Hebrew word · H3841

לִבְנָה

livnah

Libnah

A place name, probably from the root l-b-n, 'white'. As a common noun, livneh is a tree (poplar or storax, Gen 30:37; Hos 4:13). Another Libnah appears as a wilderness stop in Num 33:20–21.

Appears 18 times in 17 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

§ Libnah = "pavement"

a royal city of the Canaanites in the southwest captured by Joshua; allocated to Judah and made a Levitical city

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 Joshua 10:29

Range of meaning

A place name, probably from the root l-b-n, 'white'. As a common noun, livneh is a tree (poplar or storax, Gen 30:37; Hos 4:13). Another Libnah appears as a wilderness stop in Num 33:20–21.

Against the English

All versions simply transliterate it. Nothing drifts, but English readers miss that the name would have sounded descriptive, something like 'White' or 'Poplar Town'.

Used elsewhere in the period

Its king is listed among the defeated kings (Josh 12:15). It is assigned to Judah in the Shephelah (15:42) and given to the priests as a Levitical town (21:13; 1 Chr 6:57). It revolted against Judah under King Jehoram (2 Kgs 8:22) and was attacked by Sennacherib after Lachish in 701 BC (2 Kgs 19:8; Isa 37:8). It was the home of Hamutal, mother of Kings Jehoahaz and Zedekiah (2 Kgs 23:31; 24:18).

From the study of Joshua 12:15

Range of meaning

A place name. It is most likely built on the root l-b-n, 'white' (compare lavan, 'white', and livneh, the white poplar or storax tree in Gen 30:37 and Hos 4:13). The name may refer to pale chalk outcrops or to trees, but this cannot be proved. The same name is used for a wilderness campsite in Num 33:20–21, which is a different place.

Against the English

English versions simply transliterate the name, so readers miss the likely meaning 'white place'. Nothing in this verse depends on that meaning.

Used elsewhere in the period

Josh 10:29–32 (captured between Makkedah and Lachish); Josh 15:42 (in Judah's Shephelah district); Josh 21:13 and 1 Chr 6:57 (a city given to the priests and a city of refuge); 2 Kgs 8:22 (revolted from Judah under Jehoram); 2 Kgs 19:8 and Isa 37:8 (Sennacherib fought against it in 701 BC); 2 Kgs 23:31 and 24:18 (Hamutal, mother of Kings Jehoahaz and Zedekiah, was 'of Libnah').

Where it appears

Numbers · 2

  1. Numbers 33:20 בְּלִבְנָֽה׃ at Libnah

    They set out from Rimmon-perez and camped at Libnah.

  2. Numbers 33:21 מִלִּבְנָ֑ה from Libnah

    They set out from Libnah and camped at Rissah.

Joshua · 8

  1. Joshua 10:29 לִבְנָ֑ה לִבְנָֽה׃ Libnah

    Then Joshua and all Israel with him moved on from Makkedah to Libnah and fought against Libnah.

    Here: '[To] Libnah.' The Hebrew has no 'to': the place name alone, without a preposition, marks where they went. The name comes from the root for 'white' (l-b-n). It may refer to pale limestone or chalk, or to a tree such as the white poplar or storax. Libnah was a fortified town in the Shephelah.

  2. Joshua 10:31 מִלִּבְנָ֖ה from Libnah

    And Joshua and all Israel with him moved on from Libnah to Lachish. They laid siege to it and fought against it.

  3. Joshua 10:32 לְלִבְנָֽה׃ פ to Libnah

    And the LORD delivered Lachish into the hand of Israel, and Joshua captured it on the second day. He put all the people to the sword, just as he had done to Libnah.

    Here: The previous city in the campaign, somewhere in the Shephelah (its exact site is disputed). The comparison carries over what v.30 said about Libnah, so the reader does not need it repeated.

  4. Joshua 10:39 לְלִבְנָ֖ה to Libnah

    And they captured Debir, its king, and all its villages. They put them to the sword and devoted to destruction everyone in the city, leaving no survivors. Joshua did to Debir and its king as he had done to Hebron and as he had done to Libnah and its king.

    Here: "To Libnah": a lowland town taken earlier in the campaign (10:29–30). Libnah's own report pointed back to Jericho, so the comparisons form a chain.

  5. Joshua 12:15 לִבְנָה֙ Libnah

    the king of Libnah, one; the king of Adullam, one;

    Here: A town in the Shephelah, the low hills between Judah's highlands and the coastal plain. Joshua 10:29–30 says Joshua captured it right after Makkedah. The name probably comes from the root for 'white'.

  6. Joshua 15:42 לִבְנָ֥ה Libnah

    Libnah, Ether, Ashan,

  7. Joshua 21:13 לִבְנָ֖ה Libnah

    So to the descendants of Aaron the priest they gave these cities, together with their pasturelands: Hebron, a city of refuge for the manslayer, Libnah,

    Here: A town in the Shephelah, the low hills west of Judah, which Joshua had captured (Josh 10:29–30). The name probably comes from 'white' (lavan), perhaps for white rock or poplars.

2 Kings · 4

  1. 2 Kings 8:22 לִבְנָ֖ה Libnah

    So to this day Edom has been in rebellion against the hand of Judah. Likewise, Libnah rebelled at the same time.

  2. 2 Kings 19:8 לִבְנָ֑ה Libnah

    When the Rabshakeh heard that the king of Assyria had left Lachish, he withdrew and found the king fighting against Libnah.

  3. 2 Kings 23:31 מִלִּבְנָֽה׃ from Libnah

    Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah.

  4. 2 Kings 24:18 מִלִּבְנָֽה׃ from Libnah

    Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah.

1 Chronicles · 1

  1. 1 Chronicles 6:57 לִבְנָ֖ה Libnah

    So the descendants of Aaron were given Hebron (a city of refuge), Libnah, Jattir, Eshtemoa,

2 Chronicles · 1

  1. 2 Chronicles 21:10 לִבְנָ֛ה Libnah

    So to this day Edom has been in rebellion against the hand of Judah. Likewise, Libnah rebelled against his hand at the same time, because Jehoram had forsaken the LORD, the God of his fathers.

Isaiah · 1

  1. Isaiah 37:8 לִבְנָ֑ה Libnah

    When the Rabshakeh heard that the king of Assyria had left Lachish, he withdrew and found the king fighting against Libnah.

Jeremiah · 1

  1. Jeremiah 52:1 מִלִּבְנָֽה׃ from Libnah

    Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. His mother’s name was Hamutal daughter of Jeremiah; she was from Libnah.

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