciousness' is manifested in Jesus during His earthly ministry. Many who take the word 'gracious' of Lk 4^ in the narrower sense noted above, look only for the 'graciousness' of our Lord to be revealed in His manner of dealing with men, in His outward conduct and speech. This view is, of course, true. His readiness to take part in all the festivities and social functions of everyday life marked Him ofl' clearly to His con- temporaries from the ascetic attitude of John the Baptist. His playful, gentle winsomeness that won the children to His knee was a scandal to His disciples. His brotherly attitude towards the diseased and stricken. His generous help. His readiness of sympathj;, emboldened leprous, blind, and ashamed humanity to dare tlie publicity it shrank from, or the menace and rebuke of the crowd, to cast itself at His feet, and tlirow itself upon His gracious consideration. This same char- acteristic is revealed in His intimate association with the household at Bethany, and His special affection for John and Lazarus, as well as in such exquisitely human touches as His longing look of love given to the young questioner (Mk 10-').
' Men could approach near to Him, could eat and drink with Him, could listen to His talk, and ask Him questions, and they found Him not accessible only, but warm-hearted, and not occupied so much with His own plans that He could not attend to a case of distress or mental perplexity ' (Ecce Homo, ch. 6).
This peculiar graciousness was displayed in such acts as washing the feet of His disciples, and in His patient tolerance of the scepticism of Thomas.
But when we go deeper than form of speech or nature of deed, we find this quality still more clearly manifested. If 'graciousness' is to bear the richer meaning we have seen it may carry, then its significance in the words and works of Jesus is all the greater. His jjarables {e.ff. the Lost Sheep, the Prodigal Son, the Good Samaritan), how full they are of this peculiar quality of the Divine revelation ! His conduct to sinful men and women, how sharply did it contrast with the attitude of His contemporaries (Lk "J^-^o, Mk 1035. 45J I jjjg pi-ayer for His enemies shows with wonderful tenderness how this spirit did not desert Him at the moment of greatest trial, how inherent