Bible Lexicons

עַיִן f. (once m. Song of Solomon 4:9 כתיב [“also perhaps Psalms 73:7 dual Zechariah 3:9.”]), constr. עֵין with suff. עֵינִי, עֵינוֹ. etc.; dual עֵינַיִם (which is also used for the plur., Zechariah 3:9); constr. עֵינֵי; once defectively עֵנֵי Isaiah 3:8 plur. עֲיָנוֹת constr. עֵינוֹת (only in signif. 3).

(1) an eye (Arab., Syr., Eth., id.). רָאָה לָעַיִן to see with (one’s) eyes, Ezekiel 12:12 יְפֵה עֵינַיִם beautiful of eyes, having beautiful eyes, Genesis 29:17; 1 Samuel 16:12.- Zechariah 9:1, לְיַהוָֹה עֵין אָדָם “Jehovah’s is the eye of man;” i.e. he has his eye fixed upon man; so the LXX., Ch., Syr., (comp. Zechariah 4:10; Jeremiah 32:19).-Specially these phrases are to be noticed

(a) לְעֵינֵי פ׳ before the eyes of any one, before any one, Genesis 23:11, 18 Genesis 23:18; Exodus 4:30, 7:20 9:8 19:11 and so very frequently. But altogether different from this is

(b) בְּעֵינַי in my eyes, i.e. according to my judgment, as it seems to me, in my opinion, by which in Hebrew the sense of to seem, videri, is expressed by a circumlocution. Genesis 19:14, וַיְהִי כִמְצַחֵק בְּעֵינֵי חֲתָנָיו “and he was in their eyes as one jesting;” i.e. he seemed to his sons-in-law to be jesting. Genesis 29:20. 2 Samuel 10:3, הַמְכַכֵּד דָּוִד אֶת אָבִיךָ בְּעֵינֶיךָ “thinkest thou that David wished to honour thy father?” Hence טוֹב בְּעֵינַי it seems good to me, i.e. it pleases me (see טוֹב, יָטַב ), רַע בְּעֵינַי, יֵרַע it displeases me (see רַע, יָרַע ), compare under the root יָשַׁר.-חָכָם בְּעֵינָוי one who seems to himself to be wise, Proverbs 3:7, 26:12 Job 32:1.

(c) מֵעֵינֵי פ׳ (far) from any one’s eyes, i.e. unknown to him, Numbers 15:24.

(d) בֵּין עֵינַיִם between the eyes, i.e. on the forehead, Exodus 13:9, 16 Exodus 13:16; Deuteronomy 6:8, 11:18 on the front of the head, Deuteronomy 14:1 (e) שִׂים עַיִן עַל to set one’s eye on any one, commonly used in a good sense, to regard any one with kindness, to look to his good; like the Arabic وضح عينا على فلان, (on the other hand שִׂים פָּנִים עַל is always taken in a bad sense), e.g. Genesis 44:21, אָשִׂימָה עֵינִי עָלָיו “I will look to his good;” LXX. ἐπιμελοῦμαι αὐτοῦ. Jeremiah 39:12, 40:4 Job 24:23; Ezra 5:5 [Chald.]: followed by אֶל Psalms 33:18, 34:16 followed by בְּ Deuteronomy 11:12 (compare also Zechariah 12:4; 1 Kings 8:29, 52 1 Kings 8:52); rarely used in a bad sense of the angry countenance of Jehovah (elsewhere פָּנִים), Amos 9:4, and also verse with the addition of the word לְרָעָה. Comp. in New Test. 1 Peter 3:12.

(f) הָיָה לְעֵינַיִם לְ to serve instead of eyes to any one, i.e. to shew him the way, whether he be blind, Job 29:15, or ignorant of the way, Numbers 10:31.

(g) נָשָׂא עֵינַיִם to lift up the eyes, see נָשָׂא No. 1, letter.

(h) פָּקַח עֵינַיִם see פָּקַח.-As many passions of the mind, such as envy, pride, pity, desire, are manifest in the eyes, that which properly belongs to the persons themselves is often applied to the eyes, e.g. רָעָה עֵינִי בְּ my eye is evil against some one, i.e. I envy him, Deuteronomy 15:9 compare Tob_4:7, μὴ φθονησάτω σου ὁ ὀφθαλμός. See also the remarks under the roots חוּם, כָּלָה. עֵינַיִם רָמוֹת proud eyes, i.e. pride, haughtiness, Proverbs 6:17; Psalms 18:28.-Poet. the eye of wine is the bubbling when it sparkles as poured out (Germ. Perle), Proverbs 23:31. By meton. it is used of a look, or glance of the eyes, Song of Solomon 4:9, כתיב, לִבְתִּינִי בְּאַחַךְ “thou hast wounded my heart by one of thy eyes;” i.e. by one glance of thy eyes (in this one instance עַיִן is joined to a masculine, but the קרי has בְּאַחַת).

(2) face, i.q. פָּנִים, so called from the eyes, as being a principal part of it (compare Germ. Geficht, French visage, and Lat. os, used for the whole face). The examples which are cited for this, in its proper signification, are all either uncertain (Numbers 14:14; Isaiah 52:8: there is more weight in Psalms 6:8, although not even this is certain), or else misunderstood (1 Samuel 16:12; Genesis 29:17, see רַךְ ); but that this was a signification of the word when Hebrew was a living language is shewn by the figurative significations which have arisen from it

(a) surface, Exodus 10:5, עֵין הָאָרֶץ “surface of the earth;” verse 15 Exodus 10:15; Numbers 22:5, 11 Numbers 22:11.

(b) face, i.e. appearance, form, Numbers 11:7 Levit. 13:5, 55 Leviticus 13:55; Ezra 1:4, seq.; 10:9 Daniel 10:6.-Connected with the primary meaning is

(3) a fountain, so called from its resemblance to an eye (compare Pers. حشم eye, حشمه a fountain; Chinese, iàn, eye and fountain; and vice versâ Gr. πηγή, fountain, corner of the eye), Genesis 16:7, 24:29 30:42 pl. f. עֲיָנוֹת, constr. עֵינוֹת Deuteronomy 8:7; Exodus 15:27; Proverbs 8:28 see as to the use of the plur. fem. with regard to inanimate things, Lehrg. p. 539, 540.

Also many towns of Palestine took their names from fountains which were near them, viz.

(a) עֵין גְּדִי (“the fountain of the kid”), [Engedi], a town in the desert of Judah, near [close upon] the Dead Sea, abounding in palm trees; Engadda of Pliny (H. N. v. 17), Joshua 15:62 1 Sam. 24:1 Ezekiel 47:10; Song of Solomon 1:14 more anciently called חַצְצוֹן־תָּמָר (which see). [Now called ʾAin Jidy, Rob. ii. 209.]

(b) עֵין־גַּנִּים (“the fountain of gardens”), [Engannim], a town

(α) in the plain country of Judah, Joshua 15:34.

(β) of the Levites, in the tribe of Issachar, Joshua 19:21, 21:29.

(c) עֵין דֹּאר Psalms 83:11, and עֵין דּוֹר (“the fountain of habitation”), [En-dor], Joshua 17:11; 1 Samuel 28:7, in the tribe of Manasseh.

(d) עֵין חַדָּה (“fountain of sharpness,” i.e. swift), [En-haddah], a town in the tribe of Issachar, Joshua 19:21.

(e) עֵין חָצוֹר [En-hazor], a town in the tribe of Naphtali, Joshua 19:37.

(f) עֵין חֲרוֹד, see חֲרוֹד.

(g) עֵין מִשְׁפָּט (“fountain of judgment”), [Enmishpat], i.q. קָדֵשׁ, which see, Genesis 14:7.

(h) עֵין עֶנְלַיִם (“fountain of two calves,” unless perhaps ע׳ is written for אֶגְלַיִם “two pools”), [Eneglaim], a town on the northern shore of the Dead Sea.

(1) שֶׁמֶשׁ (“the fountain of the sun”), [Enshemesh], a town with a stream, on the borders of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, Joshua 15:7.

(k) עַיִן [Ain] simply

(α) a town of the Levites in the tribe of Simeon, Joshua 15:32, 19:7 21:16 1 Chronicles 4:32.

(β) a town in northern Palestine, Numbers 34:11.

In other places fountains themselves are designated by proper names, as

(aa) עֵין רֹגֶל (“fountain of the spy,” or, according to the Targ. “fuller’s fountain”), [En-rogel], a fountain south of Jerusalem, on the borders of the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, Joshua 15:7, 18:16 2 Samuel 17:7; 1 Kings 1:9 according to Josephus (Arch. vii. 14, § 4), in the royal gardens.

(bb) עֵין תַּנִּים (“fountain of the jackals,” commonly “dragon-fountain”), a fountain near Jerusalem, Nehemiah 2:13.

(cc) עֵין־תַּפּוּחַ [En-tappuah], a fountain of the town תַּפּוּה Joshua 17:7 compare verse Joshua 17:8.

Denominative is מַעְיָן, which see.

[עַיִן Chald. f. plur. עַיְנַין, constr. עַיְנֵי id. q. Heb. No. 1, Daniel 4:31, 7:8, 20. No. 1, e. Ezra 5:5.]

וְעַ֣יִן וָעַ֔יִן ועין לָעָ֑יִן לעין עַ֣יִן עַ֥יִן ׀ עין ‘a·yin ‘ayin Ayin lā‘āyin lā·‘ā·yin laAyin vaAyin veAyin wā‘ayin wā·‘a·yin wə‘ayin wə·‘a·yin