Lebanon, a mountainous region north of Israel, known for its cedar trees and as a symbol of strength and beauty (1Ki.4.33; Psalm 92:12).
Lebanon is a mountainous region located north of Israel, known for its majestic cedar trees and natural beauty. It is mentioned numerous times throughout the Old Testament. The cedars of Lebanon were highly prized for their quality and were used in the construction of the Temple and other important buildings (1Ki.5.6, 9, 14; 2Ch.2.8, 16; Ezra 3:7). Lebanon is often used as a symbol of strength, prosperity, and beauty (Psalm 72:16; 92:12; Sng.4.11, 15; 5:15). It is also mentioned in the context of God's power and judgment (Psalm 29:5, 6; Isaiah 2:13; 10:34; Jeremiah 22:6, 23; Habakkuk 2:17). Lebanon is described as part of the Promised Land (Deu.1.7; 11:24; Joshua 1:4) and was a region where some Canaanite inhabitants remained (Judges 3:3). The beauty and majesty of Lebanon are used to illustrate the glory and splendor of the future kingdom of God (Isaiah 35:2; 60:13; Hosea 14:5-7).
Approximate location: 33.752, 35.591 · view on a map · on the Bible atlas
White, “the white mountain of Syria,” is the loftiest and most celebrated mountain range in Syria. It is a branch running southward from the Caucasus, and at its lower end forking into two parallel ranges, the eastern or Anti-Lebanon, and the western or Lebanon proper. They enclose a long valley (Josh. 11:17) of from 5 to 8 miles in width, called by Roman writers Coele-Syria, now called el-Buka’a, “the valley,” a prolongation of the valley of the Jordan. Lebanon proper, Jebel es-Sharki, commences at its southern extremity in the gorge of the Leontes, the ancient Litany, and extends north-east, parallel to the Mediterranean coast, as far as the river Eleutherus, at the plain of Emesa, “the entering of Hamath” (Num. 34:8; 1 Kings 8:65), in all about 90 geographical miles in extent. The average height of this range is from 6,000 to 8,000 feet; the peak of Jebel Mukhmel is about 10,200 feet, and the Sannin about 9,000. The highest peaks are covered with perpetual snow and ice. In the recesses of the range wild beasts as of old still abound (2 Kings 14:9; Cant. 4:8). The scenes of the Lebanon are remarkable for their grandeur and beauty, and supplied the sacred writers with many expressive similes (Ps. 29:5, 6; 72:16; 104:16-18; Cant. 4:15; Isa. 2:13; 35:2; 60:13; Hos. 14:5). It is famous for its cedars (Cant. 5:15), its wines (Hos. 14:7), and its cool waters (Jer. 18:14). The ancient inhabitants were Giblites and Hivites (Josh. 13:5; Judg. 3:3). It was part of the Phoenician kingdom (1 Kings 5:2-6). The eastern range, or Anti-Lebanon, or “Lebanon towards the sunrising,” runs nearly parallel with the western from the plain of Emesa till it connects with the hills of Galilee in the south. The height of this range is about 5,000 feet. Its highest peak is Hermon (q.v.), from…
a mountain range in the north of Palestine. The name Lebanon signifies white, and was applied either on account of snow which, during a great part of the year, cover its whole summit, or on account of the white color of its limestone cliffs and peaks. It is the “white mountain”—the Mont Blane of Palestine. Lebanon is represented in Scripture as lying upon the northern border of the land of Israel. (1:7; 11:24; Joshua 1:4) Two distinct ranges bear this name. They run in parallel lines from southwest to northeast for about 90 geographical miles, enclosing between them a long, fertile valley from five to eight miles wide, anciently called Coele-Syria . The western range is the “Libanus” of the old geographers and the Lebanon of Scripture. The eastern range was called “Anti-Libanus” by geographers, and “Lebanon toward the sunrising” by the sacred writers. (Joshua 13:5)
LEB'ANON (exceeding white, viz., with snow, as Mont Blanc), a double mountain-range to the north of Palestine, consisting of a western chain, Lebanon proper, and an eastern, "Lebanon toward the sun-rising," Josh 13:5; or by classic writers, Anti-Libanus, and enclosing a valley from 5 to 8 miles broad — "the valley of Lebanon," Josh 11:17; or by classic writers, Coelo-Syria, the present El-Bukua, which connects to the north with the valley of the Orontes, and to the south with the valley of the Jordan. The western range, the Lebanon proper, begins on the north near the banks of the Eleutherus, which passes through the plain of Emesa, the "entrance of Hamath," Num 34:8, to the Mediterranean, and runs for a distance of 90 geographical miles, in the direction from north-east to south-west, parallel with the Mediterranean, to the banks of the Litany, the ancient Leontes, which, draining Coelo-Syria and breaking through the Lebanon by a wild gorge, enters the Mediterranean a few miles north of Tyre. The average height of this range is from 6000 to 8000 feet. Its highest peaks are Jebel Mukhmel, 10,200 feet, and Sannin, 9000 feet. The line of cultivation runs at an elevation of about 6000 feet. The peaks which pass beyond this line are generally barren and covered with small fragments of limestone, through which the naked rocks jut up in jagged points. The highest of them, however, are covered with perpetual snow and ice, towering aloft in their glittering magnificence, visible far off by sea and by land, and sending forth streams of cooled air over the scorched plains of Syria and Palestine. The eastern descent toward Coelo-Syria is steep, wild, often forbidding; but to View of Lebanon from the Sea. the west the Lebanon descends gradually through broad terraces to the…
LEB'ANON (exceeding white, viz., with snow, as Mont Blanc), a double mountain-range to the north of Palestine, consisting of a western chain, Lebanon proper, and an eastern, "Lebanon toward the sun-rising," Josh 13:5; or by classic writers, Anti-Libanus, and enclosing a valley from 5 to 8 miles broad — "the valley of Lebanon," Josh 11:17; or by classic writers, Coelo-Syria, the present El-Bukua, which connects to the north with the valley of the Orontes, and to the south with the valley of the Jordan. The western range, the Lebanon proper, begins on the north near the banks of the Eleutherus, which passes through the plain of Emesa, the "entrance of Hamath," Num 34:8, to the Mediterranean, and runs for a distance of 90 geographical miles, in the direction from north-east to south-west, parallel with the Mediterranean, to the banks of the Litany, the ancient Leontes, which, draining Coelo-Syria and breaking through the Lebanon by a wild gorge, enters the Mediterranean a few miles north of Tyre. The average height of this range is from 6000 to 8000 feet. Its highest peaks are Jebel Mukhmel, 10,200 feet, and Sannin, 9000 feet. The line of cultivation runs at an elevation of about 6000 feet. The peaks which pass beyond this line are generally barren and covered with small fragments of limestone, through which the naked rocks jut up in jagged points. The highest of them, however, are covered with perpetual snow and ice, towering aloft in their glittering magnificence, visible far off by sea and by land, and sending forth streams of cooled air over the scorched plains of Syria and Palestine. The eastern descent toward Coelo-Syria is steep, wild, often forbidding; but to View of Lebanon from the Sea. the west the Lebanon descends gradually through broad terraces to the…
Easton (1897), Smith (1863), Hitchcock (1869), Hastings (1898) and Schaff are in the public domain. Parsed text: neuu-org/bible-dictionary-dataset (CC BY 4.0). Headwords and whitespace normalised for this site.
56 verses in 16 books · English text: BSB (change it from the menu at the top) · Strong’s H3844
Resume your journey and go to the hill country of the Amorites; go to all the neighboring peoples in the Arabah, in the hill country, in the foothills, in the Negev, and along the seacoast to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great River Euphrates.
Please let me cross over and see the good land beyond the Jordan—that pleasant hill country as well as Lebanon!”
Every place where the sole of your foot treads will be yours. Your territory will extend from the wilderness to Lebanon, and from the Euphrates River to the Western Sea.
Your territory shall extend from the wilderness and Lebanon to the great River Euphrates—all the land of the Hittites—and west as far as the Great Sea.
Now when news of this reached all the kings west of the Jordan—those in the hill country, the foothills, and all along the coast of the Great Sea toward Lebanon (the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites)—
the land of the Gebalites; and all Lebanon to the east, from Baal-gad below Mount Hermon to Lebo-hamath.
All the inhabitants of the hill country from Lebanon to Misrephoth-maim—all the Sidonians—I Myself will drive out before the Israelites. Be sure to divide it by lot as an inheritance to Israel, as I have commanded you.
But the thornbush replied, ‘If you really are anointing me as king over you, come and find refuge in my shade. But if not, may fire come out of the thornbush and consume the cedars of Lebanon.’
He spoke of trees, from the cedar in Lebanon to the hyssop growing in the wall, and he taught about animals, birds, reptiles, and fish.
Now therefore, order that cedars of Lebanon be cut down for me. My servants will be with your servants, and I will pay your servants whatever wages you set, for you know that there are none among us as skilled in logging as the Sidonians.”
My servants will haul the logs from Lebanon to the Sea, and I will float them as rafts by sea to the place you specify. There I will separate the logs, and you can take them away. And in exchange, you can meet my needs by providing my household with food.”
He sent them to Lebanon in monthly shifts of 10,000 men, so that they would spend one month in Lebanon and two months at home. And Adoniram was in charge of the forced labor.
as well as all the store cities that Solomon had for his chariots and horses—whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, Lebanon, and throughout the land of his dominion.
But Jehoash king of Israel replied to Amaziah king of Judah: “A thistle in Lebanon sent a message to a cedar in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage.’ Then a wild beast in Lebanon came along and trampled the thistle.
Through your servants you have taunted the Lord, and you have said: “With my many chariots I have ascended to the heights of the mountains, to the remote peaks of Lebanon. I have cut down its tallest cedars, the finest of its cypresses. I have reached its farthest outposts, the densest of its forests.
Send me also cedar, cypress, and algum logs from Lebanon, for I know that your servants have skill to cut timber there. And indeed, my servants will work with yours
We will cut logs from Lebanon, as many as you need, and we will float them to you as rafts by sea down to Joppa. Then you can take them up to Jerusalem.”
as well as Baalath, all the store cities that belonged to Solomon, and all the cities for his chariots and horses—whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem, Lebanon, and throughout the land of his dominion.
But Jehoash king of Israel replied to Amaziah king of Judah: “A thistle in Lebanon sent a message to a cedar in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage.’ Then a wild beast in Lebanon came along and trampled the thistle.
They gave money to the masons and carpenters, and food and drink and oil to the people of Sidon and Tyre to bring cedar logs from Lebanon to Joppa by sea, as authorized by Cyrus king of Persia.
The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars; the LORD shatters the cedars of Lebanon.
He makes Lebanon skip like a calf, and Sirion like a young wild ox.
May there be an abundance of grain in the land; may it sway atop the hills. May its fruit trees flourish like the forests of Lebanon, the people of its cities like the grass of the field.
The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
The trees of the LORD have their fill, the cedars of Lebanon that He planted,
King Solomon has made his carriage out of the timber of Lebanon.
Come with me from Lebanon, my bride, come with me from Lebanon! Descend from the peak of Amana, from the summits of Senir and Hermon, from the dens of the lions, from the mountains of the leopards.
Your lips, my bride, drip sweetness like the honeycomb; honey and milk are under your tongue, and the fragrance of your garments is like the aroma of Lebanon.
You are a garden spring, a well of fresh water flowing down from Lebanon.
His legs are pillars of marble set on bases of pure gold. His appearance is like Lebanon, as majestic as the cedars.
Your neck is like a tower made of ivory; your eyes are like the pools of Heshbon by the gate of Bath-rabbim; your nose is like the tower of Lebanon, facing toward Damascus.
against all the cedars of Lebanon, lofty and lifted up, against all the oaks of Bashan,
He will clear the forest thickets with an axe, and Lebanon will fall before the Mighty One.
Even the cypresses and cedars of Lebanon exult over you: “Since you have been laid low, no woodcutter comes against us.”
In a very short time, will not Lebanon become an orchard, and the orchard seem like a forest?
The land mourns and languishes; Lebanon is ashamed and decayed. Sharon is like a desert; Bashan and Carmel shake off their leaves.
It will bloom profusely and rejoice with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God.
Through your servants you have taunted the Lord, and you have said: “With my many chariots I have ascended to the heights of the mountains, to the remote peaks of Lebanon. I have cut down its tallest cedars, the finest of its cypresses. I have reached its farthest heights, the densest of its forests.
Lebanon is not sufficient for fuel, nor its animals enough for a burnt offering.
The glory of Lebanon will come to you— its cypress, elm, and boxwood together— to adorn the place of My sanctuary, and I will glorify the place of My feet.
Does the snow of Lebanon ever leave its rocky slopes? Or do its cool waters flowing from a distance ever run dry?
For this is what the LORD says concerning the house of the king of Judah: “You are like Gilead to Me, like the summit of Lebanon; but I will surely turn you into a desert, like cities that are uninhabited.
Go up to Lebanon and cry out; raise your voice in Bashan; cry out from Abarim, for all your lovers have been crushed.
O inhabitant of Lebanon, nestled in the cedars, how you will groan when pangs of anguish come upon you, agony like a woman in labor.”
and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘A great eagle with great wings and long pinions, full of feathers of many colors, came to Lebanon and took away the top of the cedar.
They constructed all your planking with cypress from Senir. They took a cedar from Lebanon to make a mast for you.
Look at Assyria, a cedar in Lebanon, with beautiful branches that shaded the forest. It towered on high; its top was among the clouds.
This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘On the day it was brought down to Sheol, I caused mourning. I covered the deep because of it; I held back its rivers; its abundant waters were restrained. I made Lebanon mourn for it, and all the trees of the field fainted because of it.
I made the nations quake at the sound of its downfall, when I cast it down to Sheol with those who descend to the Pit. Then all the trees of Eden, the choicest and best of Lebanon, all the well-watered trees, were consoled in the earth below.
I will be like the dew to Israel; he will blossom like the lily and take root like the cedars of Lebanon.
His shoots will sprout, and his splendor will be like the olive tree, his fragrance like the cedars of Lebanon.
They will return and dwell in his shade; they will grow grain and blossom like the vine. His renown will be like the wine of Lebanon.
He rebukes the sea and dries it up; He makes all the rivers run dry. Bashan and Carmel wither, and the flower of Lebanon wilts.
For your violence against Lebanon will overwhelm you, and the destruction of animals will terrify you, because of your bloodshed against men and your violence against the land, the city, and all their dwellers.
I will bring them back from Egypt and gather them from Assyria. I will bring them to Gilead and Lebanon until no more room is found for them.
Open your doors, O Lebanon, that the fire may consume your cedars!
Names, family links and references: STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). Short descriptions were drafted with AI assistance by STEPBible. Family links follow STEPBible’s scholarly decisions where genealogies are ambiguous.