To cross over; used very widely of any transition (literal or figurative; transitive, intransitive, intensive, causative); specifically, to cover (in copulation)
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עָבַר (avar) is a common Hebrew verb for passing, crossing, or going through. Genesis 12:6 says Abram passed through the land, Genesis 31:21 says Jacob crossed the river, and Deuteronomy 9:1 prepares Israel to cross the Jordan.
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Full entry for עָבַר (H5674) · Open the biblical lexicon
עָבַר (avar) is a common Hebrew verb for passing, crossing, or going through. Genesis 12:6 says Abram passed through the land, Genesis 31:21 says Jacob crossed the river, and Deuteronomy 9:1 prepares Israel to cross the Jordan.
The BSB source-word alignment has 555 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include crossed (14), . . . (12), crossed over (11), cross (9), pass (8).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Genesis 8:1. Its strongest book concentrations include Joshua (57), Deuteronomy (49), 2 Samuel (48), Numbers (37).
This entry includes 3 verse guides that explain exact original-language forms in context.
עָבַר (avar) is a common Hebrew verb for passing, crossing, or going through. Genesis 12:6 says Abram passed through the land, Genesis 31:21 says Jacob crossed the river, and Deuteronomy 9:1 prepares Israel to cross the Jordan. Joshua 3:17 describes the people crossing on dry ground. These spatial uses can carry major narrative meaning, but the verb itself remains an ordinary movement word and does not make every journey a covenant transition.
Passover requires an important lexical distinction. Exodus 12:12 says the Lord will pass through the land of Egypt using avar, and verse 23 again says the Lord passes through to strike. The protection of the blood-marked houses is described in the same chapter with פָּסַח (pasach, H6452), not H5674. English “pass over” can obscure the difference. Avar describes movement through the land; the chapter's protective action must be explained from pasach and the whole narrative rather than assigned to H5674.
The movement image extends to moral boundaries. Numbers 14:41 asks why Israel is transgressing the Lord's command, and Joshua 7:11 says Israel has transgressed the covenant. In Second Samuel 12:13 a causative form says the Lord has taken away or caused David's sin to pass, while the child still dies and consequences remain in David's house. Exodus 33:19 and 34:6 use the verb as God's goodness and then the Lord pass before Moses in the revelation of the divine name and character. These uses connect movement, transgression, removal, and revelation without turning them into one automatic metaphor.
Avar describes movement across, through, beyond, or past a place and extends into transfer, removal, and crossing a command or covenant boundary. Narrative and grammar determine whether physical crossing, divine passing, transgression, or causative removal is meant.
God causes a wind to pass over the earth, and the floodwaters begin to subside.
The Lord announces that he will pass through Egypt and strike the firstborn in judgment.
God promises to cause all his goodness to pass before Moses while proclaiming the divine name.
The Lord passes before Moses and proclaims his merciful, gracious, just covenant character.
Moses describes Israel's unauthorized advance as transgressing the Lord's command and warns it will not succeed.
Israel crosses the Jordan on dry ground while the priests stand firm with the covenant ark.
God says Israel has sinned and transgressed the covenant in the aftermath of Achan's taking.
After David confesses, Nathan says the Lord has taken away his sin, though grave consequences follow.
The prophetic image depicts a breaker opening the way, the people passing through, and their king and the Lord going before them.
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders ItA compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
Verse-level guides showing how this original-language form works in its specific context, including grammar, verse function, and guarded interpretation.
Hebrew word. Core sense of crossing/passing extends metaphorically to transgression, death, and divine judgment crossing boundaries.
How the stem changes the meaning of this verb across the biblical text.
This verb appears through different tense, voice, mood, or stem patterns. Those forms help readers see how the action is presented in context.
Selected passage-level study witnesses for this word. This section is not the full occurrence list.
Showing 3 selected witnesses from 562 lexical occurrence verses.
עָבַר is a primitive root - no further derivation.
The verb emphasizes the swift and decisive nature of the storm. Hosea 6:7-11
Defines covenant violation. Hosea 8:1-7
Defines covenant breach. Proverbs 10:25
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
Avar invites teachers to ask what boundary is crossed, by whom, and under whose command. Israel's Jordan crossing is faithful movement into a promised vocation, whereas the attempted advance in Numbers 14 crosses God's command and fails. The same outward action can therefore be obedience or transgression depending on God's word and the situation. Exodus 12 demands lexical care: God passes through Egypt with avar, but the marked homes are protected with pasach.
Exodus 33 and 34 place God's passing before Moses within revelation of goodness, name, mercy, and justice. Second Samuel 12 offers real removal of sin without denial of consequences. These texts can form discernment, repentance, gratitude, and hope without turning every life transition into a divinely guaranteed crossing story.
Exod.12.12
The spatial sense pass or cross extends into transgress when a command boundary is crossed and into take away in causative constructions. H6452, not H5674, supplies the protective pass-over verb in Exodus 12.
The New Testament develops Passover, exodus, boundary-crossing, transgression, forgiveness, and pilgrimage themes through its own vocabulary. Those connections can be canonically significant without making H5674 the source word behind every later crossing or pass-over expression.
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