2114. zuwr
Lexical Summary
zuwr: To be a stranger, to estrange, to turn aside, to be foreign

Original Word: זוּר
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: zuwr
Pronunciation: zoor
Phonetic Spelling: (zoor)
KJV: (come from) another (man, place), fanner, go away, (e-)strange(-r, thing, woman)
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to turn aside (especially for lodging)
2. hence to be a foreigner, strange, profane
3. specifically (active participle) to commit adultery

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
come from another man, place, fanner, go away, estranger, thing, woman

A primitive root; to turn aside (especially for lodging); hence to be a foreigner, strange, profane; specifically (active participle) to commit adultery -- (come from) another (man, place), fanner, go away, (e-)strange(-r, thing, woman).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
I. [זוּר] verb be a stranger (Arabic (medial ) incline toward, repair to, visit; II. honour as visitor or guest; IX. decline, turn aside; visitor; Aramaic זוּר, often = Hebrew סוּר turn aside, turn aside to visit) —

Qal Perfect3plural זֹר֫וּ Psalm 58:4 (Köi. 445), זָ֫רוּ Psalm 78:30; Job 19:13; Participle זָר Exodus 30:33 27t.; feminine זָרָה Exodus 30:9 7t.; masculine plural זָרִים Hosea 5:7 30t.; feminine plural זָרוֺת Proverbs 22:14; Proverbs 23:33; = suffix זָרָ֑יִךְ Isaiah 29:5;

1 Perfect become estranged Psalm 58:4, with מן from Job 19:13; Psalm 78:30. 2

Participle as adjective strange, or as noun stranger:

a. to the family, of another household, אִישׁ זָר Deuteronomy 25:5, elsewhere זָר 1 Kings 3:18; Job 19:15; Proverbs 6:1; Proverbs 11:15; Proverbs 20:16; Proverbs 27:13; זָרִים Psalm 109:11; Proverbs 5:10,17; בנים זרים, children of another household than God's Hosea 5:7; especially of another family than priests' אִישׁ זָר Leviticus 22:12 (H) Numbers 17:5 (P); זָר Leviticus 22:10,13 (H) Exodus 29:33; Exodus 30:33; Numbers 3:10,38; Numbers 18:7 (P); not belonging to the tribe of Levi, Numbers 1:51; Numbers 18:4 (P).

b. to the person, another Job 19:27; Proverbs 14:10; Proverbs 27:2; זָרָה (אִשָּׁה) strange woman, harlot Proverbs 2:16; Proverbs 5:3,20; Proverbs 7:5; Proverbs 22:14; Proverbs 23:33.

c. to the land, foreign, זָרִים foreigners (as such usually enemies) Hosea 7:9; Hosea 8:7; Isaiah 1:7 (twice in verse); Isaiah 25:2,5; Isaiah 29:5; Isaiah 61:5; Jeremiah 5:19; Jeremiah 30:8; Jeremiah 51:2,51; Lamentations 5:2; Ezekiel 7:2; Ezekiel 11:9; Ezekiel 16:32; Ezekiel 28:7,10; Ezekiel 30:12; Ezekiel 31:12; Joel 4:17; Obadiah 11; Job 15:19; Psalm 54:5; אֵל זָר foreign god Psalm 44:21; Psalm 81:10 = זָר Isaiah 43:12; so זָרִים Deuteronomy 32:16 and (in figurative) Jeremiah 2:25; Jeremiah 3:13; מַיִם זָרִים foreign waters 2 Kings 19:24; Jeremiah 18:14; זְמֹרַת זָר Isaiah 17:10 vine-slip of a stranger; כְּמוֺזָֿר נֶחְשָׁ֑בוּ Hosea 8:12 they are regarded as foreign; מַעֲשֵׂהוּ זָר Isaiah 28:21 his work is foreign (as if dealing with enemies).

d. strange to the law; קְטֹרֶת זָרָה strange incense Exodus 30:9 (P); אֵשׁ זָרָה strange fire Leviticus 10:1; Numbers 3:4; Numbers 26:61(P).

Niph`al Perfect נָז֫רֹוּ Isaiah 1:4; Ezekiel 14:5; be estranged Isaiah 1:4, pregnantly, followed by אָחוֺר (compare RV); מֵעַל Ezekiel 14:5.

Hoph`al Participle מוּזָר estranged Psalm 69:9.

II. [זוּר, זִיר] verb be loathsome, Bö§ 1142 (Arabic fastidivit, abhorruit; Assyrian zâru, resist, Imperfect izîru, DlPr 65 SchrCOT Gloss); — only 3 feminine singular זָ֫רָה Job 19:17 רוּחִי זָ֫רָה לְאִשְׁתִּי my breath is loathsome to my wife (וְחַנֹּתִי לְ in "" clause); > most, who derive from I. זוּר, become strange and so repugnant.

זָרָא noun [feminine] loathsome thing, עַד אֲשֶׁר יֵצֵא מֵאַמְּכֶם וְהָיָה לָכֶם לְזָרָא Numbers 11:20 (JE) and it (the flesh) become to you a loathsome thing (ᵐ5 εἰς χολέραν, ᵑ9 in nauseam), probably error for זָרָה ()

Topical Lexicon
Thematic Overview

Strong’s Hebrew 2114 marks whatever is outside the covenantal sphere of Israel’s life with God—whether persons, objects, worship, or conduct. About seventy-seven times the term warns against intrusion, calls God’s people to purity, or foretells judgment that comes when the boundary between holy and profane is ignored.

Cultic Holiness and Priestly Boundaries

From the inauguration of the priesthood the term guards the sanctuary. Exodus 29:33 rules that “an outsider shall not eat” the ordination meal. Leviticus 22:10–13 repeats the restriction for holy food, even extending it to a priest’s daughter who marries “a stranger.” Numbers 1:51; 3:10; 18:7 establish the death penalty for any non-priest who approaches the sacred furniture. These texts underline that access to God is always by His provision, never by human presumption—a principle that persists from tabernacle to cross.

Unauthorized Offerings and the Tragedy of Nadab and Abihu

The most dramatic occurrence is Leviticus 10:1, where Aaron’s sons “presented unauthorized fire before the LORD.” The consuming fire that follows testifies that creativity or enthusiasm cannot substitute for obedience. Later generations remembered the episode whenever the term is linked with “strange fire” or “strange incense” (Exodus 30:9), reinforcing reverence in worship.

Exclusivity of the Table of Yahweh

The root also polices the priestly provisions. Grain offerings, portions of sacrifices, and shewbread belong to those whom God designates. By labeling any other eater “an outsider,” Scripture portrays holiness as contagious in the wrong direction if ignored, but life-giving when honored. The theme later blossoms in the Lord’s Supper, where unexamined participation likewise invites judgment (1 Corinthians 11:27-30).

National Identity and Covenant Protection

Numbers 3:38 warns that “any outsider who approaches shall be put to death,” embedding national security in spiritual fidelity. When that fidelity collapses, the vocabulary is inverted: Isaiah 1:7 laments, “Your fields are being stripped before you by strangers.” What Israel refused to keep out in spirit eventually marches in with swords.

Foreign Gods and Idolatrous Syncretism

Psalm 81:9 commands, “There must be no strange god among you.” Psalm 44:20 pictures apostasy as lifting hands to “a foreign god.” The term highlights how idolatry is more than theological confusion; it is covenant treachery. Hosea’s marriage imagery and Paul’s later teaching on spiritual adultery stand in continuity with this Old Testament vocabulary.

The “Strange Woman” in Wisdom Literature

Proverbs transfers the language from temple to bedroom. “It will rescue you from the forbidden woman, from the stranger with seductive words” (Proverbs 2:16). In chapters 5–7 the “stranger” represents any relationship that violates God’s design for marriage. The repeated warning—“do not embrace the bosom of a stranger” (Proverbs 5:20)—makes sexual purity an extension of covenant holiness.

Divine Judgment Through Foreign Invaders

Prophets use the root to describe incoming armies. “The fortress of strangers is a city no more” (Isaiah 25:2); “foreigners will drain the River Nile” (Ezekiel 30:12). Strangers function as both rod and ruin. Their appearance signals divine discipline against covenant breakers, yet their ultimate overthrow vindicates God’s righteousness.

Hope Beyond Estrangement

Paradoxically, the same Scriptures anticipate a day when outsiders will no longer be alien. Isaiah envisions nations streaming to Zion, though he often chooses different Hebrew terms for that inclusion. The persistent message is that holiness remains uncompromised even as grace extends the covenant border through the Messiah (Ephesians 2:12-19).

Ministry Application

1. Worship must prioritize God’s revealed pattern over innovation.
2. Leaders bear responsibility to guard the congregation from doctrinal and moral intrusion.
3. Sexual ethics are a gospel issue, not a private matter.
4. Church discipline, rightly practiced, reflects the Old Testament concern for holiness while offering restoration to the formerly estranged.

Summary of Occurrences

• Cultic exclusions and priestly food: Exodus; Leviticus; Numbers.
• Unauthorized worship elements: Exodus 30:9; Leviticus 10:1.
• Priestly access laws: Numbers 1:51; 3:10; 18:7.
• Idolatry: Psalms 44:20; 81:9; Isaiah 43:12.
• Foreign invaders: Isaiah 1:7; 25:2; Ezekiel 28:7; Joel 3:17.
• Moral warnings (strange woman): Proverbs 2:16; 5:3-20; 6:24; 7:5.
• Descriptions of literal foreigners: Samuel, Psalms, Job.

Through these varied settings Strong’s 2114 weaves a unified call: remain separate from sin, devoted to the Lord, and expectant of His redemptive plan that turns once-estranged people into His household.

Forms and Transliterations
בְּזָרִ֑ים בְזָרָ֑ה בזרה בזרים הַזָּרִים֙ הזרים וְהַזָּ֥ר וְזָ֖ר וְזָ֥ר וְזָרִ֥ים והזר וזר וזרים זָ֑ר זָ֖ר זָ֗ר זָ֣ר זָ֣רָה זָ֤ר זָ֥רוּ זָֽר׃ זָר֑וֹת זָר֥וּ זָרִ֑ים זָרִ֔ים זָרִ֖ים זָרִ֛ים זָרִ֣ים זָרִ֥ים זָרִ֨ים ׀ זָרִֽים׃ זָרִים֙ זָרָ֑ה זָרָ֑יִךְ זָרָ֔ה זָרָ֖ה זָרָ֜ה זֹ֣רוּ זר זר׃ זרה זרו זרות זריך זרים זרים׃ לְזָ֣ר לְזָרִ֔ים לְזָרִ֣ים לַזָּ֣ר לַזָּרִ֗ים לזר לזרים מ֭וּזָר מוזר נָזֹ֙רוּ֙ נָזֹ֥רוּ נזרו ḇə·zā·rāh bə·zā·rîm ḇəzārāh bezaRim bəzārîm haz·zā·rîm hazzaRim hazzārîm laz·zā·rîm laz·zār lazZar lazzār lazzaRim lazzārîm lə·zā·rîm lə·zār leZar ləzār lezaRim ləzārîm mū·zār mūzār Muzor nā·zō·rū naZoru nāzōrū vehazZar veZar vezaRah vezaRim wə·haz·zār wə·zā·rîm wə·zār wəhazzār wəzār wəzārîm zā·rā·yiḵ zā·rāh zā·rîm zā·rō·wṯ zā·rū Zar zār zaRah zārāh zaRayich zārāyiḵ zaRim zārîm zaRot zārōwṯ Zaru zārū zō·rū Zoru zōrū
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Interlinear GreekInterlinear HebrewStrong's NumbersEnglishman's Greek ConcordanceEnglishman's Hebrew ConcordanceParallel Texts
Englishman's Concordance
Exodus 29:33
HEB: לְקַדֵּ֣שׁ אֹתָ֑ם וְזָ֥ר לֹא־ יֹאכַ֖ל
NAS: [and] consecration; but a layman shall not eat
KJV: [and] to sanctify them: but a stranger shall not eat
INT: able consecration A layman shall not eat

Exodus 30:9
HEB: עָלָ֛יו קְטֹ֥רֶת זָרָ֖ה וְעֹלָ֣ה וּמִנְחָ֑ה
NAS: You shall not offer any strange incense
KJV: Ye shall offer no strange incense
INT: and incense strange burnt meal

Exodus 30:33
HEB: מִמֶּ֖נּוּ עַל־ זָ֑ר וְנִכְרַ֖ת מֵעַמָּֽיו׃
NAS: any of it on a layman shall be cut off
KJV: [any] like it, or whosoever putteth [any] of it upon a stranger, shall even be cut
INT: any of A layman shall be cut his people

Leviticus 10:1
HEB: יְהוָה֙ אֵ֣שׁ זָרָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֧ר לֹ֦א
NAS: on it and offered strange fire
KJV: thereon, and offered strange fire
INT: the LORD fire strange which had not

Leviticus 22:10
HEB: וְכָל־ זָ֖ר לֹא־ יֹ֣אכַל
NAS: No layman, however, is to eat the holy
KJV: There shall no stranger eat
INT: all manner layman No eat

Leviticus 22:12
HEB: תִהְיֶ֖ה לְאִ֣ישׁ זָ֑ר הִ֕וא בִּתְרוּמַ֥ת
NAS: is married to a layman, she shall not eat
INT: become he to a layman he of the offering

Leviticus 22:13
HEB: תֹּאכֵ֑ל וְכָל־ זָ֖ר לֹא־ יֹ֥אכַל
NAS: food; but no layman shall eat of it.
KJV: meat: but there shall no stranger eat
INT: shall eat all manner layman not shall eat

Numbers 1:51
HEB: אֹת֖וֹ הַלְוִיִּ֑ם וְהַזָּ֥ר הַקָּרֵ֖ב יוּמָֽת׃
NAS: shall set it up. But the layman who comes near
KJV: shall set it up: and the stranger that cometh nigh
INT: shall set the Levites the layman approach shall be put

Numbers 3:4
HEB: בְּֽהַקְרִבָם֩ אֵ֨שׁ זָרָ֜ה לִפְנֵ֤י יְהוָה֙
NAS: when they offered strange fire
KJV: when they offered strange fire
INT: offered fire strange before the LORD

Numbers 3:10
HEB: אֶת־ כְּהֻנָּתָ֑ם וְהַזָּ֥ר הַקָּרֵ֖ב יוּמָֽת׃
NAS: their priesthood, but the layman who comes near
KJV: their priest's office: and the stranger that cometh nigh
INT: may keep their priesthood the layman approach shall be put

Numbers 3:38
HEB: בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וְהַזָּ֥ר הַקָּרֵ֖ב יוּמָֽת׃
NAS: of Israel; but the layman coming near
KJV: of Israel; and the stranger that cometh nigh
INT: of the sons of Israel the layman approach was to be put

Numbers 16:40
HEB: יִקְרַ֜ב אִ֣ישׁ זָ֗ר אֲ֠שֶׁר לֹ֣א
NAS: that no layman who
INT: come he layman who no

Numbers 18:4
HEB: עֲבֹדַ֣ת הָאֹ֑הֶל וְזָ֖ר לֹא־ יִקְרַ֥ב
NAS: of the tent; but an outsider may not come near
KJV: of the tabernacle: and a stranger shall not come nigh
INT: the service of the tent an outsider may not come

Numbers 18:7
HEB: אֶת־ כְּהֻנַּתְכֶ֔ם וְהַזָּ֥ר הַקָּרֵ֖ב יוּמָֽת׃
NAS: service, but the outsider who comes near
KJV: of gift: and the stranger that cometh nigh
INT: I am giving the priesthood the outsider approach shall be put

Numbers 26:61
HEB: בְּהַקְרִיבָ֥ם אֵשׁ־ זָרָ֖ה לִפְנֵ֥י יְהוָֽה׃
NAS: when they offered strange fire
KJV: when they offered strange fire
INT: offered fire strange before the LORD

Deuteronomy 25:5
HEB: הַח֖וּצָה לְאִ֣ישׁ זָ֑ר יְבָמָהּ֙ יָבֹ֣א
NAS: shall not be [married] outside [the family] to a strange man.
INT: shall not be outside man A strange her husband's shall go

Deuteronomy 32:16
HEB: יַקְנִאֻ֖הוּ בְּזָרִ֑ים בְּתוֹעֵבֹ֖ת יַכְעִיסֻֽהוּ׃
NAS: They made Him jealous with strange [gods]; With abominations
KJV: They provoked him to jealousy with strange [gods], with abominations
INT: made strange abominations provoked

1 Kings 3:18
HEB: יַחְדָּ֗ו אֵֽין־ זָ֤ר אִתָּ֙נוּ֙ בַּבַּ֔יִת
NAS: There was no stranger with us in the house,
KJV: also: and we [were] together; [there was] no stranger with us in the house,
INT: together There stranger in the house

2 Kings 19:24
HEB: וְשָׁתִ֖יתִי מַ֣יִם זָרִ֑ים וְאַחְרִב֙ בְּכַף־
NAS: [wells] and drank foreign waters,
KJV: and drunk strange waters,
INT: and drank waters foreign dried the sole

Job 15:19
HEB: וְלֹא־ עָ֖בַר זָ֣ר בְּתוֹכָֽם׃
NAS: was given, And no alien passed among
KJV: was given, and no stranger passed
INT: and no passed alien among

Job 19:13
HEB: וְ֝יֹדְעַ֗י אַךְ־ זָ֥רוּ מִמֶּֽנִּי׃
NAS: are completely estranged from me.
KJV: from me, and mine acquaintance are verily estranged from me.
INT: and my acquaintances are completely estranged at

Job 19:15
HEB: בֵיתִ֣י וְ֭אַמְהֹתַי לְזָ֣ר תַּחְשְׁבֻ֑נִי נָ֝כְרִ֗י
NAS: consider me a stranger. I am
KJV: count me for a stranger: I am an alien
INT: my house and my maids A stranger consider A foreigner

Job 19:17
HEB: ר֭וּחִֽי זָ֣רָה לְאִשְׁתִּ֑י וְ֝חַנֹּתִ֗י
NAS: My breath is offensive to my wife,
KJV: My breath is strange to my wife,
INT: my breath is offensive to my wife am loathsome

Job 19:27
HEB: רָא֣וּ וְלֹא־ זָ֑ר כָּל֖וּ כִלְיֹתַ֣י
NAS: will see and not another. My heart
KJV: shall behold, and not another; [though] my reins
INT: will see and not another faints my heart

Psalm 44:20
HEB: כַּ֝פֵּ֗ינוּ לְאֵ֣ל זָֽר׃
NAS: our hands to a strange god,
KJV: our hands to a strange god;
INT: our hands god to a strange

77 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 2114
77 Occurrences


bə·zā·rîm — 1 Occ.
haz·zā·rîm — 1 Occ.
laz·zār — 1 Occ.
laz·zā·rîm — 1 Occ.
lə·zār — 1 Occ.
lə·zā·rîm — 2 Occ.
mū·zār — 1 Occ.
nā·zō·rū — 2 Occ.
wə·haz·zār — 4 Occ.
wə·zār — 2 Occ.
ḇə·zā·rāh — 1 Occ.
wə·zā·rîm — 1 Occ.
zār — 20 Occ.
zā·rāh — 8 Occ.
zā·rā·yiḵ — 1 Occ.
zā·rîm — 25 Occ.
zā·rō·wṯ — 2 Occ.
zā·rū — 2 Occ.
zō·rū — 1 Occ.

2113
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