H3837a H3837a
Laban — the Aramean patriarch, brother of Rebekah and father-in-law of Jacob
Lavan (meaning 'white') is the Aramean relative who dominates Jacob's twenty-year sojourn in Paddan-Aram. Across 54 occurrences — concentrated in Genesis 24 and 29-32 — Laban appears first as Rebekah's brother who receives Abraham's servant (Gen 24:29-50), then as the shrewd father-in-law who substitutes Leah for Rachel on Jacob's wedding night (Gen 29:23-25) and repeatedly changes Jacob's wages (Gen 31:7, 41). The Yahwist, Elohist, and Priestly sources all name him, with the epithet 'Laban the Aramean' (Gen 25:20; 31:24) underscoring his foreign identity. The name is rendered as a simple transliteration in every language tradition: Spanish 'Lavan,' French 'Laban,' German 'Laban.'
Senses
1. Laban (person) — The proper noun Laban (lavan, 'white'), son of Bethuel and grandson of Nahor, known primarily as the father of Leah and Rachel, and as Jacob's father-in-law and employer in Paddan-Aram (Gen 29-31). Also appears as Rebekah's brother in the betrothal narrative (Gen 24:29-50). All 54 occurrences refer to this single patriarch; the epithet 'the Aramean' (ha-Arammi) in several passages emphasizes his non-Israelite lineage and geographic setting. 54×
AR["لابانَ", "لَابَانَ", "لَابَانُ"]·ben["লাবন", "লাবনের"]·DE["Laban", "Labans", "war-Laban"]·EN["Laban"]·FR["Laban"]·heb["לבן"]·HI["लाबान", "लाबान-की", "लाबान-ने"]·ID["Laban"]·IT["Labano"]·jav["Laban"]·KO["라반", "라반을", "라반의", "라반이", "라반이다"]·PT["Lavan"]·RU["Лаван", "Лавана", "Лавану"]·ES["Lavan"]·SW["Labani", "kutoka-wana-wa"]·TR["Aramlı'nın", "Lavan", "Lavan'ı", "Lavan'ın"]·urd["لابان", "لابان-نے", "لابان-کی", "لابان-کے"]
Related Senses
G3588 1. definite article (18298×)H0853 1. definite direct object marker (10915×)G2532 1. (8312×)H3068 1. YHWH (the divine name) (6522×)H0834a 1. relative pronoun (who/which/that) (4839×)H3588a 1. causal: because, for (3498×)G1161 1. and (2806×)H3478 1. Israel (proper name and nation) (2507×)G4771 1. you (plural address) (1853×)H1931 1. personal pronoun he/she/it (1431×)G3739 1. relative pronoun who/which/that (1149×)H1732 1. David (proper name) (1075×)H2088 1. this, this one (demonstrative) (1059×)G1063 1. (1047×)G3778 1. this thing, these things (1003×)H???? 2. (1002×)G2424 1. (924×)G3754 1. that (content clause) (881×)H2009 1. presentative particle: behold, look (881×)H0589 1. I (first person singular pronoun) (874×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
II. לָבָן54 n.pr.m. son of Bethuel, brother of Rebekah, and father-in-law of Jacob (𝔊 Λαβαν), Gn 24:29(×2), 50; 27:43; 28:2, 5 + 17 times J (Gn 29, 30, 31, 32); 29:15, 16, 19, 21, 22, 26 + 18 times E (Gn 31, 32, ל׳ הָאֲרַמִּי 31:24); 25:20 (ל׳ הָאֲרַמִּי) 28:5 (id.), also 28:2; 29:24, 29; 46:18, 25 (all P).