Numbers 32:38
in Numbers 32as well as Nebo and Baal-meon (whose names were changed), and Sibmah. And they renamed the cities they rebuilt.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
and Nebo, and Baal-meon, (their names being changed,) and Sibmah: and they gave other names unto the cities which they builded.
KJV
And Nebo, and Baal–meon, (their names being changed,) and Shibmah: and gave other names unto the cities which they builded.
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This verse in Numbers 32
Commentary
8 notes on this verseAnd Nebo - their names being changed - That is, Those who conquered the cities called them after their own names. Thus the city Kenath, being conquered by Nobah, was called after his name, Num 32:42.
This site's exposition
The Reubenites built up Heshbon
on Numbers 32:37-38
Two of Reuben's towns, Nebo and Baal-meon, carry the names of gods, and the text marks it: "whose names were changed". Jamieson, Fausset and Brown read the change against Exodus 23:13, "You must not invoke the names of other gods".
This site's exposition
whose names were changed
Matthew Henry reads the renaming as an effort to bury the idols in oblivion. He sets it beside Hosea 2:17, where God removes the names of the Baals from Israel's lips. Albert Barnes notes that Sibmah later became famous for its vines, which Isaiah 16:8 mourns.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
13 ), and which, by changing the names of these cities, they endeavoured to bury in oblivion; and God promises to take away the names of Baalim out of the mouths of his people, Hos. ii. Lastly, It is observable that, as these tribes were now first placed before the other tribes, so, long afterwards, they were displaced before the other tribes.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-citation-number+unbalanced-parens
Jazer - A city and country of the Amorites; Gilead - A mountainous country, famous for pasturage 6. Ye sit here - In ease and peace, while your brethren are engaged in a bloody war.
And Nebo, and Baalmeon, (their names being changed,)....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
(their names being changed)--either because it was the general custom of conquerors to do so; or, rather, because from the prohibition to mention the names of other gods (Ex 23:13), as Nebo and Baal were, it was expedient on the first settlement of the Israelites to obliterate all remembrance of those idols.
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Atroth, Shophan, and Jaazer, &c.--Jaazer, near a famed fountain, Ain Hazier, the waters of which flow into Wady Schaib, about fifteen miles from Hesbon. Elealeh (Hebrew, "the high"), now Elaal; Kirjathaim (Hebrew, "the double city");
The words behind it
16 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְאֶת־ | veet | and <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| נְב֞וֹ | nevo | Nebo | H5015 → | 13 times |
| וְאֶת־ | veet | and <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| בַּ֧עַל | baal | Baal | H1186 → | |
| מְע֛וֹן | meon | Meon | H1186 → | |
| מֽוּסַבֹּ֥ת | musabot | changed | H5437 → | 161 times |
| שֵׁ֖ם | shem | name | H8034 → | 864 times |
| וְאֶת־ | veet | and <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| שִׂבְמָ֑ה | sivmah | Sibmah | H7643 → | |
| וַיִּקְרְא֣וּ | vaiyikreu | and they called | H7121 → | 733 times |
| בְשֵׁמֹ֔ת | veshemot | by names | H8034 → | 864 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| שְׁמ֥וֹת | shemot | [the] names of | H8034 → | 864 times |
| הֶעָרִ֖ים | hearim | the cities | H5892 → | 1090 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֥ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| בָּנֽוּ׃ | banu | they had built | H1129 → | 376 times |
וְאֶת־and <obj.>
veetH853 →10935 times
נְב֞וֹNebo
nevoH5015 →13 times
וְאֶת־and <obj.>
veetH853 →10935 times
בַּ֧עַלBaal
baalH1186 →
מְע֛וֹןMeon
meonH1186 →
מֽוּסַבֹּ֥תchanged
musabotH5437 →161 times
שֵׁ֖םname
shemH8034 →864 times
וְאֶת־and <obj.>
veetH853 →10935 times
שִׂבְמָ֑הSibmah
sivmahH7643 →
וַיִּקְרְא֣וּand they called
vaiyikreuH7121 →733 times
בְשֵׁמֹ֔תby names
veshemotH8034 →864 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
שְׁמ֥וֹת[the] names of
shemotH8034 →864 times
הֶעָרִ֖יםthe cities
hearimH5892 →1090 times
אֲשֶׁ֥רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
בָּנֽוּ׃they had built
banuH1129 →376 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Exodus 23:13Pay close attention to everything I have said to you. You must not invoke the names of other gods; they must not be heard on your lips.
it leads to
- Zechariah 13:2
And on that day, declares the LORD of Hosts, I will erase the names of the idols from the land, and they will no longer be remembered. I will also remove the prophets and…
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Hosea 2:17
For I will remove from her lips the names of the Baals; no longer will their names be invoked.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Joshua 23:7
So you are not to associate with these nations that remain among you. You must not call on the names of their gods or swear by them, and you must not serve them or…
- Deuteronomy 4:9
Only be on your guard and diligently watch yourselves, so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen, and so that they do not slip from your heart as long as…
- 1 Timothy 4:16
Pay close attention to your life and to your teaching. Persevere in these things, for by so doing you will save both yourself and those who hear you.
- Zechariah 13:2
Through
Joshua 23:7So you are not to associate with these nations that remain among you. You must not call on the names of their gods or swear by them, and you must not serve them or…
it leads to
- Psalms 16:4
Sorrows will multiply to those who chase other gods. I will not pour out their libations of blood, or speak their names with my lips.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Exodus 23:13
Pay close attention to everything I have said to you. You must not invoke the names of other gods; they must not be heard on your lips.
- Psalms 16:4
Through
Isaiah 46:1Bel crouches; Nebo cowers. Their idols weigh down beasts and cattle. The images you carry are burdensome, a load to the weary animal.
it leads to
- Isaiah 21:9
Look, here come the riders, horsemen in pairs.” And one answered, saying: “Fallen, fallen is Babylon! All the images of her gods lie shattered on the ground!”
- Isaiah 21:9
Where this verse is studied
About Numbers
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.