3836. laban
Lexical Summary
laban: White

Original Word: לָבָן
Part of Speech: Adjective
Transliteration: laban
Pronunciation: lah-VAHN
Phonetic Spelling: (law-bawn')
KJV: white
NASB: white, white ones
Word Origin: [from H3835 (לָבַן - To be white)]

1. white

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
white

Or (Gen. 49:12) laben {law-bane'}; from laban; white -- white.

see HEBREW laban

NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origin
from laben
Definition
white
NASB Translation
white (24), white ones (1).

Brown-Driver-Briggs
I. לָבָן adjective white; — ׳ל absolute Genesis 30:35 13t.; construct לְבֶןֿ Genesis 49:12 (compare Ges§ 93, 2, R. 1 KöLgb ii, 74 BaNb 166); feminine לְבָנָה Leviticus 13:4 6t.; plural לְבָנִים Zechariah 1:8 3t.; לְבָנוֺת Genesis 30:37 2t.; — white, of wood under bark Genesis 30:37 (twice in verse) (compare Joel 1:7); of spots on goats Joel 1:35 (all J); of manna Exodus 16:31 (P); garments Ecclesiastes 9:8 (sign of cheerfulness and joy); of teeth וּלְבֶןשִֿׁנַּיִם מֵחָלָב Genesis 49:12 (poem in J; "" חַכְלִילִי עֵינַיִם מִיָּ֑יִן) of Judah (on interpretations see Di and, differently, Marc. JastrJBL xi. (1892), 128); of horses Zechariah 1:8; Zechariah 6:3,6 (in vision); chfly. of diseased skin or flesh on body (בַּהֶרֶת Leviticus 13:4,19,24,25,26,38) Leviticus 13:4; Leviticus 13:10; Leviticus 13:13; Leviticus 13:16; Leviticus 13:17; Leviticus 13:19; Leviticus 13:24; Leviticus 13:38; and of hair on such spots Leviticus 13:3,4,10,20,21,25,26; + אֲדַמְדֶּ֫מֶת Leviticus 13:19,24,43; compare Leviticus 13:42; + כֵּהָה Leviticus 13:39 (all P).

Topical Lexicon
Essential Sense and Distribution

לָבָן appears about twenty-nine times and consistently denotes the color “white” or “whiteness.” The occurrences fall into three main spheres—pastoral life in Genesis, the wilderness narrative in Exodus, and priestly legislation in Leviticus—giving the word pastoral, historical, and ritual dimensions.

Pastoral and Familial Contexts (Genesis 30–31; 49:12)

1. Animal husbandry. Jacob repeatedly uses the presence or absence of לָבָן in the coats of sheep and goats to distinguish his wages from Laban’s flocks (Genesis 30:35, 37, 40; 31:8, 10, 12). The term identifies the streaked or spotted areas that marked God’s providential multiplication of Jacob’s portion.
2. Household prosperity. When Israel blesses Judah he praises “teeth whiter than milk” (Genesis 49:12), an image of health and abundance. לָבָן depicts the brilliance that prosperity brings to personal appearance.

These texts root לָבָן in daily life, livestock economics, and patriarchal blessing, showing God’s involvement in ordinary affairs and covenant promises.

Provision in the Wilderness (Exodus 16:31)

“Now the house of Israel called its name manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey.” The pure color of manna reflects its heavenly source. לָבָן visually links the bread of God with ceremonial purity, anticipating later associations between white, holiness, and divine provision.

Ritual Diagnosis and Community Health (Leviticus 13)

Nearly two-thirds of the appearances occur in Leviticus 13, where לָבָן serves as a diagnostic term for skin disease:
• “The priest shall examine the sore… and if the hair in the sore has turned white… it is a skin disease” (Leviticus 13:3–4, 10, 20, et al.).
• White patches may indicate impurity (13:4) or healing (13:16–17).

The same color can signify both contamination and restoration, depending on context. Scripture thereby trains Israel to discern holiness with precision, reinforcing that righteousness and uncleanness cannot coexist even when they look similar.

Symbolic and Theological Significance

1. Purity. White garments, manna, and cleansed skin symbolize holiness. לָבָן participates in this motif, foreshadowing promises such as Isaiah 1:18 (“though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool”) where the root ל-ב-ן is used for divine cleansing.
2. Revelation of sin. Conversely, the white spot that betrays leprosy exposes hidden corruption. The dual function—exposing sin yet picturing purity—prepares the way for the gospel, where the same light that convicts also purifies (John 3:19–21).
3. Covenant faithfulness. Jacob’s manipulation of white-streaked rods ends with God speaking in a dream (Genesis 31:10–13). לָבָן frames the scene of God safeguarding covenant promises despite human scheming.

Christological Foreshadowing

Manna’s whiteness anticipates Jesus, “the true bread from heaven” (John 6:32). The leprosy legislation, saturated with לָבָן, prefigures the cleansing ministry of Christ who touched lepers and remained undefiled (Mark 1:40–45). The final vision of the redeemed in “white robes” (Revelation 7:14) gathers up the Old Testament resonance of לָבָן, declaring that the Lamb has accomplished perfect purification.

Practical Ministry Applications

• Shepherding: God cares for vocational and economic matters, as seen in Jacob’s flocks. Believers can trust Him in business ethics and provision.
• Worship and holiness: Detailed discernment of purity challenges the church to maintain doctrinal and moral clarity.
• Gospel proclamation: The color that once identified impurity now proclaims cleansing; preach Christ as the One who makes sinners “whiter than snow” (Psalm 51:7).
• Hope: Manna’s לָבָן assures congregations that God supplies daily needs and eternal bread alike.

In every appearance לָבָן points beyond mere color to the character of God—pure, faithful, and able to transform what is defiled into something radiant for His glory.

Forms and Transliterations
הַלָּבָ֔ן הלבן וְהַלְּבָנִ֔ים וּלְבֶן־ וּלְבָנִֽים׃ והלבנים ולבן־ ולבנים׃ לְבָנ֔וֹת לְבָנִ֑ים לְבָנָ֔ה לְבָנָ֣ה לְבָנָ֥ה לְבָנָ֨ה לְבָנָֽה׃ לְבָנָה֙ לְבָנֹ֑ת לְבָנֹֽת׃ לְלָבָ֑ן לָבָ֑ן לָבָ֔ן לָבָ֖ן לָבָ֗ן לָבָ֜ן לָבָ֣ן לָבָן֙ לבן לבנה לבנה׃ לבנות לבנים לבנת לבנת׃ ללבן hal·lā·ḇān hallāḇān hallaVan lā·ḇān lāḇān laVan lə·ḇā·nāh lə·ḇā·nîm lə·ḇā·nō·wṯ lə·ḇā·nōṯ lə·lā·ḇān ləḇānāh ləḇānîm ləḇānōṯ ləḇānōwṯ ləlāḇān lelaVan levaNah levaNim levaNot ū·lə·ḇā·nîm ū·lə·ḇen- ūləḇānîm ūləḇen- ulevaNim uleven vehallevaNim wə·hal·lə·ḇā·nîm wəhalləḇānîm
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Englishman's Concordance
Genesis 30:35
HEB: כֹּ֤ל אֲשֶׁר־ לָבָן֙ בּ֔וֹ וְכָל־
NAS: one with white in it, and all
KJV: and spotted, [and] every one that had [some] white in it, and all the brown
INT: every with white one the black

Genesis 30:37
HEB: בָּהֵן֙ פְּצָל֣וֹת לְבָנ֔וֹת מַחְשֹׂף֙ הַלָּבָ֔ן
NAS: and peeled white stripes
KJV: and pilled white strakes
INT: and peeled stripes white exposing the white

Genesis 30:37
HEB: לְבָנ֔וֹת מַחְשֹׂף֙ הַלָּבָ֔ן אֲשֶׁ֖ר עַל־
NAS: in them, exposing the white which
KJV: strakes in them, and made the white appear
INT: white exposing the white which in

Genesis 49:12
HEB: עֵינַ֖יִם מִיָּ֑יִן וּלְבֶן־ שִׁנַּ֖יִם מֵחָלָֽב׃
NAS: And his teeth white from milk.
KJV: and his teeth white with milk.
INT: his eyes wine white and his teeth milk

Exodus 16:31
HEB: כְּזֶ֤רַע גַּד֙ לָבָ֔ן וְטַעְמ֖וֹ כְּצַפִּיחִ֥ת
NAS: seed, white, and its taste
KJV: seed, white; and the taste
INT: seed coriander white taste wafers

Leviticus 13:3
HEB: בַּנֶּ֜גַע הָפַ֣ךְ ׀ לָבָ֗ן וּמַרְאֵ֤ה הַנֶּ֙גַע֙
NAS: has turned white and the infection
KJV: is turned white, and the plague
INT: the infection has turned white appears and the infection

Leviticus 13:4
HEB: וְאִם־ בַּהֶרֶת֩ לְבָנָ֨ה הִ֜וא בְּע֣וֹר
NAS: the bright spot is white on the skin
KJV: If the bright spot [be] white in the skin
INT: if the bright is white he the skin

Leviticus 13:4
HEB: לֹא־ הָפַ֣ךְ לָבָ֑ן וְהִסְגִּ֧יר הַכֹּהֵ֛ן
NAS: on it has not turned white, then the priest
KJV: thereof be not turned white; then the priest
INT: has not turned white shall isolate the priest

Leviticus 13:10
HEB: וְהִנֵּ֤ה שְׂאֵת־ לְבָנָה֙ בָּע֔וֹר וְהִ֕יא
NAS: and if there is a white swelling
KJV: [him]: and, behold, [if] the rising [be] white in the skin,
INT: and if swelling white the skin and it

Leviticus 13:10
HEB: הָפְכָ֖ה שֵׂעָ֣ר לָבָ֑ן וּמִֽחְיַ֛ת בָּשָׂ֥ר
NAS: the hair white, and there is quick
KJV: the hair white, and [there be] quick
INT: has turned the hair white is quick flesh

Leviticus 13:13
HEB: כֻּלּ֛וֹ הָפַ֥ךְ לָבָ֖ן טָה֥וֹר הֽוּא׃
NAS: turned white [and] he is clean.
KJV: it is all turned white: he [is] clean.
INT: has all turned white is clean he

Leviticus 13:16
HEB: הַחַ֖י וְנֶהְפַּ֣ךְ לְלָבָ֑ן וּבָ֖א אֶל־
NAS: and is changed to white, then he shall come
KJV: and be changed unto white, he shall come
INT: the raw changed to white shall come to

Leviticus 13:17
HEB: נֶהְפַּ֥ךְ הַנֶּ֖גַע לְלָבָ֑ן וְטִהַ֧ר הַכֹּהֵ֛ן
NAS: has turned to white, then the priest
KJV: be turned into white; then the priest
INT: has turned the infection to white shall pronounce the priest

Leviticus 13:19
HEB: הַשְּׁחִין֙ שְׂאֵ֣ת לְבָנָ֔ה א֥וֹ בַהֶ֖רֶת
NAS: of the boil there is a white swelling
KJV: of the boil there be a white rising,
INT: of the boil swelling white or bright

Leviticus 13:19
HEB: א֥וֹ בַהֶ֖רֶת לְבָנָ֣ה אֲדַמְדָּ֑מֶת וְנִרְאָ֖ה
KJV: or a bright spot, white, and somewhat reddish,
INT: or bright white A reddish-white shall be shown

Leviticus 13:20
HEB: וּשְׂעָרָ֖הּ הָפַ֣ךְ לָבָ֑ן וְטִמְּא֧וֹ הַכֹּהֵ֛ן
NAS: on it has turned white, then the priest
KJV: thereof be turned white; the priest
INT: and the hair has turned white shall pronounce the priest

Leviticus 13:21
HEB: בָּהּ֙ שֵׂעָ֣ר לָבָ֔ן וּשְׁפָלָ֥ה אֵינֶ֛נָּה
NAS: are no white hairs
KJV: look on it, and, behold, [there be] no white hairs
INT: there hairs white lower are no

Leviticus 13:24
HEB: הַמִּכְוָ֗ה בַּהֶ֛רֶת לְבָנָ֥ה אֲדַמְדֶּ֖מֶת א֥וֹ
NAS: reddish-white, or white,
KJV: [flesh] that burneth have a white bright spot,
INT: the burn A bright white reddish-white or

Leviticus 13:24
HEB: אֲדַמְדֶּ֖מֶת א֥וֹ לְבָנָֽה׃
KJV: somewhat reddish, or white;
INT: reddish-white or white

Leviticus 13:25
HEB: נֶהְפַּךְ֩ שֵׂעָ֨ר לָבָ֜ן בַּבַּהֶ֗רֶת וּמַרְאֶ֙הָ֙
NAS: has turned white and it appears
KJV: be turned white, and it [be in] sight
INT: has turned the hair white the bright appears

Leviticus 13:26
HEB: בַּבֶּהֶ֙רֶת֙ שֵׂעָ֣ר לָבָ֔ן וּשְׁפָלָ֥ה אֵינֶ֛נָּה
NAS: is no white hair
KJV: look on it, and, behold, [there be] no white hair
INT: the bright hair white deeper is no

Leviticus 13:38
HEB: בֶּהָרֹ֑ת בֶּהָרֹ֖ת לְבָנֹֽת׃
NAS: of the body, [even] white bright spots,
KJV: bright spots, [even] white bright spots;
INT: bright spots white

Leviticus 13:39
HEB: בֶּהָרֹ֖ת כֵּה֣וֹת לְבָנֹ֑ת בֹּ֥הַק ה֛וּא
NAS: are a faint white, it is eczema
KJV: [be] darkish white; it [is] a freckled spot
INT: the bright faint white is eczema that

Leviticus 13:42
HEB: בַגַּבַּ֔חַת נֶ֖גַע לָבָ֣ן אֲדַמְדָּ֑ם צָרַ֤עַת
KJV: or bald forehead, a white reddish
INT: the bald infection A white A reddish-white is leprosy

Leviticus 13:43
HEB: שְׂאֵת־ הַנֶּ֙גַע֙ לְבָנָ֣ה אֲדַמְדֶּ֔מֶת בְּקָרַחְתּ֖וֹ
KJV: of the sore [be] white reddish
INT: the swelling of the infection white is reddish-white head

29 Occurrences

Strong's Hebrew 3836
29 Occurrences


hal·lā·ḇān — 1 Occ.
lā·ḇān — 11 Occ.
lə·lā·ḇān — 2 Occ.
lə·ḇā·nāh — 7 Occ.
lə·ḇā·nîm — 2 Occ.
lə·ḇā·nō·wṯ — 3 Occ.
ū·lə·ḇā·nîm — 1 Occ.
ū·lə·ḇen- — 1 Occ.
wə·hal·lə·ḇā·nîm — 1 Occ.

3835b
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