מַרְאֶה
marʼeh · H4758 · Hebrew · 103 occurrences
Meanings
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appearance, sight
The part of an object that can be seen with the eye
ExamplesGenesis 2:9 Out of the ground the LORD God caused every tree to grow that is pleasing to the sight and good for food; the tree of life was also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Exodus 3:3 So Moses said, “I must turn aside and see this marvelous sight, why the bush is not burning up!”
Leviticus 13:3 “The priest shall look at the infected area on the skin of the body, and if the hair in the infection has turned white and the infection appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is an infection of leprosy; when the priest has looked at him, he shall pronounce him unclean.
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ugly
Literally: bad to look at; hence: state in which an animal is considered unpleasant to look at
ExamplesGenesis 41:3 Then behold, seven other cows came up after them from the Nile, ugly and thin, and they stood by the other cows on the bank of the Nile.
Genesis 41:4 Then the ugly and thin cows ate the seven fine-looking and fat cows. Then Pharaoh awoke.
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plain, clear
Literally: appearance; hence: state in which someone speak in plain language which can be readily understood
ExamplesNumbers 12:8 With him I speak mouth to mouth, That is, openly, and not using mysterious language, And he beholds the form of the LORD. So why were you not afraid To speak against My servant, against Moses?”
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beautiful, handsome, good-looking
Literally: good to look at; hence: state in which humans or animals are considered pleasant to look at
Examples2 Samuel 11:2 Now at evening time David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the king’s house, and from the roof he saw a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful in appearance.
Esther 2:7 He was the guardian to Hadassah, that is Esther, his uncle’s daughter, for she had no father or mother. Now the young woman was beautiful of form and face, and when her father and her mother died, Mordecai took her as his own daughter.
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beautiful, handsome, goodlooking
Literally: good to look at; hence: state in which humans or animals are considered pleasant to look at
ExamplesGenesis 29:17 And Leah’s eyes were weak, but Rachel was beautiful in figure and appearance.
Genesis 39:6 So he left Joseph in charge of everything that he owned; and with him there he did not concern himself with anything except the food which he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance.
1 Samuel 17:42 When the Philistine looked and saw David, he was contemptuous of him; for he was only a youth, and reddish, with a handsome appearance.
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huge person
Literally: a person of sight; hence: a person of an imposing size
Examples2 Samuel 23:21 And he killed an Egyptian, an impressive man. Now the Egyptian had a spear in his hand, but he went down to him with a club and snatched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand, and killed him with his own spear.
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vision
Experience by which humans see something in a dream or trance, or as a supernatural apparition
ExamplesExodus 24:17 And to the eyes of the sons of Israel, the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like a consuming fire on the mountain top.
Ezekiel 8:4 And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, like the appearance which I saw in the plain.
Ezekiel 11:24 And the Spirit lifted me up and brought me in a vision by the Spirit of God to Chaldea, to the exiles. Then the vision that I had seen left me.
How it’s used In 10 roles
Every occurrence, grouped by the words it is grammatically related to.
the word studied the word it goes with
Whose, or of whatGenitive or possessive
67 occurrences in 33 groups
- הוּhis 11
- עַיִןeye, sight 7
- אֵשׁfire 5
- הֶםtheir 5
- הֵןin 4
- מֹתֶןloins, waist 3
- Other words · 26 groups that occur once or twice (30) 30
Words describing itAdjectives, demonstratives, participles
10 occurrences in 4 groups
- רָאָהto see 8
- גָּדוֹלgreat, large 1
- זֶהthis 1
- אָמַרto say 1
Named alongside itApposition
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- דְּמוּתlikeness 1
What it doesIt is the subject
7 occurrences in 4 groups
- רָאָהto see 4
- נָגַעto touch 1
- עָלָהto go up 1
- עָמַדto stand 1
What is done to itIt is the object
4 occurrences in 3 groups
- רָאָהto see 2
- נָכַרto recognize 1
- בִּיןto understand, to discern 1
Second object ofSecond object
1 occurrences in 1 groups
- רָאָהto see 1
What it is said to bePredicate
24 occurrences in 15 groups
- עָמֹקdeep 6
- מַרְאֶהappearance, sight, vision 3
- Other words · 13 groups that occur once or twice (16) 16
What is said to be itIt is the predicate
13 occurrences in 8 groups
- דְּמוּתlikeness 3
- מַרְאֶהappearance, sight, vision 3
- פָּנִיםface, presence, before 2
- דֶּרֶךְway, road 1
- הוּאhe, she, it 1
- מַרְאָהvision 1
After prepositionsPrepositional phrases
42 occurrences in 6 groups
- כlike/as 31
- לto/for 8
- מִןfrom 6
- בin/on/with 6
- אֵלto, toward 2
- עַלon, upon, over, against 2
In phrases “… of it”It is the genitive
6 occurrences in 4 groups
- יָפֶהbeautiful 2
- רַעevil, bad 2
- אִישׁman, person, each 1
- מַרְאֶהappearance, sight, vision 1
When two words share a role, as in “Paul and Barnabas said”, the verse appears under each, so a section’s counts can add up to more than the number of occurrences.
MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Near synonyms 1 word
- חָזוּת châzûwth · H2380 · conspicuous, vision
- Both terms are nouns derived from distinct seeing-verbs and occupy overlapping semantic space in the domain of vision — one "vision," the other "appearance, vision, sight."
In the other Testament 4 words
- εἶδος eîdos · G1491 · form, appearance, sight
- Greek εἶδος denotes visual form or appearance, serving as the standard LXX rendering of Hebrew מַרְאֶה's core sense of outward appearance, shape, or what is seen by the eye.
- ὄψις ópsis · G3799 · face, outward appearance, external form
- Greek ὄψις emphasizes the visual aspect or outward appearance as perceived by sight, while Hebrew מַרְאֶה encompasses a broader semantic range including appearance, form, countenance, and the act of looking itself; ὄψις serves as the standard LXX rendering when the Hebrew term specifically denotes external visual presentation.
- ὅρασις hórasis · G3706 · vision, appearance
- Greek ὅρασις emphasizes the act or process of seeing/gazing and the resulting vision or appearance, while Hebrew מַרְאֶה focuses on the visible appearance, form, or outward aspect of something as an object of sight; both denote visual perception or manifestation but from complementary perspectives (the seeing act versus the seen object).
- ὅραμα hórama · G3705 · something seen, sight, vision
- ὅραμα (horama) specifically denotes a supernatural vision or spectacle (often divine revelation), whereas מַרְאֶה (mar'eh) more broadly covers any visual appearance, form, or sight including ordinary physical appearance; the cross-linguistic equivalence holds in visionary/theophanic contexts where מַרְאֶה refers to supernatural manifestations.
Semantic domains 6 entries
- See002004001005
- The word denotes visible appearance, what is perceived by sight, as the trees in the garden that were pleasing to see.
- Bad002001001006
- This domain is not directly shown by the sampled citations, which describe beautiful or pleasing appearance, though the word's broad range elsewhere can describe an unattractive or unfavorable appearance as well.
- Easy002001003005
- This domain is not directly shown by the sampled citations, which describe visual beauty rather than any ease or ready recognizability of appearance.
- Good002001001031
- The word denotes a fair or beautiful appearance, as Sarai's and Rebekah's beauty repeatedly described in the patriarchal narratives.
- Large002001001037
- This domain is not directly shown by the sampled citations, which describe pleasing or beautiful appearance rather than largeness of form.
- Vision002004002015
- The word can denote a supernatural vision or manifestation, a sense closely related to but distinct from ordinary visible appearance.
Word family 11 words
Words formed from the same root. They share a form, not always a meaning.
Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon H4758. mareh מַרְאֶה102 noun masculineExo 3:3 sight, appearance, vision; — ׳מ absolute…
מַרְאֶה102 noun masculineExo 3:3 sight, appearance, vision; — ׳מ absolute Gen 12:11 +; construct מַרְאֵה Deu 28:34 +; suffix מַרְאֵהוּ Joe 2:4 +, מַרְאֶהָ Lev 13:4 +; apparently plural construct מַרְאֵי Ecc 11:9 (Köii. 1, 112), suffix (probably in fact singular Ges93ss) מַרְאַיִח Son 2:14 (twice in verse), מַרְאֵיהֶן Nah 2:5 +, etc.; — 1 Psalms
a. sight, phenomenon, spectacle Exo 3:3 (J).
b. appearance לְמ ׳נֶחְמָד Gen 2:9 (J) desirable in appearance, לְמ ׳גָּדוֺל Jos 22:10; appearance of man (or woman), Jdg 13:6 (twice in verse) (angel), Isa 52:14 (servant of ׳י), Son 5:15; Dan 8:15; Dan 10:18; = outward person (opposed to inner man) 1Sa 16:7; visible form Son 2:14 (twice in verse); Dan 1:13 (twice in verse); Dan 1:15; ׳בְּמ Num 12:8 (E; so read ᵑ7 ᵑ6 ᵐ5 ⅏ Di, for מַרְאֶה ᵑ0), i.e. in personal presence ( < Ew PatHpt {abbrev}בְמ לֹא); מַרְאֵהוּ סוּסִים כְּמַרְאֵה Joe 2:4; of crocodile Job 41:2; ׳מ י ׳כְּבוֺד Exo 24:17 (P), ׳מ הַנֶּגַע Lev 13:3, אֵֿשׁ׳מ Num 9:15-16, ׳מ בָּרָק Dan 10:6 +; especially Ezekiel appearance person or of thing (27 t., sometimes redundant), Dan 1:5; Dan 1:13; Daniel 1:26; Dan 8:2; Dan 10:1 +, ׳מִמּ מָתְנָיו Daniel 1:27 (twice in verse); Dan 8:2 (|| מִמָּתְנָיו) of beauty מַרְאֶה וִיפֵה fair of appearance Gen 39:6 (J; +יְפֵהתֹֿאַר), compare 1Sa 17:42 (read עֶלֶם [q. v.] for עִם); feminine יְפַתמֿ ׳(אִשָּׁה) Gen 12:11 (J), Gen 29:17 (E; +תּאַֹר יְפַת), 2Sa 14:27; of kine (הַ)מ ׳יְפוֺת Gen 41:2, Gen 41:4 (E), opposed to (הַ)מ ׳רָעוֺת Gen 41:3; Gen 41:4, רַע מַרְאֵיהֶן Gen 41:21(all E); of women also מ ׳טֹבַת Gen 24:16; Gen 26:7 (both J), 2Sa 11:2; Est 1:11; Est 2:3, Est 2:7, מ ׳טוֺבוֺת Est 2:2; of boys מ ׳טוֺבֵי Dan 1:4, compare ׳מ alone in ׳לֹאמֿ וְנֶחְמְדֵהוּ (of suffering servant of ׳י) Isa 53:2; מ ׳אִישׁ2Sa 23:21 (but read as || 1Ch 11:23 מִדָּה אִישׁ We Dr and others).
c. appearance, sight, vision Num 8:4 (P).
2 in General what is seen, ׳מ עֵינָיו Isa 11:3 i.e. what his outward eyes see (compare 1Sa 16:7
1 b), ׳לִמ עֵינֶיהָ Eze 23:16, תִּרְאֶה׳מ אֲשֶׁר עְינֶיךָ Deu 28:34, Deu 28:67, הַכֹּהֵן עֵינֵי ׳לְכָלמֿ Lev 13:12 (P).
3 specifically a. (supernatural) vision (in Ezekiel, Daniel; often accusative of congnate meaning with verb with ראה): Eze 8:4; Eze 11:24; Eze 43:3 (3 t. in verse), read also הָרֶכֶב מַרְאֵה Eze 43:3 (for מַרְאוֺת see I. מַרְאָה above); ׳בַּמּ Eze 11:24; Dan 8:16, Dan 8:27; Dan 9:23; Dan 10:1; וְהַבֹּקֶר הָעֶרֶב ׳מ Dan 8:26.
4 sight, vision = power of seeing (and enjoying), late: ׳מ עֵינַיִם Ecc 6:9, עֵינֶיךָ וּבְמַרְאֵי לִבְּךָ בְּדַרְּכֵי הַלֵךְ Ecc 11:9.
Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), public domain
Topical studies with this word 6 entries
Meanings adapted from the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament, © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0 and the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew (from the Semantic Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew), © United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0; MACULA Greek Linguistic Datasets, available at https://github.com/Clear-Bible/macula-greek/, licensed CC BY 4.0; MACULA Hebrew Linguistic Datasets © 2022-2024 by Biblica, Inc., CC BY 4.0. Westminster Leningrad Codex (tanach.us). OpenScriptures Hebrew Bible morphology (hb.openscriptures.org), CC BY 4.0.
Sources
eRhema lexical overview, based on the UBS Dictionary of Biblical Hebrew and the UBS Dictionary of the Greek New Testament (© United Bible Societies, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Macula Hebrew and Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0); released under CC BY-SA 4.0
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