Where does “目の敵にする” come from?

目の敵にする (Japanese) comes from Japanese する, from Old Japanese す, from Proto-Japonic *su — nest.

Ancestry of “目の敵にする”, step by step

目の敵にする traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese する

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japaneseするto exist; to come up; to exist; to be worth; to...
2Old Japaneseすto do; to happen, occur; to be in a state of...
3Proto-Japonic*sunest

via Japanese に

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japaneseにparticle for indirect objects; to; particle for...
2Old Japaneseに—
Every word from Proto-Japonic *su →Every word from Old Japanese す →Every word from Japanese する →