ayin · eye

What it means

ayin (עַיִן) is a Hebrew word of the Bible that means “eye”.

"In someone's eyes" means "in his opinion"; "find favor in the eyes of" is to please him. Also a spring of water.

How to say it

Approximate pronunciation. Vowels sound as in Spanish (a as in father, e as in bed, i as in machine, o as in note, u as in rule); the syllable in bold is stressed. The voice is your device's.

Its senses in the Bible

1. The organ with which one sees; so "lift the eyes" means to look.
2. "In the eyes of" someone: in their view.
3. Literally "the eye": how something looks, its glint.
4. Literally "eye": a place where water wells up from the ground.

From Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906)

Word study

Eye. BDB adds that, by likeness, it also means “fountain” or spring. That is why it appears in place names with a spring, such as En-gedi and En-rogel.

• The eye; “lifted his eyes” is to look Genesis 3:7Genesis 13:10
• “In the eyes of”: in someone's judgment Genesis 6:8Judges 17:6
• A spring, a source of water Genesis 16:7
• The gleam or look of something Ezekiel 1:4

Historical and cultural background

The law of Exodus 21:24 and Deuteronomy 19:21 commands “eye for eye, tooth for tooth”: a penalty equal to the harm done.

How we translate it

“Eyes” 738 times, “eye” 87, “sight” 21, “spring” 11, “like the gleam” 8. This edition keeps the expression “in the eyes of” (בְּעֵינֵי), because the image is clear: “Noah found favor in the eyes of YHWH”. When it is a source of water, “spring” or “fountain”.

How it is translated

The words this translation uses for it, most frequent first.

• eyes ×738
• eye ×87
• sight ×21
• spring ×11
• like the gleam ×8
• Fountain ×5
• appearance ×4
• springs ×4
• face ×2
• surface ×2
• others ×5

Related words

Words of the same family, by Strong’s numbering.

Where it appears

• Genesis×80
• Exodus×35
• Leviticus×16
• Numbers×40
• Deuteronomy×60
• Joshua×11
• Judges×19
• Ruth×4
• 1 Samuel×43
• 2 Samuel×40
• 1 Kings×31
• 2 Kings×49
• 1 Chronicles×11
• 2 Chronicles×31
• Ezra×2
• Nehemiah×7
• Esther×13
• Job×46
• Psalms×66
• Proverbs×48
• Ecclesiastes×9
• Song of Songs×7
• Isaiah×45
• Jeremiah×54
• Lamentations×10
• Ezekiel×70
• Daniel×7
• Hosea×2
• Joel×1
• Amos×3
• Jonah×1
• Micah×2
• Habakkuk×1
• Zephaniah×1
• Haggai×1
• Zechariah×19
• Malachi×2

• Genesis 3:5

  for Elohim knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like Elohim, knowing good and evil.”

• Genesis 3:6

  And the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable for gaining insight; and she took of its fruit and ate, and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.

• Genesis 3:7

  And the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed together fig leaves and made themselves loincloths.

• Genesis 6:8

  But Noah found favor in the eyes of YHWH.

• Genesis 13:10

  Lot lifted his eyes and saw the whole plain of the Jordan, that all of it was well-watered (before YHWH destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah) like the garden of YHWH, like the land of Egypt, as you go toward Zoar.

• Genesis 13:14

  YHWH said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him, “Lift up now your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward;

• Genesis 16:4

  He went in to Hagar, and she conceived; and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress became of little account in her eyes.

• Genesis 16:5

  Then Sarai said to Abram, “The wrong done to me be on you! I myself gave my slave woman into your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, I became of little account in her eyes. May YHWH judge between me and you.”

• Genesis 16:6

  But Abram said to Sarai, “Look, your slave woman is in your hand; do to her what is good in your eyes.” So Sarai afflicted her, and she fled from her presence.

• Genesis 16:7

  The angel of YHWH found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, by the spring on the way to Shur.

• Genesis 18:2

  He lifted his eyes and looked, and look, three men were standing near him. When he saw them, he ran from the entrance of the tent to meet them and bowed down to the ground.

• Genesis 18:3

  He said, “Adonai, if I have found favor in your eyes, please do not pass by your servant.

• Genesis 19:8

  Look, I have two daughters who have not known a man; let me bring them out to you, and do to them as is good in your eyes; only to these men do not do anything, for that is why they have come under the shadow of my roof.”

• Genesis 19:14

  So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were to marry his daughters, and said, “Get up, get out of this place, for YHWH is about to destroy the city.” But he seemed to be joking in the eyes of his sons-in-law.

• Genesis 19:19

  Look, your servant has found favor in your eyes, and you have made great your loyal love that you have shown me by keeping me alive; but I cannot escape to the mountain, lest the evil overtake me and I die.

• Genesis 20:15

  And Abimelech said, “Look, my land is before you; live wherever it is good in your eyes.”

• Genesis 20:16

  And to Sarah he said, “Look, I have given your brother a thousand pieces of silver; look, it is for you a covering for the eyes for all who are with you; and before everyone you are vindicated.”

• Genesis 21:11

  The matter was greatly displeasing in the eyes of Abraham on account of his son.

• Genesis 21:12

  But Elohim said to Abraham, “Do not let it be displeasing in your eyes on account of the boy and on account of your slave woman. All that Sarah says to you, listen to her voice, for through Isaac offspring will be named for you.

• Genesis 21:19

  Then Elohim opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. She went and filled the skin with water and gave a drink to the boy.

• Genesis 22:4

  On the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place from afar.

• Genesis 22:13

  Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw, and look, a ram behind him, caught in the thicket by its horns. Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering in place of his son.

• Genesis 23:11

  “No, my lord, hear me: the field I give you, and the cave that is in it I give it to you. In the sight of the sons of my people I give it to you; bury your dead.”

• Genesis 23:18

  to Abraham as a purchase in the sight of the sons of Heth, before all who went in at the gate of his city.

• Genesis 24:13

  Look, I am standing by the spring of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water.

• Genesis 24:16

  The girl was very beautiful in appearance, a virgin, and no man had known her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar, and came up.

• Genesis 24:29

  Now Rebekah had a brother whose name was Laban. Laban ran out to the man, to the spring.

• Genesis 24:30

  When he saw the ring and the bracelets on the hands of his sister, and when he heard the words of Rebekah his sister, saying, “Thus the man spoke to me,” he went to the man; and look, he was standing by the camels at the spring.

• Genesis 24:42

  I came today to the spring and said, ‘YHWH, the Elohim of my lord Abraham, if now you are making successful my journey on which I am going,

• Genesis 24:43

  look, I am standing by the spring of water. Let it be that the young woman who comes out to draw, and to whom I say, “Please let me drink a little water from your jar,”

• Genesis 24:45

  Before I had finished speaking in my heart, look, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder, and she went down to the spring and drew. I said to her, ‘Please let me drink.’

• Genesis 24:63

  Isaac went out to meditate in the field as evening drew near; he lifted up his eyes and saw, and look, camels were coming.

• Genesis 24:64

  Rebekah lifted up her eyes and saw Isaac, and she got down from the camel.

• Genesis 27:1

  When Isaac was old and his eyes were too dim to see, he called Esau his older son and said to him, “My son.” And he said to him, “Here I am.”

• Genesis 27:12

  Perhaps my father will feel me, and I will be in his eyes like a mocker, and I will bring on myself a curse and not a blessing.”

• Genesis 28:8

  Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan were displeasing in the eyes of Isaac his father.

• Genesis 29:17

  Leah’s eyes were tender, but Rachel was beautiful in form and beautiful in appearance.

• Genesis 29:20

  So Jacob served seven years for Rachel, and they were in his eyes like a few days because of his love for her.

• Genesis 30:27

  Laban said to him, “If, please, I have found favor in your eyes— I have learned by divination that YHWH has blessed me because of you.”

• Genesis 30:41

  Whenever the stronger of the flock were mating, Jacob would put the rods before the eyes of the flock in the channels, so that they might mate among the rods;

And 847 more times.