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Genesis 6:8 — Word Study

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WLCוְנֹ֕חַ מָ֥צָא חֵ֖ן בְּעֵינֵ֥י יְהוָֽה׃ פ

BSANoah, however,Nôach [the patriarch, a righteous man] foundmâtsâʼ [discovered, attained] favorchên [grace, kindness] in the eyesʻayin [sight, regard] of the LORDYᵉhôvâh [Yehovah, the Lord God]

Word
Listen & take awayGenesis 6
English ↓ Download MP3 The Berean Standard Bible chapter audio already hosted for the site's Bible section — verse 8 is in this chapter.
Hebrew ↓ Download MP3 The Masoretic text of this chapter, read aloud. Read by Abraham Shmuelof, courtesy of Audio Scriptures International. Chapter divisions by the Academy of Ancient Languages..
Say the word Each Hebrew word carries its transliteration (Yah.weh) — no per-word recordings of the Hebrew exist to link to.
Take it away
Genesis 6:8quick helps
In a sentenceNoah found favor with the LORD amid a corrupt world.
Who is speakingThe narrator, recounting the story of Noah.
Where we areIn the account of the Flood, where humanity's wickedness is highlighted.
The hard wordחֵן
Take awayEven in judgment, God shows grace to those who seek Him.
8 commentators on this verse Gill, Jamieson, Poole, Trapp & more — read them › clause subjectנֹחַ verbמָצָא The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
How rare are these words?in the Old Testament

Every word here is used elsewhere in the Old Testament.

Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.

Deep Study — Genesis 6:8

Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.

Context — The Account of Noahgenerated

7So the LORD said, “I will blot out man, whom I have created, from the face of the earth—every man and beast and crawling creature and bird of the air—for I am grieved that I have made them.”
8Noah, however, found favor in the eyes of the LORD.
9This is the account of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation; Noah walked with God.
10And Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

Genesis 6:8 introduces Noah, a pivotal figure in the biblical narrative, who found favor in the eyes of the LORD during a time of great wickedness on the earth. This favor sets the stage for Noah's role in the impending flood and the preservation of life through the ark. The surrounding verses depict the severity of humanity's sin, contrasting Noah's righteousness and God's grace, which is a recurring theme throughout the Scriptures.


Cross References

ReferenceText (BSB)
1Genesis 19:19Your servant has indeed found favor in your sight, and you have shown me great kindness by sparing my life. But I cannot run to the mountains; the disaster will overtake me, and I will die.
2Exodus 33:12–17Then Moses said to the LORD, “Look, You have been telling me, ‘Lead this people up,’ but You have not let me know whom You will send with me. Yet You have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have found favor in My sight.’
3Psalm 84:11For the LORD God is a sun and a shield; the LORD gives grace and glory; He withholds no good thing from those who walk with integrity.
4Psalm 145:20The LORD preserves all who love Him, but all the wicked He will destroy.
5Proverbs 3:4Then you will find favor and high regard in the sight of God and man.

The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — 19 references, hung on the phrase they belong to


The Key Word חֵן, chengenerated

The noun חֵן (chen) signifies favor or grace, derived from the root meaning of showing kindness. It encompasses the idea of being graciously accepted or having a pleasing quality. In this context, it emphasizes God's kindness towards Noah amidst widespread corruption.

The parsing as a masculine singular noun indicates that it is a specific quality or state that Noah attained. This favor is not merely a passive state but implies an active choice by God to regard Noah positively.


How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated

All translations agree on the use of favor for חֵן, reflecting the kindness Noah received from the LORD.


Sentence Structuregenerated

The main clause is governed by the finite verb מָצָא, he found, with a noun phrase as the subject (וְנֹ֕חַ, Noah) and a noun phrase as the object (חֵ֖ן, favor). This structure highlights Noah's action of finding favor.

The prepositional phrase בְּעֵינֵ֥י (in the eyes of) modifies the object, indicating the context in which Noah's favor is recognized — specifically in the sight of the LORD.


Septuagint Backgroundgenerated

In the Septuagint, חֵן is rendered as ξάριν (charin), which also means grace or favor. This choice aligns with the Hebrew meaning but emphasizes the graciousness of God towards Noah.

The Greek term captures the essence of divine kindness, paralleling the Hebrew concept of favor while also reflecting the broader themes of grace found throughout the Septuagint.


In plain words — the whole versegenerated

Genesis 6:8 tells us that Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD during a time when humanity was wicked. This favor is significant because it shows that even in a corrupt world, God recognizes righteousness and extends grace.


Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated

What does it mean that Noah found favor?

It means that God looked upon Noah with kindness and grace, choosing him to fulfill a special purpose amid widespread wickedness.

Why is Noah described as a righteous man?

Noah is called righteous because he lived in a way that was pleasing to God, adhering to His ways in a time when most others did not.

How does this verse relate to the overall story of the Flood?

This verse sets the stage for Noah's role in the Flood narrative, highlighting God's grace in preserving a righteous remnant.

What can we learn from Noah's favor with God?

We learn that righteousness and faithfulness can lead to divine favor, even in difficult circumstances.


Reflection Questionsgenerated

  1. In what ways can I seek God's favor in my own life?
  2. How does Noah's example encourage me to live righteously in a challenging world?
  3. What does it mean to me that God shows grace to those who seek Him?
  4. How can I demonstrate kindness and grace to others, reflecting God's favor?

The early church on this verse — how the Fathers read it

Early Church Fathers comment on Noah's righteousness and God's grace, illustrating the contrast between human wickedness and divine favor.

John ChrysostomHOMILIES ON Genesis 23.4 c. 347–407
The Scriptures have shown us the gravity of human wickedness and the severity of the punishment that had to be inflicted on it. They then point out to us the one who amid such a multitude had been able to keep a sincere virtue.
Early Church Fathers on Genesis 6 →
John ChrysostomHOMILIES ON Genesis 22.5 c. 347–407
Do you see how the Lord created our nature to enjoy free will? I mean, how did it happen, tell me, that while those people showed enthusiasm for wickedness and rendered themselves liable to punishment, this man opted for virtue,
Early Church Fathers on Genesis 6 →
John ChrysostomHOMILIES ON John 71 c. 347–407
Therefore, in praise of Noah, Scripture not merely called him “blameless” but added “among the men of his day” to make it clear that he was so at that time when the obstacles to virtue were many.
Early Church Fathers on Genesis 6 →

Commentators on this verse — 8 expositors, verse by verse

Each of these wrote on Genesis 6:8 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.

John Gill1697–1771Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. This man and his family were the only exception to the general apostasy; God always reserves some, in the worst of times, for himself; there is a

Read John Gill on Genesis 6 →
Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's Commentary

But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. Mankind was not to be annihilated; means were to be adopted for preserving a small remnant.

Read Robert Jamieson on Genesis 6 →
Matthew Poole1624–1679Matthew Poole's Commentary on the Holy Bible

i.e. Obtained mercy and favour; which is noted to show that Noah was so far guilty of the common corruption of human nature, that he needed God’ s grace and mercy to pardon and preserve him from the common destruction.

Read Matthew Poole on Genesis 6 →
John Trapp1601–1669Trapp's Complete Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

Genesis 6:8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.Ver. 8. But Noah found grace.] Because in covenant with God; who of himself was a child of wrath, and saved by grace only, though "just and perfect in his generation." The mercy seat was no larger than the ark; to show that the grace of God extends no further than the covenant. As all out of the ark were drowned, so all out of the covenant are damned.

Read John Trapp on Genesis 6 →
Charles John Ellicott1819–1905Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(8) But Noah found grace.—This is the first place where grace is mentioned in the Bible, and with these words ends the Tôldôth Adam. It has traced man from his creation until his wickedness was so great that the Divine justice demanded his punishment. But it concludes with words of hope. Jehovah’s purpose was not extermination, but regeneration; and with Noah a higher and better order of things was to begin.

Read Charles John Ellicott on Genesis 6 →
AdamClarkeAdam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible

Verse 8. Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.] Why? Because he was, 1. A just man, איש צדיק ish tsaddik, a man who gave to all their due; for this is the ideal meaning of the original word. 2. He was perfect in his generation - he was in all things a consistent character, never departing from the truth in principle or practice. 3. He walked with God - he was not only righteous in his conduct, but he was pious, and had continual communion with God. The same word is used here as before in the case of Enoch. See Genesis 5:22.

Read AdamClarke on Genesis 6 →
CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

8. But Noah] The sudden introduction of Noah’s name implies that there had been some previous account, in J, describing the contrast of Noah’s virtue with the sinfulness of his contemporaries. In the composite narrative of Genesis many features have necessarily disappeared in the process of combining the different traditions. Possibly, the passage at the beginning of this chapter (Genesis 6:1-4) was substituted for one that had introduced the mention of Noah’s piety in contrast with the wickedness of man. found grace] This familiar expression occurs here for the first time in the Bible. For the expression “find grace” cf. Genesis 19:19, Genesis 32:5, Genesis 33:8; Genesis 33:10; Genesis…

Read Cambridge on Genesis 6 →
Daniel Denison Whedon1808–1885Whedon's Commentary on the Bible

8. Noah found grace — Because of his godly filial fear and faith, (Hebrews 11:7,) which wonderfully showed itself in preaching righteousness to that corrupt generation, and especially by working

Read Daniel Denison Whedon on Genesis 6 →

The verse in English, compared — 17 translations, and where they part company

Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.

Modern formal

BSBBerean Standard Bible2020

Noah, however, found favor in the eyes of the LORD.

WEBWorld English Bible2000

But Noah found favor in Yahweh’s eyes.

MSBMajority Standard Bible2022

Noah, however, found favor in the eyes of the LORD.

NETBNew English Translation2006

But Noah found favor in the sight of the Lord.

Tyndale line

KJVKing James Version1611

But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.

ASVAmerican Standard Version1901

But Noah found favor in the eyes of Jehovah.

RVARevised Version, American1894

But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.

NWBWebster's Bible1833

But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.

GNVGeneva Bible1599

But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

Strictly literal

DBYDarby Translation1890

But Noah found favour in the eyes of Jehovah.

YLTYoung's Literal Translation1862

And Noah found grace in the eyes of Jehovah.

LSVLiteral Standard Version2020

And Noah found grace in the eyes of YHWH.

ILTInterlinear Literal Translation2000

But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

ULBUnlocked Literal Bible2017

But Noah found favor in the eyes of Yahweh.

From the Latin

DRADouay-Rheims (Challoner)1899

But Noe found grace before the Lord.

Simplified

FBVFree Bible Version2020

But the Lord was pleased with Noah.

BBEBible in Basic English1949

But Noah had grace in the eyes of God.

Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.


The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank

This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.

וְandclausesubjectנֹ֕חַNoahverbמָ֥צָאhe.foundobjectחֵ֖ןfavorprepositional phrase · prepositionalבְּinnoun phraseעֵינֵ֥יthe.eyesיְהוָֽהof.Yahweh

Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.


The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran

The Masoretic Text and the Samaritan Pentateuch agree word for word on this verse, affirming the consistency of the text. The Septuagint also matches the Hebrew closely, indicating a strong textual tradition.

Masoretic TextLeningrad Codex, c. AD 1008 — the text this page is built on

וְנֹ֕חַ מָ֥צָא חֵ֖ן בְּעֵינֵ֥י יְהוָֽה׃ פ

Septuagintthe Greek the translators chose, word by word
וְנֹ֕חַνωεמָ֥צָאεὗρενחֵ֖ןξάρινבְּעֵינֵ֥יἐναντίονיְהוָֽה׃ פκυρίου

5 of the 5 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.

Samaritan Pentateuchthe Torah as the Samaritan community kept it

ונח מצא חן בעיני יהוה

Agrees with the Masoretic Text here, word for word.

Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.


The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with

This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.

Genesis 6:8נֹחַand Noahand Noahנֹחַמָצָאhe foundhe foundמָצָאחֵןfavorfavorחֵןעַ֫יִןin [the] eyin [the] eyes oעַ֫יִןיהוהYahwehYahwehיהוהחָנַןbe gracioube graciousחָנַןהָיָהto beto beהָיָהמְנוּחָהrestrestמְנוּחָהחֵןfavorfavorחֵןיֶ֫פֶתJaphethJaphethיֶ֫פֶתחָםHamHamחָםבָּקַשׁto seekto seekבָּקַשׁמָצָאto findto findמָצָאעַ֫יִןeyeeyeעַ֫יִןיָשָׁרJasharJasharיָשָׁרנְאֻםutteranceutteranceנְאֻםצָבָאarmyarmyצָבָא
meets it a little oftener than chancemeets it far oftener than chancebuilt from the same roottwo words of the verse share ita word of this versea related word

Lexicons — every word in Genesis 6:8

One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.

Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.

and Noah he found favor in [the] eyes of Yahweh
וְנֹ֕חַve.No.ach and Noah H5146 Conjunction · noun proper masculine
46× in the OT scale is logarithmic — the commonest word, אֵת, appears about 11,000×
In plain English
Meaning
Noah, the patriarch who built the ark to save his family and two of every kind of animal from the flood, is the namesake of this Hebrew word. He is first mentioned in Genesis 5:29 as the son of Lamech. His story is a crucial part of biblical history.
Amplified meaning
the patriarch, a righteous man
Tyndale gloss
Noah
Hebrew lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

נֹחַ (Noach) refers to Noah, a significant biblical figure known for surviving the Flood. The name is associated with the concept of 'rest.' He is the son of Lamech and the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and is first mentioned in Genesis 5:29. The entries consistently identify him as the patriarch who built the ark.

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (full)

נֹחַ 46 n.pr.m. Noah

base

Brown-Driver-Briggs glosses

H5146 נֹחַ Noah

Strong's Hebrew Dictionary

5146 Noach no'-akh

the same as 5118; rest; Noach, the patriarch of the

flood:--Noah.

see HEBREW for 05118

Translators Brief Hebrew Lexicon

נֹחַ (no.ach) — Noah.

A man living at the time before the Flood, first mentioned at Gen.5.29;

son of: Lamech (H3929H);

father of: Shem (H8035), Ham (H2526) and Japheth (H3315)

Also named: Nōe (Νῶε "Noah" G3575)

§ Noah = "rest"

son of Lamech, father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth; builder of the ark which saved his family from the destruction of the world which God sent on the world by the flood; became the new seminal head of mankind because his family were the only survivors of the flood

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Conj | N-proper — Conjunction · noun proper masculine
HC/Npm
Bible dictionarieson the English sense
Easton's Bible Dictionary

Noah

Rest, (Heb. Noah) the grandson of Methuselah (Gen. 5:25-29), who was for two hundred and fifty years contemporary with Adam, and the son of Lamech, who was about fifty years old at the time of Adam’s death. This patriarch is rightly regarded as the connecting link between the old and the new world. He is the second great progenitor of the human family.

The words of his father Lamech at his birth (Gen. 5:29) have been regarded as in a sense prophetical, designating Noah as a type of Him who is the true “rest and comfort” of men under the burden of life (Matt.11:28).

He lived five hundred years, and then there were born unto him three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth (Gen.…

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

Rest, comfort, the name of celebrated patriarch who was preserved by Jehovah with his family, by means of the ark, through the deluge, and thus became the second founder of the human race. The history of Noah and the deluge is contained in Ge 5:1-9:29. He was the son of Lamech, and grandson of Methuselah lived six hundred years before the deluge, and three hundred and fifty after it, dying two years before Abram was born. His name may have been given to him by his parents in the hope that he would be the promised "seed of the woman" that should "bruise the serpent’s head." He was in the line of the patriarchs who feared God, and was himself a just man, Eze 14:14,20, and a "preacher of righteousness," 1Pe 3:19,20

and Noah he found favor in [the] eyes of Yahweh
מָ֥צָאMa.tza' he found H4672 Verb · Qal · perfect third person masculine singular
455× in the OT scale is logarithmic — the commonest word, אֵת, appears about 11,000×
In plain English
Meaning
Matsa means to find or attain something, whether it is a physical object, a person, or a condition, as seen in various KJV translations.
Amplified meaning
discovered, attained
Tyndale gloss
to find
Hebrew lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

מָצָא (matsa') is a Hebrew verb meaning to find or attain. It encompasses a range of actions, including discovering something lost, encountering someone, or coming upon a situation. The word can also imply being present or sufficient. Lexicons note various forms and uses, including Qal, Niphal, and Hiphil, which indicate different nuances of finding and encountering.

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (full)

מָצָא 452 vb. attain to, find

Qal

find

find out

= come upon, light upon

noteworthy phrases

Niph. pass. of Qal, be found

Hiph.

cause to find, attain

cause to light upon, come upon, come

cause to encounter

present unto

base

Brown-Driver-Briggs glosses

H4672 מָצָא attain to, find

Strong's Hebrew Dictionary

4672 matsa' maw-tsaw'

a primitive root; properly, to come forth to, i.e. appear or

exist; transitively, to attain, i.e. find or acquire;

figuratively, to occur, meet or be present:--+ be able,

befall, being, catch, X certainly, (cause to) come (on, to, to

hand), deliver, be enough (cause to) find(-ing, occasion,

out), get (hold upon), X have (here), be here, hit, be left,

light (up-)on, meet (with), X occasion serve, (be) present,

ready, speed, suffice, take hold on.

Translators Brief Hebrew Lexicon

מָצָא (ma.tsa) — to find.

1) to find, attain to

1a) (Qal)

1a1) to find

1a1a) to find, secure, acquire, get (thing sought)

1a1b) to find (what is lost)

1a1c) to meet, encounter

1a1d) to find (a condition)

1a1e) to learn, devise

1a2) to find out

1a2a) to find out

1a2b) to detect

1a2c) to guess

1a3) to come upon, light upon

1a3a) to happen upon, meet, fall in with

1a3b) to hit

1a3c) to befall

1b) (Niphal)

1b1) to be found

1b1a) to be encountered, be lighted upon, be discovered

1b1b) to appear, be recognised

1b1c) to be discovered, be detected

1b1d) to be gained, be secured

1b2) to be, be found

1b2a) to be found in

1b2b) to be in the possession of

1b2c) to be found in (a place), happen to be

1b2d) to be left (after war)

1b2e) to be present

1b2f) to prove to be

1b2g) to be found sufficient, be enough

1c) (Hiphil)

1c1) to cause to find, attain

1c2) to cause to light upon, come upon, come

1c3) to cause to encounter

Read the full entry →
Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
V-Qal-Perf-3ms — Verb · Qal · perfect third person masculine singular
HVqp3ms
and Noah he found favor in [the] eyes of Yahweh
חֵ֖ןchen favor H2580 Noun common · masculine singular absolute
69× in the OT scale is logarithmic — the commonest word, אֵת, appears about 11,000×
In plain English
Meaning
This Hebrew word means showing kindness or favor to someone, like God's graciousness to humanity. It appears in the Bible as 'favor' or 'grace'.
Amplified meaning
grace, kindness
Tyndale gloss
favor
Hebrew lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

חֵן (chen) refers to favor or grace, encompassing meanings like kindness, beauty, and elegance. It can denote both subjective qualities, such as graciousness, and objective attributes, like pleasantness. The term appears in various contexts within the Old Testament, highlighting its multifaceted nature.

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (full)

חֵן n.m. favour, grace

favour, grace, elegance

favour, acceptance

base

Brown-Driver-Briggs glosses

H2580 חֵן favour, grace . favour, grace, elegance

. favour, acceptane

Strong's Hebrew Dictionary

2580 chen khane

from 2603; graciousness, i.e. subjective (kindness, favor) or

objective (beauty):--favour, grace(-ious), pleasant, precious,

(well-)favoured.

see HEBREW for 02603

Translators Brief Hebrew Lexicon

חֵן (chen) — favor.

1) favour, grace, charm

1a) favour, grace, elegance

1b) favour, acceptance

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
N-ms — Noun common · masculine singular absolute
HNcmsa
Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

fa'-ver (chen, ratson, with other Hebrew words; charis): Means generally good will, acceptance, and the benefits flowing from these; in older usage it meant also the countenance, hence, appearance. Alternating in English Versions of the Bible with "grace," it is used chiefly of man, but sometimes also of God (Ge 18:3; 30:27; 39:21; Ex 3:21; 2Sa 15:25, "in the eyes of Yahweh," etc.). It is used perhaps in the sense of "countenance" in Pr 31:30, "Favor is deceitful, and beauty is vain" (the King James Version), where for "favor" the Revised Version (British and American) has "grace"; the reference is to external appearance. "Favored" is used in the sense of "appearance" in…

Nave's Topical Bible

→ See GOD, GRACE OF

and Noah he found favor in [the] eyes of Yahweh
בְּעֵינֵ֥יbe.'ei.Nei in [the] eyes of H5869 Preposition · noun common feminine dual construct
887× in the OT scale is logarithmic — the commonest word, אֵת, appears about 11,000×
In plain English
Meaning
This word can mean a spring or fountain, but also refers to the eye or a source of something. It is often translated as affliction, outward appearance, or countenance, and is used in various contexts throughout the Bible.
Amplified meaning
sight, regard
Tyndale gloss
eye
Hebrew lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

The Hebrew word עַ֫יִן (*'ayin*) means 'eye' and can refer to both the physical organ and its figurative uses, such as mental qualities and desires. It also denotes a 'spring' or 'fountain' of water. The entries highlight various phrases and contexts, including appearances and expressions of emotion, but do not indicate any significant disagreement among lexicons.

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (full)

עַ֫יִן 859 n.f. eye

lit. as physical organ

eyes as showing mental qualities

desire of the eyes, abominations of the eyes

Fig. of mental and physical faculties, acts and states

Transferred mngs.:

visible surface of earth

appearance

gleam, sparkle

Other phrases are: an eye for an eye; eye to eye; in the presence of, in full view of; of business transaction; on the forehead

base

עַ֫יִן n.f. spring (of water). Particular springs are:

ע׳ חֲרֹר Ju 7:1

ע׳ הַקּוֹרֵא (partridge-spring) Ju 15:19

ע׳ רֹגֵל near Jerus.

ע׳ הַתַּנִּין (dragon-spring)

base

Brown-Driver-Briggs glosses

H5869a עַ֫יִן eye . lit. as physical organ

. . eyes as showing mental qualities

. desire of the eyes, abominations of the eyes

. Fig. of mental and physical faculties, acts and states

. Transferred mngs.: . visible surface of earth

. appearance

. gleam, sparkle

. Other phrases are: an eye for an eye; eye to eye; in the presence of, in full view of; of business transaction; on the forehead

H5869b עַ֫יִן spring (of water)

Strong's Hebrew Dictionary

5869 `ayin ah'-yin

probably a primitive word; an eye (literally or

figuratively); by analogy, a fountain (as the eye of the

landscape):--affliction, outward appearance, + before, +

think best, colour, conceit, + be content, countenance, +

displease, eye((-brow), (-d), -sight), face, + favour,

fountain, furrow (from the margin), X him, + humble,

knowledge, look, (+ well), X me, open(-ly), + (not) please,

presence, + regard, resemblance, sight, X thee, X them, +

think, X us, well, X you(-rselves).

Translators Brief Hebrew Lexicon

עַ֫יִן (a.yin) — eye.

: eye

1) eye

1a) eye

1a1) of physical eye

1a2) as showing mental qualities

1a3) of mental and spiritual faculties (fig.)

עַ֫יִן (a.yin) — Fountain (Gate).

§ spring, fountain

עַ֫יִן (a.yin) — Fountain of.

§ spring, fountain

עַ֫יִן (a.yin) — eye: seeing.

: seeing

1) eye

1a) eye

1a1) of physical eye

1a2) as showing mental qualities

1a3) of mental and spiritual faculties (fig.)

עַ֫יִן (a.yin) — eye: appearance.

: appearance

1) eye

1a) eye

1a1) of physical eye

1a2) as showing mental qualities

1a3) of mental and spiritual faculties (fig.)

עַ֫יִן (a.yin) — eye: before(the eyes).

: before(the_eyes)

1) eye

1a) eye

1a1) of physical eye

1a2) as showing mental qualities

1a3) of mental and spiritual faculties (fig.)

עַ֫יִן (a.yin) — eye: sin.

: sin

1) eye

1a) eye

1a1) of physical eye

1a2) as showing mental qualities

Read the full entry →
Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
Prep | N-cd — Preposition · noun common feminine dual construct
HR/Ncfdc
Bible dictionarieson the English sense
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

ov:

(1) In Anglo-Saxon, had the meaning "from," "away from" (as the strengthened form "off" has still), and was not used for genitive or possessive relations, these being expressed by special case-forms. In the Norman period, however, "of" was taken to represent the French de (a use well developed by the time of Chaucer), and in the Elizabethan period both senses of "of" were in common use. But after about 1600 the later force of the word became predominant, and in the earlier sense (which is now practically obsolete) it was replaced by other prepositions. In consequence the King James Version (and in some cases the Revised Version (British and American)) contains many uses of "of" that are no longer familiar--most of them, to be sure, causing no difficulty, but there still being a few responsible for real obscurities.

English usagewhat the translators’ English meant
Webster's Dictionary (1828), Webster's Unabridged (1913), Webster's Dictionary (1806)

OF, preposition ov. [Gr.]

1. From or out of; proceeding from, as the cause, source, means, author or agent bestowing.

I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered to you. 1 Corinthians 11:1.

For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts. Joshua 11:1.

It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed.

Lamentations 3:1.

The whole disposing thereof is of the Lord. Proverbs 16:1.

Go, inquire of the Lord for me. 2 Chronicles 34:2.

That holy thing that shall be born of thee. Luke 1:1.

Hence of is the sign of the genitive case, the case that denotes production; as the son of man, the son proceeding from man, produced from man. This is the primary sense, although we now say, produced by man. 'Part of these were slain; ' that is, a number separate, for part denotes a division; the sense then is, a number from or out of the whole were slain. So also, 'some of these were slain; ' that is…

and Noah he found favor in [the] eyes of Yahweh
יְהוָֽה׃ פYah.weh Yahweh H3068 Noun proper
6,528× in the OT scale is logarithmic — the commonest word, אֵת, appears about 11,000×
In plain English
Meaning
Yehovah is another name for God, often translated as 'the Lord'. It is a national name for God in the Jewish faith. This name is used throughout the Old Testament.
Amplified meaning
Yehovah, the Lord God
Tyndale gloss
The Lord
Hebrew lexiconskeyed to Strong's numbers
Layman’s summary of all Lexicon entries.generated

יְהֹוָה (ye.ho.vah) is the proper name of the God of Israel, often rendered as Jehovah or the Lord. It signifies the self-existent or eternal nature of God. The name is closely associated with the revelation to Moses in Exodus 3:12-15 and is used in conjunction with other terms to denote sacred places. Some scholars suggest it derives from a root meaning 'to bring into being.'

Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (full)

יהוה c. 6823 i.e. יַהְוֶה n.pr.dei Yahweh, the proper name of the God of Israel—(1. MT יְהֹוָה 6518 (Qr אֲדֹנָי), or יֱהֹוִה 305 (Qr אֱלֹהִים) 2. Many recent scholars explain יַהְוֶה as Hiph. of הוה (= היה) the one bringing into being, life-giver)

יהוה is not used by E in Gn, but is given Ex 3:12-15 as the name of the God who revealed Himself to Moses at Horeb

יהוה is used with אלהים and suffixes, especially in D

the phrase † אֲנִי יהוה is noteworthy

יהוה is also used with several predicates, to form sacred names of holy places of Yahweh

base

Brown-Driver-Briggs glosses

H3068 יהוה i.e. יַהְוֶה n. pr. dei Yahweh, the proper name of the God of Israel

Strong's Hebrew Dictionary

3068 Yhovah yeh-ho-vaw'

from 1961; (the) self-Existent or Eternal; Jehovah, Jewish

national name of God:--Jehovah, the Lord. Compare 3050, 3069.

see HEBREW for 01961

see HEBREW for 03050

see HEBREW for 03069

Translators Brief Hebrew Lexicon

יְהֹוָה (ye.ho.vah) — LORD.

Jehovah = "the existing One"

1) the proper name of the one true God

1a) unpronounced except with the vowel pointings of a.do.na (אֲדֹנָי "Lord" H0136)

יְהֹוָה (ye.ho.vah) — The Lord.

Another name of ye.ru.sha.laim (יְרוּשָׁלִַ֫ם, יְרוּשְׁלֵם "Jerusalem" H3389)

יְהֹוָה (ye.ho.vah) — (Jerusalem of) the Lord.

Combined with ye.ru.sha.laim (יְרוּשָׁלִַ֫ם, יְרוּשְׁלֵם "Jerusalem" H3389)

Morphologythe parsing behind the code
Berean parsing
N-proper — Noun proper
HNpt
The company it keepswords that stand beside it more often than chance
Sources on this page. Lexicons and dictionaries imported from the CrossWire SWORD modules — Abbott-Smith, Strong's, Dodson, the Intermediate Liddell-Scott-Jones, Robinson and Packard, Webster and Cawdrey. Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Harper, 1889 — Grimm’s Wilke’s Clavis Novi Testamenti, translated, revised and enlarged by Joseph Henry Thayer) is public domain and is set here from the Internet Archive page scan greekenglishlex00grim; it is uncorrected OCR, marked as such on the entry itself, and the Strong’s numbers — which Thayer’s own edition does not carry — were matched by lemma against the other modules on this page. Trench’s Synonyms of the New Testament (Macmillan, 1880) and Moulton and Milligan’s Vocabulary of the Greek Testament (Hodder & Stoughton, 1930, which entered the United States public domain on 1 January 2026) are set from Internet Archive page scans synonymsofnewtes00treniala and vocabularyofgree00mouluoft, and are likewise uncorrected OCR matched to Strong’s numbers by lemma. Trench treats a group of words at once, so the same essay stands on the page of each word it compares. The Mounce Concise Greek-English Dictionary is © 1993 and is used here by permission for non-commercial use, www.teknia.com/greek-dictionary. The full Liddell-Scott-Jones and the Hebrew word data (TAHOT) come from STEPBible.org, CC BY 4.0. Brown-Driver-Briggs is the OpenScriptures digitisation, public domain. Syntax analysis is the Nestle 1904 Lowfat treebank (biblicalhumanities.org); the concordance and morphology are built from the tagged Nestle 1904 text. Septuagint occurrences use the Open Scriptures Septuagint lemma index, derived from CCAT (University of Pennsylvania) and the Rahlfs 1935 dataset by Eliran Wong, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 — used here on a non-commercial ministry site. Greek of Josephus and Barnabas from the Perseus Digital Library, CC BY-SA 4.0. Commentaries and the Ante-Nicene Fathers are public-domain texts hosted on this site. Everyday Greek from the Duke Databank of Documentary Papyri, CC BY 3.0, with dates and provenance from the Heidelberger Gesamtverzeichnis. Philo and the Apostolic Fathers from Open Greek and Latin (First1KGreek), CC BY-SA 4.0. The apparatus and the fifth Greek column are the SBL Greek New Testament, © 2010 SBL and Logos Bible Software, CC BY 4.0. The Latin is the Clementine Vulgate (public domain); the Syriac New Testament is the ETCBC edition (MIT licence). The Hebrew behind the Greek is computed here from the Septuagint index and TAHOT, not taken from any aligned edition. The translation spread and the per-word edition marks come from the Translators Amalgamated Greek NT (STEPBible, CC BY 4.0); clause roles from the Nestle 1904 Lowfat treebank (CC BY-SA 4.0); place identifications and their confidence from OpenBible.info Bible Geocoding (CC BY 4.0), with map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors. Gospel parallels are computed here from shared uncommon vocabulary, not taken from any printed harmony. Cross references are the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge and the subject headings are Nave’s Topical Bible, both public domain. Works under Creative Commons licences are used unchanged apart from markup removal.

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