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עֲבָרָה

𐤏𐤁𐤓𐤄

ʻăbârâh

H5679 noun

SILEX Entry

Definition

A place where one crosses, particularly of rivers or streams—a ford or crossing point. The term can denote a shallow part of a watercourse suitable for crossing by foot, animal, or vehicle, or more generally, a locale designated or commonly used as a passage over a body of water.

Semantic Range

crossing-place, ford, crossing-point, place to pass over (a river or stream)

Root / Etymology

From the root עבר (ʿ-b-r), meaning 'to cross over, pass through, go beyond.' עֲבָרָה is a feminine noun denoting the location or place where the action of 'crossing' occurs, i.e., a ford or crossing-point derived from the sense of movement or transition embedded in the root.

Historical & Contextual Notes

עֲבָרָה appears primarily in contexts describing specific places along waterways where people, animals, or armies could cross—especially notable in narratives describing movement or military activity (e.g., Joshua 2:7; Judges 3:28). While the underlying root עבר ('to cross, pass over') is extremely common with both literal and metaphorical use, עֲבָרָה is a concrete, place-specific noun. Not all crossing points were formally designated as such, so sometimes the word connotes an established or commonly known ford. The standard English translation 'ford' best captures the sense, although 'crossing-place' is also accurate. In the historical context, these places often held strategic significance for settlement, commerce, and warfare. The word is distinct from other common terms for fords or bridges (e.g., גֶּשֶׁר, 'bridge'), and its use is mostly limited to the description of natural crossing points rather than built infrastructure. Occurrences are found especially in narrative or geographical descriptions in the Former Prophets and certain Psalms. Septuagint translations often use Greek terms for ford (διαβασις), but in some later translations and commentaries, the term has been interpreted or glossed differently according to geographical traditions of the region in question. The English rendering 'plain,' suggested in some versions (margin), is not linguistically justified and likely results from misreading or misunderstanding the root sense. The word's meaning remained relatively stable from pre-monarchic to post-exilic periods, consistently referring to natural watercourse crossings.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from עָבַר; a crossing-place; ferry, plain (from the margin).

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

עבר (ʿ-b-r) — to cross, to pass over, to go beyond

Root עבר to cross, to pass over, to go beyond
Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H4569 מַעֲבָר the crossing-places
H5668 עָבוּר for the sake of
H5669 עָבוּר from carried-over grain of
H5674 עָבַר I will cause to pass over
H5675 עֲבַר he crossed over

Word Forms

2 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2 Occurrences
H5679-01 הָ/עֲבָרָ֗ה haavarah HTd/Ncfsa the iniquity the crossing-place the crossing-place 1
H5679-02 ב/עברות vvrvt HR/Ncfpc at the fords in crossing-places of in crossing-places of 1

Occurrences in Scripture

2 occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 SIBI-P2
H5679-02 2 Samuel 15:28 ב/עברות vvrvt HR/Ncfpc at the fords in crossing-places of in crossing-places of
H5679-01 2 Samuel 19:19 הָ/עֲבָרָ֗ה haavarah HTd/Ncfsa the iniquity the crossing-place the crossing-place
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