"Formerly in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, he spoke thus: 'Come, let us go to the seer; for he who is now called a prophet was formerly called a seer'" (1 Samuel 9:9, NKJV)
The verb ראה (Strong's #07200) is used of normal sight, of seeing God and also, as in Isaiah 30:10, of the prophets 'seeing' a vision: "[those] which say to the seers, see not!", or in Samuel above of the seer as the "one who sees". Hence the derived words ראה rôeh (Strong's #7203) and מראה mar'eh (Strong's #4758) for visions.
It differs from חזה châzâh (Strong's #2374) which refers to mental rather than physical sight and also commonly refers to seeing God and to prophetic vision (as in the opening verse of Isaiah, Habakkuk and Amos). That ראה rôeh and מראה mar'eh are used at all for visions is significant for ראה rââh more usually refers to natural sight by the physical eyes. Hence visions were not to be seen as mere imaginations of the mind but real glimpses of the divine, seen and experienced with real physical eyes.
It is first used in Genesis 1:4 through to 3:6 of God seeing that His creation was 'good' and later of the woman seeing that the tree's fruit was good/pleasant to eat. It is next used in Genesis 6:2 of the fallen angels beholding the daughters of men from on high and coming down to cohabit - but that's a separate discussion.
When the expelled Hagar was told she was carrying a son, and indeed that God would name him, Ishmael, which means "God has heard", she expressed her faith in God as "Him who sees" and hence acts. She recognised that she had seen God in the form of the Angel of the Lord and been seen by Him.
"Then she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees; for she said, "Have I also here seen Him who sees me?" Therefore the well was called Beer Lahai Roi; observe, it is between Kadesh and Bered. So Hagar bore Abram a son; and Abram named his son, whom Hagar bore, Ishmael." (Genesis 16:13-15)
Significantly, ראה rââh is also used in connection with a revelatory name of God in association with Abraham and his other son, Isaac. The verb here carries the additional idiomatic meaning of 'seeing to something' with respect to caring and providing for them. In Genesis 22:8 when Abraham tells Isaac that "God Himself will provide a lamb for a burnt offering" the verb "to provide" in the Hebrew is יראה yir'eh, literally "he will see to it". We have the same idiom in English when we say we'll see to something, meaning we'll get it done.
The name of God יהוה יראה YHVH Yir'eh 'God will see to it' (Genesis 22:14), is derived from this occasion, and is more commonly known as Jehovah Jireh, 'God is my provider'. Compare Psalm 37:37 where 'seeing to the upright' is paralleled with שמר 'guarding, keeping, watching' the perfect" (Strong's #8104).
ראה rââh can also mean 'to enjoy' in the sense of being able to 'see' the light, 'to live' (perhaps in Isaiah 38:11; Ecclesiastes 7:11).
It may also stand metaphorically for a number of the other senses as in hearing (Genesis 2:19); taste (Genesis 3:6); touch (Isaiah 44:16); discernment (Malachi 3:18); experience (Psalm 34:14); knowledge (Isaiah 40:5) and understanding (Jeremiah 2:31). Seeing, hearing and understanding with eyes, ears and heart-mind, are all different ways of saying the same thing in Isaiah 6:9-10.
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