Numbers 33:20 — Word Study
WLCוַיִּסְע֖וּ מֵרִמֹּ֣ן פָּ֑רֶץ וַֽיַּחֲנ֖וּ בְּלִבְנָֽה׃
BSAThey set outnâçaʻ▸ [journeyed, departed] fromRimmôn Perets Rimmon-perezRimmôn Perets [a place in the desert, pomegranate breach] and campedchânâh▸ [pitched, encamped, set up their tents] at LibnahLibnâh [a city in Palestine, originally a Canaanite royal city]
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| וַיִּסְע֖וּ | and they set out | Verb, Qal, sequential imperfect third person masculine plural |
| מֵרִמֹּ֣ן | from Rimmon- | Preposition, noun proper |
| פָּ֑רֶץ | perez | Noun proper |
| וַֽיַּחֲנ֖וּ | and they encamped | Verb, Qal, sequential imperfect third person masculine plural |
| בְּלִבְנָֽה׃ | at Libnah | Preposition, noun proper |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | They set out from Rimmon-perez and camped at Libnah. |
| KJV | And they departed from Rimmon-parez, and pitched in Libnah. |
| ASV | And they journeyed from Rimmon-perez, and encamped in Libnah. |
| YLT | and they journey from Rimmon-Parez, and encamp in Libnah. |
| WEB | They traveled from Rimmon Perez, and encamped in Libnah. |
| BBE | And they went on from Rimmon-perez, and put up their tents in Libnah. |
All translations agree on the rendering of the key verbs in this verse.
The structure of the verse is straightforward, with a main action followed by details of the starting point and destination.
3 commentators on this verse
Jamieson, AdamClarke, Whedon & more — read them ›
clause
verbנָסַע
The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
Every word here is used elsewhere in the Old Testament.
Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.
Deep Study — Numbers 33:20
Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.
Context — The Itinerary of the Israelitesgenerated
Numbers 33:20 describes a part of the Israelites' journey through the wilderness, detailing their movements from one encampment to another. This section provides a record of the places they stopped, emphasizing the various locations significant to their travels. Each site holds historical and geographical importance as the Israelites moved toward the Promised Land.
Cross References
The Key Word — נָסַע, vai.yis.'Ugenerated
The verb נָסַע (nasa') is a Qal imperfect form, meaning to set out or depart. It conveys the action of beginning a journey, which is central to the narrative of the Israelites as they travel through the wilderness.
This verb is used frequently in the context of the Israelites' movements, indicating not just physical departure but also the broader theme of their journey toward a promised destination.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
All translations agree on the rendering of נָסַע as set out.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The main verb וַיִּסְע֖וּ (and they set out) governs the sentence, with a prepositional phrase indicating the starting point and another prepositional phrase indicating the destination. This structure emphasizes the sequence of movement.
The Hebrew word order places the verbs at the forefront, highlighting the actions of setting out and encamping as central to the narrative.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
The Septuagint translates נָסַע as ἀπῆραν, which means 'they departed.' This choice aligns closely with the Hebrew meaning of setting out on a journey.
The use of a verb indicating departure in the Septuagint reinforces the theme of movement and transition present in the original Hebrew text.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
Numbers 33:20 tells us that the Israelites set out from a place called Rimmon-perez and camped at Libnah. This verse is part of their journey through the wilderness, showing how they moved from one significant location to another.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
Rimmon-perez means 'pomegranate of the breach' and refers to a location where the Israelites stopped during their travels.
Libnah was a city in Palestine, originally a Canaanite royal city, and was significant in the Israelites' journey as a place they camped.
The itinerary provides a historical account of the Israelites' journey, showing their movements and the places they encountered on their way to the Promised Land.
This verse highlights the continuous movement of the Israelites as they journey through the wilderness, emphasizing their dependence on God's guidance.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- What does the journey from Rimmon-perez to Libnah teach us about following God's direction?
- How can we apply the concept of setting out on a journey in our own lives?
- What significance do the locations mentioned in this verse hold for the Israelites?
- In what ways can we recognize and appreciate the journey God has us on today?
The early church on this verse — how the Fathers read it
Early commentators reference this verse to discuss the significance of the Israelites' journey and the locations they encountered, as seen in Origen's homilies.
Next they came to Lebna [Libnah], which means “whitewashing.” I know that in some respects whitewashing has a pejorative connotation.… But this whitewashing is that concerning which the prophet says, “You will wash me,Early Church Fathers on Numbers 33 →
Commentators on this verse — 3 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on Numbers 33:20 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryAnd they removed from the desert of Sinai, and pitched at Kibroth-hatta'avah. Kibroth-hattaavah - the graves of lust .
Read Robert Jamieson on Numbers 33 →AdamClarkeAdam Clarke's Commentary on the BibleSTAT. XVI. Verse 20. LIBNAH.] The situation of this place is uncertain. A city of this name is mentioned Joshua 10:29, as situated between Kadesh-barnea and Gaza.
Read AdamClarke on Numbers 33 →Daniel Denison Whedon1808–1885Whedon's Commentary on the BibleTHE OF THE , Numbers 33:1-49.Having reached the Land of Promise, and taken possession of its eastern portion, it is proper that the history of the desert wandering should close with a list of
Read Daniel Denison Whedon on Numbers 33 →The verse in English, compared — 17 translations, and where they part company
Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.
Modern formal
They set out from Rimmon-perez and camped at Libnah.
They traveled from Rimmon Perez, and encamped in Libnah.
They set out from Rimmon-perez and camped at Libnah.
They traveled from Rimmon-perez and camped in Libnah.
Tyndale line
And they departed from Rimmon-parez, and pitched in Libnah.
And they journeyed from Rimmon-perez, and encamped in Libnah.
And they journeyed from Rimmon-perez, and pitched in Libnah.
And they departed from Rimmon-parez, and encamped in Libnah.
And they departed from Rimmon Parez, and pitched in Libnah.
Strictly literal
And they removed from Rimmon-perez, and encamped in Libnah.
and they journey from Rimmon-Parez, and encamp in Libnah.
And they journey from Rimmon-Parez and encamp in Libnah.
And they removed from Rimmon-perez, and encamped in Libnah.
They set out from Rimmon Perez and camped at Libnah.
From the Latin
And they departed from thence and came to Lebna.
Simplified
They moved on from Rimmon-perez and set up camp at Libnah.
And they went on from Rimmon-perez, and put up their tents in Libnah.
Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.
The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank
This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.
Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.
The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran
The Masoretic Text is consistent with the Septuagint in conveying the actions of the Israelites. The Samaritan Pentateuch differs slightly in the names used for the locations, but the overall narrative of departure and encampment remains intact.
וַיִּסְע֖וּ מֵרִמֹּ֣ן פָּ֑רֶץ וַֽיַּחֲנ֖וּ בְּלִבְנָֽה׃
3 of the 5 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.
ויסעו מרמונ פרץ ויחנו בלבונה
2 words differ from the Masoretic Text: רמונ פרץ (Rimmon Perez), לבונה (Libnah)
Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.
The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with
This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.
Lexicons — every word in Numbers 33:20
One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.
Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.
נָסַע (naca`) means to pull out or up, particularly in the context of setting out on a journey. It encompasses actions like departing, marching, and removing, with nuances related to both physical movement and the wind. The word can also imply causing someone or something to set out or be led away.
נָסַע 147 vb. pull out or up, set out, journey
Qal 137
pull out or up
hence (from pulling up tent-pegs),
set out
depart
journey, march (by stages)
of wind
Niph. be pulled up, removed
Hiph.
cause to set out, lead out
remove
base
H5265 נָסַע pull out or up, set out, journey .. pull out or up
. hence (from pulling up tent-pegs), . set out
. depart
. journey, march (by stages)
. of wind
. be pulled up, removed
. . cause to set out, lead out
. remove
5265 naca` naw-sah'
a primitive root; properly, to pull up, especially the
tent-pins, i.e. start on a journey:--cause to blow, bring,
get, (make to) go (away, forth, forward, onward, out), (take)
journey, march, remove, set aside (forward), X still, be on
his (go their) way.
נָסַע (na.sa) — to set out.
1) to pull out, pull up, set out, journey, remove, set forward, depart
1a) (Qal)
1a1) to pull out or up
1a2) to set out, depart
1a3) to journey, march
1a4) to set forth (of wind)
1b) (Niphal) to be pulled up, be removed, be plucked up
1c) (Hiphil)
1c1) to cause to set out, lead out, cause to spring up
1c2) to remove, quarry
Conj | V-Qal-ConsecImperf-3mp — Verb · Qal · sequential imperfect third person masculine pluralHc/Vqw3mp
רִמֹּן פָּ֑רֶץ (rimmon-perets) means "pomegranate of the breach" and refers to a location, Rimmon-Perets, which was a station for the Israelites in the wilderness. The name is derived from two Hebrew roots, with the first relating to 'pomegranate' and the second to 'breach.'
רִמֹּן פָּ֑רֶץ n.pr.loc. station of Israel in wilderness
base
H7428 רִמֹּן פָּ֑רֶץ, רִמֹּן פֶּרֶץ
7428 Rimmon Perets rim-mone' peh'-rets
from 7416 and 6556; pomegranate of the breach; Rimmon-Perets,
a place in the Desert:--Rimmon-parez.
see HEBREW for 07416
see HEBREW for 06556
רִמֹּן פָּ֑רֶץ (rim.mon pe.rets) — Rimmon-perez.
§ Rimmon-parez = "pomegranate of the breach"
a station of Israel in the wilderness
Prep | N-proper — Preposition · noun properHR/Npl
Rimmon
Pomegranate. (1.) A man of Beeroth (2 Sam. 4:2), one of the four Gibeonite cities. (See Josh. 9:17.)
(2.) A Syrian idol, mentioned only in 2 Kings 5:18.
(3.) One of the “uttermost cities” of Judah, afterwards given to Simeon (Josh. 15:21, 32; 19:7; 1 Chr. 4:32). In Josh. 15:32 Ain and Rimmon are mentioned separately, but in 19:7 and 1 Chr. 4:32 (comp. Neh. 11:29) the two words are probably to be combined, as forming together the name of one place…
a deity worshipped by the Syrians of Damascus, where there was a temple or house of Rimmon. (2 Kings 5:18) Rimmon is perhaps the abbreviated form of Hadad-rimmon, Hadad being the sun-god of the Syrians. Combining this with the pomegranate which was his symbol, Hadad-rimmon would then he the sun-god of the late summer, who ripens the pomegranate and other fruits.
exalted; pomegranate
רִמֹּן פָּ֑רֶץ (rimmon-perets) means "pomegranate of the breach" and refers to a location, Rimmon-Perets, which was a station for the Israelites in the wilderness. The name is derived from two Hebrew roots, with the first relating to 'pomegranate' and the second to 'breach.'
רִמֹּן פָּ֑רֶץ n.pr.loc. station of Israel in wilderness
base
H7428 רִמֹּן פָּ֑רֶץ, רִמֹּן פֶּרֶץ
7428 Rimmon Perets rim-mone' peh'-rets
from 7416 and 6556; pomegranate of the breach; Rimmon-Perets,
a place in the Desert:--Rimmon-parez.
see HEBREW for 07416
see HEBREW for 06556
רִמֹּן פָּ֑רֶץ (rim.mon pe.rets) — Rimmon-perez.
§ Rimmon-parez = "pomegranate of the breach"
a station of Israel in the wilderness
N-proper — Noun properHNpl
Perez
=Pharez, (q.v.), breach, the son of Judah (Neh. 11:4). “The chief of all the captains of the host for the first month” in the reign of David was taken from his family (1 Chr. 27:3). Four hundred and sixty-eight of his “sons” came back from captivity with Zerubbabel, who himself was one of them (1 Chr. 9:4; Neh. 11:6).
(breach). The "children of Perez," or Pharez, the son of Judah, appear to have been a family of importance for many centuries. (1 Chronicles 27:3; Nehemiah 11:4,6)
divided
Perez-Uzza
division of Uzza, or of strength
→ See PHAREZ
חָנָה (chanah) is a Hebrew verb meaning to decline, bend down, or encamp. It conveys the idea of inclining or settling, particularly in the context of pitching a tent or establishing a temporary dwelling. The word appears in various forms, including the act of encamping or laying siege. It is associated with the imagery of the evening's slanting rays and the conclusion of a day's journey.
חָנָה 143 vb. decline, bend down, encamp
Qal
decline, of day drawing to its close
encamp (prop. verge toward, incline to, settle at, of goal of day’s march)
base
H2583 חָנָה decline, bend down, encamp
2583 chanah khaw-naw'
a primitive root (compare 2603); properly, to incline; by
implication, to decline (of the slanting rays of evening);
specifically, to pitch a tent; gen. to encamp (for abode or
siege):--abide (in tents), camp, dwell, encamp, grow to an
end, lie, pitch (tent), rest in tent.
see HEBREW for 02603
חָנָה (cha.nah) — to camp.
1) to decline, incline, encamp, bend down, lay siege against
1a) (Qal)
1a1) to decline
1a2) to encamp
Conj | V-Qal-ConsecImperf-3mp — Verb · Qal · sequential imperfect third person masculine pluralHc/Vqw3mp
לִבְנָה (Libnah) refers to a location in southwest Judah, noted for being captured by Joshua. It is also identified as a station for the Israelites during their wilderness journey. The name is associated with the meaning 'pavement.' The exact site remains unknown.
לִבְנָה n.pr.loc.
city in SW. Judah, exact site unknown, captured by Joshua
station of Isr. in wilderness
base
H3841 לִבְנָה . city in SW. Judah, exact site unknown, captured by Joshua
. station of Isr. in wilderness
3841 Libnah lib-naw'
the same as 3839; Libnah, a place in the Desert and one in
Palestine:--Libnah.
see HEBREW for 03839
לִבְנָה (liv.nah) — Libnah.
§ Libnah = "pavement"
a station between Sinai and Kadesh of Israel during their wilderness wanderings
לִבְנָה (liv.nah) — Libnah.
§ Libnah = "pavement"
a royal city of the Canaanites in the southwest captured by Joshua; allocated to Judah and made a Levitical city
Prep | N-proper — Preposition · noun properHR/Npl
lib'-na (libhnah "whiteness," "transparency," "pavement" (compare Ex 24:10 where libhnath, is translated "paved work" or a "compact foundation"); Lebna):
(1) A desert camp of the Israelites between Rimmon-perez and Rissah (Nu 33:20,21). Probably the same as Laban (De 1:1).
See WANDERINGS OF ISRAEL.
(2) A town in the Shephelah of Judah (Jos 15:42). "Joshua passed from Makkedah, and all Israel with him, unto Libnah, and fought against Libnah: and Yahweh delivered it also, and the king thereof, into the hand of Israel. .... And Joshua passed from Libnah, and all Israel with him, unto Lachish, and encamped against it, and fought against it" (
Libnah
Transparency; whiteness. (1.) One of the stations of the Israelites in the wilderness (Num. 33:20, 21).
(2.) One of the royal cities of the Canaanites taken by Joshua (Josh. 10:29-32; 12:15). It became one of the Levitical towns in the tribe of Judah (21:13), and was strongly fortified. Sennacherib laid siege to it (2 Kings 19:8; Isa. 37:8). It was the native place of Hamutal, the queen of Josiah (2 Kings 23:31). It stood near Lachish, and has been identified with the modern Arak el-Menshiyeh.
(whiteness). A royal city of the Canaanites which lay in the southwest part of the Holy Land, taken by Joshua immediately after the rout of Beth-horon. It was near Lachish, west of Makkedah. It was appropriated with its "suburbs" to the priests. (Joshua 21:13; 1 Chronicles 6:57) In the reign of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat it "revolted" form Judah at the same time with Edom. (2 Kings 8:22; 2 Chronicles 21:10) Probably the modern Ayak el-Menshiyeh . One of the stations at which the Israelites encamped on their journey between the wilderness of Sinai and Kadesh. (Numbers 33:20,21)
A city in the western part of Judah, not far from Lachish, conquered by Joshua from the Canaanites, and assigned to the priests, Jos 10:29,30 15:42 21:13 1Ch 6:57. Its inhabitants revolted against the idolatrous and cruel Jehoram, 2Ch 21:10. It was a strongly fortified place, and under its walls the Assyrian army was miraculously cut off, 2Ki 19:8,9,35.