Pronoun
A pronoun is a word that substitutes for a noun. For example, in the sentence "Speak not in the ears of a fool: for he will despise the wisdom of thy words" (Proverbs 23:9 KJV), the word "he" is a pronoun that stands in for the word "fool," which is a noun, "thy" is an arcahic pronoun for "the listener" (or "you" in modern English). Pronouns also include "it" "that" "those", and the possessives "his, her, their".
| Basic Pronoun Forms (Nominative Case) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Form | Singular | Plural |
| 1st Person | I | We |
| 2nd Person | You | You |
| 3rd Person | He, she, it | They |
Formal and Informal You
Many languages, including English (though they are now found only in texts like the King James Bible and Shakespere) have formal and informal 2nd person pronoun (you). This is often refered to as "Tu/Vous" which is the French formal and informal forms of you. Since many people read the King James Bible, and since language can simply be fun, here are the "tu/vous" forms for twelfth century English. Informal form of "you" = thou (I) thee (me) thy/thine[1](my or mine). Formal form of "you" = You (I) you (me) your/yours (my or mine).
It is interesting to note that early writers of English addressed God informally, which I think is important in understanding our relationship with our Father.