Hebrew word · H3870

לוּז

luz

Luz

As a place name, the earlier name of Bethel (Gen 28:19; 35:6; 48:3; Josh 18:13; Judg 1:23). Judges 1:26 also mentions a second Luz founded in 'the land of the Hittites.' As an ordinary noun, lûz means 'almond tree' (Gen 30:37).

Appears 8 times in 7 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

Luz = "almond tree"

the early name of Bethel and probably the name of the town in close proximity to the actual location of the altar and pillar of Jacob

Another name of bet-el (בֵּֽיתְ־אֵל "Bethel" H1008G)

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 Genesis 28:19

Range of meaning

As a place name, the earlier name of Bethel (Gen 28:19; 35:6; 48:3; Josh 18:13; Judg 1:23). Judges 1:26 also mentions a second Luz founded in 'the land of the Hittites.' As an ordinary noun, lûz means 'almond tree' (Gen 30:37).

Against the English

English versions just write 'Luz,' with no hint that it is probably a plant name.

Used elsewhere in the period

Related words mean 'almond' in Aramaic (lûzāʾ) and Arabic (lauz). Naming towns after trees was common in Canaan (compare Elon, 'oak,' and Rimmon, 'pomegranate'). Much later, rabbinic tradition also used luz for a small bone in the spine believed never to decay. That idea has nothing to do with this verse.

From the study of Genesis 48:3

Range of meaning

A place name, probably "almond tree" (the same word as the common noun luz, "almond", Gen 30:37). It was the earlier Canaanite name of the town in the central hill country that Israel knew as Bethel (Gen 28:19; 35:6; Judg 1:23).

Against the English

English versions simply transliterate it. Readers may not realize that Luz and Bethel are the same place, and that Bethel is where Jacob dreamed of the ladder (Gen 28) and where God later renamed him Israel (Gen 35).

Used elsewhere in the period

Gen 28:19 ("he called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of the city was Luz at the first"); 35:6 ("Luz, which is in the land of Canaan, that is, Bethel"); Josh 18:13; Judg 1:23–26.

Where it appears

Genesis · 3

  1. Genesis 28:19 ל֥וּז [was] Luz

    and he called that place Bethel, though previously the city had been named Luz.

    Here: The town's earlier, Canaanite name. It is very probably the same as the word lûz, 'almond tree' (Gen 30:37), so it was likely a plant name: 'Almond.'

  2. Genesis 35:6 ל֗וּזָה Luz towards

    So Jacob and everyone with him arrived in Luz (that is, Bethel) in the land of Canaan.

  3. Genesis 48:3 בְּל֖וּז at Luz

    Jacob said to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and there He blessed me

    Here: The older Canaanite name of the town Jacob renamed Bethel, "house of God" (28:19; 35:6). Jacob is in Egypt, and he points back to a specific spot in Canaan.

Joshua · 3

  1. Joshua 16:2 ל֑וּזָה Luz towards

    It went on from Bethel (that is, Luz) and proceeded to the border of the Archites in Ataroth.

    Here: Luz with the Hebrew ending -ah, which means 'toward'. So the line runs from Bethel toward Luz. The text here treats them as two points, even though elsewhere Luz is called the old name of Bethel.

  2. Joshua 18:13 ל֗וּזָה ל֙וּזָה֙ Luz towards, Luz <towards>

    From there the border crossed over to the southern slope of Luz (that is, Bethel) and went down to Ataroth-addar on the hill south of Lower Beth-horon.

Judges · 2

  1. Judges 1:23 לֽוּז׃ [was] Luz

    They sent spies to Bethel (formerly known as Luz),

  2. Judges 1:26 ל֔וּז Luz

    And the man went to the land of the Hittites, built a city, and called it Luz, which is its name to this day.

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