Bible Dictionaries

Holman Bible Dictionary

Apple of the Eye

An English expression that refers to the pupil of the eye and therefore to something very precious. Three different Hebrew words or phrases are rendered as the apple of the eye: (1) the word in Deuteronomy 32:10 and Proverbs 7:2 literally means “little man” and evidently refers to the reflection of a person in the eye of another; (2) the word in Psalm 17:8 and Lamentations 2:18 (KJV) literally means “the daughter of the eye” with possibly the same significance as (1); and (3) the word in Zechariah 2:8 literally means “gate.” The reference in Lamentations 2:18 is to the pupil of the eye as the source of tears; the other references are metaphorical of something that is precious.