Emily Dickinson Lexicon

HO'LY, a. [Sax. halig; G. and D. heilig; Sw. helig; Dan. hellig; from the root of heal, hold, whole, and all; Sax. hal, G. heil, D. heel, Sw. hel, Dan. heel, whole. See Heal and Hold, and Class Gl, No. 31, 35, 42. The sense is whole, entire, complete, sound, unimpaired.]

1. Properly, whole, entire or perfect, in a moral sense. Hence, pure in heart, temper or dispositions; free from sin and sinful affections. Applied to the Supreme Being, holy signifies perfectly pure, immaculate and complete in moral character; and man is more or less holy, as his heart is more or less sanctified, or purified from evil dispositions. We call a man holy, when his heart is conformed in some degree to the image of God, and his life is regulated by the divine precepts. Hence, holy is used as nearly synonymous with good, pious, godly. Be ye holy; for I am holy. 1 Pet. i.
2. Hallowed; consecrated or set apart to a sacred use, or to the service or worship of God; a sense frequent in Scripture; as, the holy sabbath; holy oil; holy vessels; a holy nation; the holy temple; a holy priesthood.
3. Proceeding from pious principles, or directed to pious purposes; as, holy zeal.
4. Perfectly just and good; as, the holy law of God.
5. Sacred; as, a holy witness. Shak. Holy of holies, in Scripture, the innermost apartment of the Jewish tabernacle or temple, where the ark was kept, and where no person entered, except the high-priest once a year. Holy Ghost, or Holy Spirit, the Divine Spirit; the third person in the Trinity; the sanctifier of souls. Holy war, a war undertaken to rescue the holy land, the ancient Judea, from the infidels; a crusade; an expedition carried on by Christians against the Saracens in the eleventh, twelfth and thirteenth centuries; a war carried in a most unholy manner.