THE FULL ARTICLE — from the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1915), general editor James Orr — public domain, printed whole.

ver'-i: As adjective (from verus, "true"), "true," "real," "actual," etc. (Ge 27:21,24, "my very son Esau"; Jos 10:27, "this very day"; Joh 7:26, "the very Christ," etc.); chiefly as adverb, "in a high degree," "extremely." As ab adverb it is commonly in the Old Testament the translation of me'odh, and in the New Testament represents, as adjective and adverb, several Greek words, as alethos, "truly" (Joh 7:26, above), autos (Joh 14:11, "the very works' sake"; Ro 13:6), sphodra (Mt 18:31, "very sorry," the Revised Version (British and American) "exceeding sorry"; Mr 16:4, "very great," the Revised Version (British and American) "exceeding"), huper- (in composition 1Th 5:13), etc. the Revised Version (British and American) frequently omits "very," and also substitutes other words for it, as "exceeding" (2Ch 16:8; Mt 26:7; compare above), "sore" (Zec 9:5), etc.

W. L. Walker