בֶּלַע
Bela, the name of a place, also of an Edomite and of two Israelites
Definition
Bela (בֶּלַע) is a proper noun used primarily as a personal name in the Old Testament. It refers to several distinct individuals: the firstborn son of Benjamin (Genesis 46:21, Numbers 26:38), a king of Edom (Genesis 36:32-33), and a Reubenite leader (1 Chronicles 5:8). It also serves as an ancient name for the city of Zoar, one of the five cities of the plain destroyed alongside Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 14:2, 8). The name is shared across different peoples and contexts, requiring readers to distinguish its referent based on the specific passage.
Biblical Usage
The name Bela appears 14 times across Genesis, Numbers, and 1 Chronicles. In Genesis, it identifies a city (Genesis 14:2, 8) and Edomite royalty (Genesis 36:32-33). In the genealogical lists of Genesis 46:21 and Numbers 26:38, 40, it refers to a son of Benjamin, founder of the Belaites clan. In 1 Chronicles, it appears in both Edomite (1 Chronicles 1:43) and Israelite (1 Chronicles 5:8; 7:6-7; 8:1, 3) genealogies, highlighting its use in tribal and royal records.
Etymology
Bela is identical to the common noun בֶּלַע (belaʿ, H1105), meaning 'a swallowing, destruction, or devouring.' As a proper name, it likely carried a sense of 'devourer' or 'destruction,' a meaning that may have been aspirational (e.g., for a warrior) or descriptive of a place's fate, as with the city Bela (Zoar) in the doomed valley.
Semantic Range
While primarily a name, Bela's connection to the city of Zoar (Genesis 14) ties it to the narrative of God's judgment on the cities of the plain and Lot's rescue. Its use in the genealogy of Benjamin (Genesis 46:21) also places it within the lineage of the Israelite tribes, part of God's covenantal promise to Abraham. Understanding its root meaning ('destruction') may add a layer of irony or foreboding to characters bearing the name.
In ancient Semitic culture, names often described character, destiny, or parental hopes. A name like Bela ('devourer') could imply strength or ferocity, suitable for a clan founder or king. Its application to both a Canaanite city and Israelite/Edomite individuals reflects the shared onomastic (naming) traditions across the region's cultures.
Zoar (צֹעַר, H6820) — the alternate name for the city Bela. Belah (בֶּלַה, H1106 variant) — a spelling variation found in some texts for the same name.
Word Details
How this works
Hebrew definitions are from Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906) and Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (1890), both public domain. BDB was groundbreaking for its era but reflects 19th-century assumptions about Semitic etymology. Modern scholarship (HALOT, DCH) has revised many entries. Use these definitions as a starting point for exploration, not as the final word on a term's meaning in context.
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