Original Word: עָוַר
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: `avar
Pronunciation: ah-var
Phonetic Spelling: (aw-var')
KJV: blind, put out See also H5895
NASB: blinded, blinds, put
Word Origin: [a primitive root (rather denominatively from H5785 (עוֹר - skin) through the idea of a film over the eyes)]

1. to blind

blind, put out

A primitive root (rather denominatively from owr through the idea of a film over the eyes); to blind -- blind, put out. See also ayir.

see HEBREW owr

see HEBREW ayir

Word Origin
a prim. root
Definition
to make blind, blind
NASB Translation
blinded (2), blinds (2), put (1).

[עָוַר] verb Pi`el make blind, blind (original meaning of √ dubious; Thes עור = dig (Arabic etc. cave); Hal<sup>RŠJ xi, 67</sup> compare עוֺר skin, whence blindness as cataract; — Aramaic adjective עֲוִיר, blind, Pa`el עַוַּר, = Hebrew Pi`el; Arabic be one-eyed, Ethiopic be blind Di⁹⁹⁵); —

Pi`el Perfect3masculine singular עִוֵּר 2 Kings 25:7, with עֵינֵי put out the eyes of = Jeremiah 39:7 = Jeremiah 52:11; Imperfect3masculine singular יְעַוֵּר figurative, Exodus 23:8 (E) a bribe blindeth, with accusative of person (⅏ ᵐ5 insert עֵינֵי); Deuteronomy 16:19, with עֵינֵי.

Meaning and Range

The verb עָוַר (ʿāvar) expresses the act of blinding—either physically destroying eyesight or figuratively darkening moral perception.

Occurrences

Exodus 23:8; Deuteronomy 16:19; 2 Kings 25:7; Jeremiah 39:7; Jeremiah 52:11.

Figurative Blindness and Judicial Integrity

Exodus 23:8 warns, “You shall not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those who see and twists the words of the righteous”. Deuteronomy 16:19 repeats the charge. Bribery replaces clear vision with darkness, transforming judges meant to discern truth into the spiritually sightless. The verb portrays corruption as self-inflicted blindness that dismantles justice and assaults covenant faithfulness.

Historical Blindness: Zedekiah

2 Kings 25:7; Jeremiah 39:7; 52:11 recount Babylon’s blinding of Zedekiah after Jerusalem’s fall: “Then they slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes. They put out his eyes, bound him with bronze shackles, and took him to Babylon” (2 Kings 25:7). The act fulfills prophetic warnings and serves as divine judgment for covenant breach. Zedekiah, who had refused to “see” Jeremiah’s counsel, is left literally sightless—an embodied symbol of Judah’s spiritual darkness.

Theological Emphases

• Integrity under the Law: Bribery compromises vision, illustrating that sin distorts moral perception (compare Isaiah 33:15–17).
• Judgment and Irony: The king who ignored prophetic vision loses physical sight; justice is exact and instructive.
• Sovereign Consistency: From Torah law to historical narrative, Scripture links sin with blindness, underscoring the coherence of revelation.

Ministry Implications

• Leaders must guard against any incentive that clouds judgment; bribery still blinds.
• Persistent sin erodes spiritual eyesight; repentance restores clarity (Psalm 19:8).
• The Gospel offers reversal: “The LORD opens the eyes of the blind” (Psalm 146:8), prefiguring Christ’s healing ministry and the spiritual sight granted in the new covenant.

Related Motifs

Sight vs. blindness permeates Scripture (John 9; 2 Corinthians 4:4). The Messiah’s work of opening eyes ultimately fulfills what עָוַר depicts—moving people from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God.

יְעַוֵּ֣ר יְעַוֵּר֙ יעור עִוֵּ֑ר עִוֵּ֔ר עור ‘iw·wêr ‘iwwêr ivVer yə‘awwêr yə·‘aw·wêr yeavVerInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts