לְבָנָה
𐤋𐤁𐤍𐤄
lᵉbânâh
H3842 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
The celestial body known as the moon; in the Hebrew Bible, לְבָנָה refers specifically to the physical moon as seen from earth. The term emphasizes the moon's pale or white hue, but its use remains literal and concrete, lacking mythological connotations present in some neighboring cultures' lunar vocabulary. Semantic range in biblical texts is confined to the identification or description of the moon as a body in the sky, often paired with חַמָּה (the sun) as celestial counterparts.
Semantic Range
moon, the (white) celestial body, poetic reference to the moon
Root / Etymology
Derived from the root ל-ב-ן (לָבַן), meaning 'to be white' or 'to make white.' The form לְבָנָה is a feminine noun, constructed with the lemed prefix, and denotes that which is characterized by whiteness, in this case, the moon due to its pale appearance.
Historical & Contextual Notes
The earliest use of לְבָנָה in biblical literature is found in poetic passages (e.g., Isaiah 24:23), where it appears in parallelism with חַמָּה (sun), emphasizing the natural order of the cosmos. The word does not function as a theological or astral deity in Israelite usage, distinguishing it from, for instance, Akkadian 'Sin' or Canaanite lunar terminology. In the Hebrew Bible, לְבָנָה is descriptive and observational rather than personified. Standard English translations generally render the term as 'moon'; however, they cannot convey the nuance of the Hebrew focus on whiteness. There is no evidence that לְבָנָה had a developed cultic significance in the canonical texts, although the moon was an object of worship in wider ancient Near Eastern cultures. The term's meaning remains stable between pre-exilic and later biblical Hebrew, showing little semantic shift. No significant contrast with לְבָנָא, which is a variant spelling.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from לָבַן; properly, (the) white, i.e. the moon; moon. See also לְבָנָא.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
לבן (l-b-n) — to be white, to become white, to make white
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H3828 | לְבוֹנָה | frankincense resin |
| H3829 | לְבוֹנָה | to Lebonah |
| H3835 | לָבַן | I will whiten |
| H3836 | לָבָן | the white one |
| H3837 | לָבָן | with Laban |
Word Forms
2 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H3842-01 |
הַ/לְּבָנָ֔ה | halevanah | HTd/Ncfsa |
of the moon | the white moon | 2 |
H3842-02 |
כַ/לְּבָנָ֗ה | khalevanah | HRd/Ncfsa |
as the moon | like the white moon | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
3 total occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H3842-01 |
Isaiah 24:23 | הַ/לְּבָנָ֔ה | halevanah | HTd/Ncfsa |
the moon | the white moon |
H3842-01 |
Isaiah 30:26 | הַ/לְּבָנָה֙ | halevanah | HTd/Ncfsa |
of the moon | the white moon |
H3842-02 |
Song of Songs 6:10 | כַ/לְּבָנָ֗ה | khalevanah | HRd/Ncfsa |
as the moon | like the white moon |