av´a -ran : A surname of Eleazar, the third son of Mattathias (1 Macc 2:5). It is doubtfully conjectured that Eleazar received this surname from the episode related in 1 Macc 6:43-46; the word may mean "the piercer," referring to his stabbing of the elephant. Some connect it with חוּר , ḥūr , "to be white," and connect it with Eleazar's white complexion. The Syriac reads "Chavran" and the Vulgate's "Abaron"; the Septuagint in 1 Macc 6:43 gives Sauarán which is an error for Eleázaros aúran ; Septuagint's Codex Venetus corrects to aúran ̌ .
The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE) was edited by James Orr, John Nuelsen, Edgar Mullins, Morris Evans, and Melvin Grove Kyle and was published complete in 1939. This web site includes the complete text.
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