לָבָן (la.van)
la.van
Laban
N:N-M-PQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 45 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- N:N-M-P
Word Overview
The name Laban appears forty-five times in Scripture, primarily within the Genesis narrative and briefly in Deuteronomy. It identifies two distinct entities: a prominent patriarchal figure and a geographical location. The personal name refers to Bethuel’s son, Rebekah’s brother, and Jacob’s father-in-law, who is central to the stories of Leah and Rachel.
Etymologically, the Hebrew word means "white." This literal meaning likely describes a physical characteristic or perhaps a symbolic quality associated with the individual. The same root also names Laban, a wilderness encampment visited by the Israelites during their journey from Mount Hor to the Red Sea, as recorded in Deuteronomy 1:1.
Translators retain the proper name "Laban" for both the man and the place to preserve the distinction found in the Hebrew text. The recurrence of this name highlights its significance in the patriarchal history while acknowledging its secondary use as a landmark in Israel’s wilderness wanderings.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The name Laban means "white," a simple descriptor that anchors us to a complex family history. In Genesis, he appears as Rebekah’s brother and Jacob’s father-in-law. His story is not one of saintly perfection but of human frailty, ambition, and shifting loyalties. This honesty in Scripture reminds us that the biblical narrative includes flawed individuals alongside faithful ones.
For your faith life, this word offers a grounded perspective on relationships. You encounter people who may be calculating or self-serving, just as Jacob did. The text does not shy away from these tensions. Instead, it shows how God’s purposes unfold even through difficult family dynamics and questionable motives.
Reflecting on Laban helps you navigate your own interactions with integrity. You do not need to mimic his behavior. Rather, you can trust that God remains sovereign over your circumstances, regardless of the people around you. His presence in the text invites you to rely on divine guidance rather than human reliability.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 45 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- Laban41×
- to/ Laban4×
- and/ Laban3×
- with/ Laban1×
- and/ [belonged] to/ Laban1×
- [was] Laban1×
- [belonged] to/ Laban1×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- לָבָ֖ן11×
- לָבָן֙7×
- לָבָ֔ן6×
- לָבָ֥ן3×
- לָבָ֜ן3×
- לָבָ֑ן3×
- לְ/לָבָ֔ן3×
- לָבָ֤ן2×
- לָבָ֛ן2×
- לָבָ֗ן2×
- לָבָֽן\׃1×
- לָבָ֧ן1×
Key Verses
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Genesis 24:29
Rebekah had a brother, and his name was Laban. Laban ran out to the man, to the spring.
This verse introduces Laban as Rebekah’s brother, establishing his role in the patriarchal family network before any conflict arises.
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Genesis 29:14
Laban said to him, “Surely you are my bone and my flesh.” Jacob stayed with him for a month.
Laban’s declaration that Jacob is "bone and my flesh" highlights the initial familial bond that later becomes complicated by labor disputes.
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Genesis 29:25
In the morning, behold, it was Leah! He said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Didn’t I serve with you for Rachel? Why then have you deceived me?”
Here, Laban’s deception regarding Leah reveals his willingness to manipulate family ties for personal gain, a key aspect of his character.
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Genesis 30:27
Laban said to him, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, stay here, for I have divined that Yahweh has blessed me for your sake.”
Laban acknowledges that Yahweh has blessed him because of Jacob, showing a moment where he recognizes divine influence despite his own motives.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the name Laban mean?
Is Laban the same as the place called Laban?
Why does Laban appear so often in Genesis?
Every Occurrence (45 verses across 2 books)
Genesis 44 verses
Rebekah had a brother, and his name was Laban. Laban ran out to the man, to the spring.
Genesis 24:50Then Laban and Bethuel answered, “The thing proceeds from Yahweh. We can’t speak to you bad or good.
Genesis 25:20Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Paddan Aram, the sister of Laban…
Genesis 27:43Now therefore, my son, obey my voice. Arise, flee to Laban, my brother, in Haran.
Genesis 28:2Arise, go to Paddan Aram, to the house of Bethuel your mother’s father. Take a wife from there from the daughters of…
Genesis 28:5Isaac sent Jacob away. He went to Paddan Aram to Laban, son of Bethuel the Syrian, the brother of Rebekah, Jacob’s and…
Genesis 29:5He said to them, “Do you know Laban, the son of Nahor?” They said, “We know him.”
Genesis 29:10When Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban, his mother’s brother, and the sheep of Laban, his mother’s brother, Jacob…
Genesis 29:13When Laban heard the news of Jacob, his sister’s son, he ran to meet Jacob, and embraced him, and kissed him, and…
Genesis 29:14Laban said to him, “Surely you are my bone and my flesh.” Jacob stayed with him for a month.
Genesis 29:15Laban said to Jacob, “Because you are my relative, should you therefore serve me for nothing? Tell me, what will your…
Genesis 29:16Laban had two daughters. The name of the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.
Genesis 29:19Laban said, “It is better that I give her to you, than that I should give her to another man. Stay with me.”
Genesis 29:21Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in to her.”
Genesis 29:22Laban gathered together all the men of the place, and made a feast.
Genesis 29:24Laban gave Zilpah his servant to his daughter Leah for a servant.
Genesis 29:25In the morning, behold, it was Leah! He said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Didn’t I serve with you for…
Genesis 29:26Laban said, “It is not done so in our place, to give the younger before the firstborn.
Genesis 29:29Laban gave Bilhah, his servant, to his daughter Rachel to be her servant.
Genesis 30:25When Rachel had borne Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send me away, that I may go to my own place, and to my country.
Genesis 30:27Laban said to him, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, stay here, for I have divined that Yahweh has blessed me…
Genesis 30:34Laban said, “Behold, let it be according to your word.”
Genesis 30:36He set three days’ journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks.
Genesis 30:40Jacob separated the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the streaked and all the black in Laban’s flock. He…
Genesis 30:42but when the flock were feeble, he didn’t put them in. So the feebler were Laban’s, and the stronger Jacob’s.
Genesis 31:1Jacob heard Laban’s sons’ words, saying, “Jacob has taken away all that was our father’s. He has obtained all this…
Genesis 31:2Jacob saw the expression on Laban’s face, and, behold, it was not toward him as before.
Genesis 31:12He said, ‘Now lift up your eyes, and behold, all the male goats which leap on the flock are streaked, speckled, and…
Genesis 31:19Now Laban had gone to shear his sheep; and Rachel stole the teraphim that were her father’s.
Genesis 31:20Jacob deceived Laban the Syrian, in that he didn’t tell him that he was running away.
Genesis 31:22Laban was told on the third day that Jacob had fled.
Genesis 31:24God came to Laban the Syrian in a dream of the night, and said to him, “Be careful that you don’t speak to Jacob either…
Genesis 31:25Laban caught up with Jacob. Now Jacob had pitched his tent in the mountain, and Laban with his relatives encamped in…
Genesis 31:26Laban said to Jacob, “What have you done, that you have deceived me, and carried away my daughters like captives of the…
Genesis 31:31Jacob answered Laban, “Because I was afraid, for I said, ‘Lest you should take your daughters from me by force.’
Genesis 31:33Laban went into Jacob’s tent, into Leah’s tent, and into the tent of the two female servants; but he didn’t find them.…
Genesis 31:34Now Rachel had taken the teraphim, put them in the camel’s saddle, and sat on them. Laban felt around all the tent, but…
Genesis 31:36Jacob was angry, and argued with Laban. Jacob answered Laban, “What is my trespass? What is my sin, that you have hotly…
Genesis 31:43Laban answered Jacob, “The daughters are my daughters, the children are my children, the flocks are my flocks, and all…
Genesis 31:47Laban called it Jegar Sahadutha, but Jacob called it Galeed.
Genesis 31:48Laban said, “This heap is witness between me and you today.” Therefore it was named Galeed
Genesis 31:51Laban said to Jacob, “See this heap, and see the pillar, which I have set between me and you.
Genesis 46:18These are the sons of Zilpah, whom Laban gave to Leah, his daughter, and these she bore to Jacob, even sixteen souls.
Genesis 46:25These are the sons of Bilhah, whom Laban gave to Rachel, his daughter, and these she bore to Jacob: all the souls were…