עָבוּר
𐤏𐤁𐤅𐤓
ʻâbûwr
H5668 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
Preposition and conjunction indicating the cause, purpose, or result of an action or event; primarily used to express 'on account of,' 'because of,' 'for the sake of,' or 'in order that.' Its usage marks either a motivating factor ('because of,' 'for the sake of') or a purposeful aim ('in order that'). During the biblical period, עָבוּר regularly marks a causal or purposive relationship between what precedes and what follows.
Semantic Range
because of, for the sake of, on account of, for (someone's sake), in order that, so that, for the purpose of
Root / Etymology
From the root עָבַר (to pass over, cross, traverse); עָבוּר is the passive participle form meaning 'that which is crossed' or 'having been crossed.' As a prepositional/conjunctive form, it functions abstractly to indicate the reason for or the goal of an action.
Historical & Contextual Notes
In the Hebrew Bible, עָבוּר primarily appears in legal, narrative, and poetic contexts to explain motivation or purpose, commonly in phrases like לְמַעַן עָבוּר (in order that, so that) or simply עָבוּר (for, on account of, because). Its main function is to link an action to its cause or intended result, distinguishing it from other prepositional forms such as בְּעַבוּר (for sake of, on account of), which may have more specific legal or ritual nuances. The semantic overlap with לְמַעַן ('for the sake of, in order that') is considerable, but עָבוּר often has a more direct sense of causality or motivation. In post-biblical Hebrew, the form is largely replaced by more precise causal or purposive prepositions, but in biblical prose and poetry, its use to indicate either motivation ('because of') or intent ('in order that') is well-attested. English translations sometimes render it generically ('for,' 'so that') but this can obscure the purposeful or causal force the word carries in Hebrew syntax.
Translation Consistency
עָבוּר functions as a prepositional/conjunctional marker of cause or purpose. English 'for' naturally covers both causal ('for/ because of') and purposive ('for the sake of / in order that') senses, is idiomatic (e.g. 'for the sake of'), and can be used consistently with nouns, pronouns, and clauses. 'Because' is too narrowly causal and 'sake' is a noun that normally requires 'for' to be idiomatic, so 'for' gives the most natural, consistent rendering.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
or עָבֻר; passive participle of עָבַר; properly, crossed, i.e. (abstractly) transit; used only adverbially, on account of, in order that; because of, for (...'s sake), (intent) that, to.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been recorded for this word yet.
Root Family
עבר (Avar) — to pass over, to cross, to traverse
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H5674 | עָבַר | I will cause to pass over |
| H5675 | עֲבַר | he crossed over |
| H5678 | עֶבְרָה | overflowing rages |
| H5679 | עֲבָרָה | the crossing-place |
| H5680 | עִבְרִי | the crosser-over |
Word Forms
8 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5668-01 |
בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for the sake of | for the sake of | for the sake | 38 |
H5668-06 |
לְ/בַ/עֲב֤וּר | levaavur | HR/R/R |
in order | for the sake of | for the sake of | 3 |
H5668-03 |
בַּ/עֲבוּרָֽ/ם | baavuram | HR/Ncmsc/Sp3mp |
because of them | on account of them | on account of them | 2 |
H5668-07 |
וּ/בַ/עֲב֗וּר | uvaavur | HC/R/R |
and because of | and for the sake of | and for the sake of | 2 |
H5668-02 |
בַּ/עֲבוּרָ֑/הּ | baavurah | HR/Ncmsc/Sp3fs |
for her sake | for her sake | for her sake | 1 |
H5668-04 |
בַּֽ/עֲבוּרֶ֔/ךָ | baavurekha | HR/Ncmsc/Sp2ms |
because of you | for your sake | because of you | 1 |
H5668-05 |
בַּ/עֲבוּרִֽ/י | baavuri | HR/Ncmsc/Sp1cs |
for my sake | for my sake | for my sake | 1 |
H5668-08 |
בַ/עֲבוּרֵ֔/ךְ | vaavurekhe | HR/Ncmsc/Sp2fs |
because of you | for your sake | because of you | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
49 occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5668-04 |
Genesis 3:17 | בַּֽ/עֲבוּרֶ֔/ךָ | baavurekha | HR/Ncmsc/Sp2ms |
because of you | for your sake | because of you |
H5668-01 |
Genesis 8:21 | בַּ/עֲב֣וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
on account of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-08 |
Genesis 12:13 | בַ/עֲבוּרֵ֔/ךְ | vaavurekhe | HR/Ncmsc/Sp2fs |
because of you | for your sake | because of you |
H5668-02 |
Genesis 12:16 | בַּ/עֲבוּרָ֑/הּ | baavurah | HR/Ncmsc/Sp3fs |
for her sake | for her sake | for her sake |
H5668-03 |
Genesis 18:26 | בַּ/עֲבוּרָֽ/ם | baavuram | HR/Ncmsc/Sp3mp |
for their sake | on account of them | on account of them |
H5668-01 |
Genesis 18:29 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for the sake of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Genesis 18:31 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
on account of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Genesis 18:32 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for the sake of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Genesis 21:30 | בַּ/עֲבוּר֙ | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
that | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Genesis 26:24 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for the sake of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Genesis 27:4 | בַּ/עֲב֛וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
that | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Genesis 27:10 | בַּ/עֲבֻ֛ר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
so that | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Genesis 27:19 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
that | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Genesis 27:31 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
so that | for the sake of | so that |
H5668-01 |
Genesis 46:34 | בַּ/עֲב֗וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
that | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Exodus 9:14 | בַּ/עֲב֣וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
so that | for the sake of | so that |
H5668-01 |
Exodus 9:16 | בַּ/עֲב֥וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for this reason | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Exodus 9:16 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur-2 | HR/Ncmsc |
in order to | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Exodus 13:8 | בַּ/עֲב֣וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
because of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Exodus 19:9 | בַּ/עֲב֞וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
in order that | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-06 |
Exodus 20:20 | לְ/בַֽ/עֲבוּר֙ | levaavur | HR/R/R |
in order | for the sake of | for the sake of |
H5668-07 |
Exodus 20:20 | וּ/בַ/עֲב֗וּר | uvaavur | HC/R/R |
and in order | and for the sake of | and for the sake of |
H5668-01 |
1 Samuel 1:6 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
because of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
1 Samuel 12:22 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for-the-sake-of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-05 |
1 Samuel 23:10 | בַּ/עֲבוּרִֽ/י | baavuri | HR/Ncmsc/Sp1cs |
for my sake | for my sake | for my sake |
H5668-01 |
2 Samuel 5:12 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for the sake of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
2 Samuel 6:12 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
because of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
2 Samuel 7:21 | בַּ/עֲב֤וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for the sake of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
2 Samuel 9:1 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for the sake of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
2 Samuel 9:7 | בַּֽ/עֲבוּר֙ | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for the sake of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
2 Samuel 10:3 | בַּ/עֲב֞וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
to | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
2 Samuel 12:21 | בַּ/עֲב֞וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
2 Samuel 12:25 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
because of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
2 Samuel 13:2 | בַּֽ/עֲבוּר֙ | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
because of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-06 |
2 Samuel 14:20 | לְ/בַ/עֲב֤וּר | levaavur | HR/R/R |
in order to | for the sake of | for the sake of |
H5668-06 |
2 Samuel 17:14 | לְ/בַ/עֲב֗וּר | levaavur | HR/R/C |
in order | for the sake of | for the sake of |
H5668-01 |
2 Samuel 18:18 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
to | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Jeremiah 14:4 | בַּ/עֲב֤וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
because of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Amos 2:6 | בַּ/עֲב֥וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Amos 8:6 | בַּ/עֲב֣וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Micah 2:10 | בַּ/עֲב֥וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
because of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
Psalms 105:45 | בַּ/עֲב֤וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
that | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-03 |
Psalms 106:32 | בַּ/עֲבוּרָֽ/ם | baavuram | HR/Ncmsc/Sp3mp |
because of them | on account of them | on account of them |
H5668-01 |
Psalms 132:10 | בַּ֭/עֲבוּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
For the sake of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-07 |
Job 20:2 | וּ֝/בַ/עֲב֗וּר | uvaavur | HC/R/R |
and because of | and for the sake of | and for the sake of |
H5668-01 |
1 Chronicles 14:2 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for the sake of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
1 Chronicles 17:19 | בַּ/עֲב֤וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for the sake of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
1 Chronicles 19:3 | בַּ֠/עֲבוּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
for the purpose of | for the sake of | for the sake |
H5668-01 |
2 Chronicles 28:19 | בַּ/עֲב֖וּר | baavur | HR/Ncmsc |
because of | for the sake of | for the sake |