Archaic KJV Word
Nourish
Modern equivalent: sustain
What Was Lost
The comprehensive provision. When Joseph said 'I will nourish thee,' he meant total sustenance -- land, food, protection, economic support for the entire family through famine. Biblical nourishment was holistic caregiving, not vitamins and minerals.
Closest Survivor in Modern English
nourish (in 'nourish a relationship' -- extended metaphor preserving the broader care meaning)
Peak Usage (1611)
KJV Acts 12:20 -- 'Their country was nourished by the king's country'; Genesis 45:11 -- 'There will I nourish thee'
Died still used but narrowed (~1900)
Narrowed from 'to sustain/support/maintain economically and physically' to primarily 'to provide nutrients to the body,' reducing comprehensive sustenance to dietary science.
What Replaced It
“feed”
Merely caloric; nourish-as-sustain meant total provision -- food, shelter, protection, economic support
“support”
Abstract and financial; nourish was concrete and personal -- taking someone into your care
“provide for”
Transactional; nourish implied an ongoing, intimate relationship of provision