Hebrew word · H5015

נְבוֹ

nevo

Nebo

The name of a town in Reuben's territory, of a mountain (Deut 32:49; 34:1), and of a Babylonian god (Nabu, Isa 46:1). Whether the town was named after the god or after a word for a high place is debated.

Appears 13 times in 13 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

§ Nebo = "prophet"

a city in Moab and at one time assigned to Reuben; probably located on or near Mount Nebo

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

The name of a town in Reuben's territory, of a mountain (Deut 32:49; 34:1), and of a Babylonian god (Nabu, Isa 46:1). Whether the town was named after the god or after a word for a high place is debated.

Against the English

All versions write 'Nebo'. Readers who know only 'Mount Nebo' may not realise a town is meant here.

Used elsewhere in the period

Mesha Stele lines 14–18: the god Chemosh tells Mesha, 'Go, take Nebo from Israel'. Mesha says he killed 7,000 people there, devoted the town to Ashtar-Chemosh, and carried off 'the [vessels] of YHWH' to Chemosh. This is one of the earliest known mentions of Israel's God outside the Bible. Nebo is Moabite again in Isa 15:2 and Jer 48:1, 22.

Where it appears

Numbers · 3

  1. Numbers 32:3 וּנְב֖וֹ and Nebo

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

    Here: A town near the mountain of the same name, where Moses would later look across into Canaan (Deut 34:1). Num 32:38 notes that Nebo was among the names the Reubenites 'changed', probably because the name was linked to a god.

  2. Numbers 32:38 נְב֞וֹ Nebo

    as well as Nebo and Baal-meon (whose names were changed), and Sibmah. And they renamed the cities they rebuilt.

  3. Numbers 33:47 נְבֽוֹ׃ Nebo

    They set out from Almon-diblathaim and camped in the mountains of Abarim facing Nebo.

Deuteronomy · 2

  1. Deuteronomy 32:49 נְב֗וֹ Nebo

    “Go up into the Abarim Range to Mount Nebo, in the land of Moab across from Jericho, and view the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites as their own possession.

  2. Deuteronomy 34:1 נְב֔וֹ Nebo

    Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which faces Jericho. And the LORD showed him the whole land—from Gilead as far as Dan,

    Here: The name of the mountain, and also of a nearby town mentioned in Numbers 32:38 and on the Moabite Mesha Stone. It gives the summit a real, known location.

1 Chronicles · 1

  1. 1 Chronicles 5:8 נְב֖וֹ Nebo

    and Bela son of Azaz, the son of Shema, the son of Joel. They settled in Aroer and as far as Nebo and Baal-meon.

Ezra · 2

  1. Ezra 2:29 נְב֖וֹ Nebo

    the descendants of Nebo, 52;

  2. Ezra 10:43 נְב֑וֹ Nebo

    And from the descendants of Nebo: Jeiel, Mattithiah, Zabad, Zebina, Jaddai, Joel, and Benaiah.

Nehemiah · 1

  1. Nehemiah 7:33 נְב֛וֹ Nebo

    the men of the other Nebo, 52;

Isaiah · 2

  1. Isaiah 15:2 נְב֞וֹ Nebo

    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: The town (and mountain) of Nebo on the plateau north of Dibon. Mesha's inscription boasts of taking it from Israel, so its fall would sting.

  2. Isaiah 46:1 נְב֔וֹ Nebo

    Bel crouches; Nebo cowers. Their idols weigh down beasts and cattle. The images you carry are burdensome, a load to the weary animal.

    Here: Nabû, Marduk's son, god of writing and wisdom, whose temple was in nearby Borsippa. Not connected to Mount Nebo in Moab, which shares the name.

Jeremiah · 2

  1. Jeremiah 48:1 נְבוֹ֙ Nebo

    Concerning Moab, this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: “Woe to Nebo, for it will be devastated. Kiriathaim will be captured and disgraced; the fortress will be shattered and dismantled.

    Here: A Moabite town near Mount Nebo, the mountain from which Moses saw the promised land (Deut 34:1). The name may echo the Babylonian god Nabu.

  2. Jeremiah 48:22 נְב֔וֹ Nebo

    upon Dibon, Nebo, and Beth-diblathaim,

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