Hebrew word · H1769

דִּיבֹן, דִּימוֹן

divon

Dibon

A place name, also spelled Dimon (Isa 15:9, perhaps as wordplay on dām, 'blood'). Where the name comes from is uncertain.

Appears 11 times in 11 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

§ Dibon = "wasting"

a town in Moab on the east side of the Jordan which was taken over by the Israelites and rebuilt by the children of Gad

Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Numbers 32:3

Range of meaning

A place name, also spelled Dimon (Isa 15:9, perhaps as wordplay on dām, 'blood'). Where the name comes from is uncertain.

Against the English

All versions write 'Dibon'.

Used elsewhere in the period

Dhiban in Jordan is where the Mesha Stele was found in 1868. Mesha calls himself 'the Dibonite', and his father ruled from Dibon. The town is counted as Moabite in Isa 15:2 and Jer 48:18, 22.

Where it appears

Numbers · 5

  1. Numbers 21:30 דִּיב֑וֹן Dibon

    But we have overthrown them; Heshbon is destroyed as far as Dibon. We demolished them as far as Nophah, which reaches to Medeba.”

  2. Numbers 32:3 וְדִיבֹן֙ and Dibon

    “Ataroth, Dibon, Jazer, Nimrah, Heshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nebo, and Beon,

    Here: Modern Dhiban, north of the Arnon gorge. Later it was the home city of Mesha, king of Moab, and his victory inscription was found there. Gad rebuilt it (32:34), and it is called 'Dibon-gad' in 33:45.

  3. Numbers 32:34 דִּיבֹ֖ן Dibon

    And the Gadites built up Dibon, Ataroth, Aroer,

  4. Numbers 33:45 בְּדִיבֹ֥ן at Dibon-

    They set out from Iyim and camped at Dibon-gad.

  5. Numbers 33:46 מִדִּיבֹ֣ן from Dibon-

    They set out from Dibon-gad and camped at Almon-diblathaim.

Joshua · 2

  1. Joshua 13:9 דִּיבֽוֹן׃ Dibon

    The area from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley, along with the city in the middle of the valley, the whole plateau of Medeba as far as Dibon,

  2. Joshua 13:17 דִּיבוֹן֙ Dibon

    to Heshbon and all its cities on the plateau, including Dibon, Bamoth-baal, Beth-baal-meon,

Nehemiah · 1

  1. Nehemiah 11:25 וּבְדִיבֹן֙ and in Dibon

    As for the villages with their fields, some of the people of Judah lived in Kiriath-arba, Dibon, Jekabzeel, and their villages;

Isaiah · 1

  1. Isaiah 15:2 וְדִיבֹ֛ן and Dibon

    Dibon goes up to its temple to weep at its high places. Moab wails over Nebo, as well as over Medeba. Every head is shaved, every beard is cut off.

    Here: Dibon, modern Dhiban, the royal city of King Mesha north of the Arnon gorge. The 'and' can join it to 'the house' ('the temple and Dibon') or can explain it ('the house, that is, Dibon').

Jeremiah · 2

  1. Jeremiah 48:18 דִּיב֑וֹן Dibon

    Come down from your glory; sit on parched ground, O daughter dwelling in Dibon, for the destroyer of Moab has come against you; he has destroyed your fortresses.

  2. Jeremiah 48:22 דִּיב֣וֹן Dibon

    upon Dibon, Nebo, and Beth-diblathaim,

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.