Where was the biblical city of Dibon located?

Dibon was an ancient city located in the Transjordan region, east of the Dead Sea, in what is now modern-day Jordan. The archaeological site is known today as Tall Dhiban.

What happened at Dibon in the Bible?

The Bible mentions Dibon in the context of the Israelites' conquest and settlement. It was rebuilt by the tribe of Gad, as noted in Numbers 32:34, and later became a Moabite city.

Why is Dibon significant in biblical history?

Dibon is significant as a key location in the Transjordan, representing the territories allotted to the tribes of Reuben and Gad. Its mention highlights the geographical scope of Israelite settlement and their interactions with neighboring kingdoms like Moab.

Dibon

cityOld TestamentTransjordan1 verse

Today Tall DhibanCountry IsraelCoordinates 31.502, 35.777

Dibon is an ancient city mentioned in the Old Testament, located in the region of Transjordan in modern-day Israel. Known today as Tall Dhiban. It appears across 1 verse in Scripture.

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Biblical History

This Dibon appears in Numbers 33:45–46 in the list of Israelite wilderness camping stations, identified as Dibon-gad, where the Israelites encamped during their wilderness wandering east of the Jordan. The site is located on the Moabite plateau north of the Arnon River (Wadi Mujib) in modern Jordan. At the time of the Conquest, the region around Dibon was controlled by the Amorite king Sihon, whom Israel defeated (Numbers 21:21–31). After the victory, Dibon fell within the allotment of Gad and Reuben (Numbers 32:34). The city's brief appearance in the wilderness itinerary places it within the final stages of Israel's forty-year journey, a moment of transition as the nation prepared to cross into the promised land. The Moabite associations of Dibon deepen through the prophetic literature, where the city is frequently cited as a symbol of Moab's pride and coming judgment. Though this entry focuses on the wilderness-itinerary appearance, the fuller significance of Dibon is inseparable from its place in Moabite history and the discovery of the Mesha Stele.

Archaeological & Historical Notes

Dibon is identified with Tall Dhiban, located approximately four kilometers north of the Arnon gorge (Wadi Mujib) in modern Jordan. The site was excavated by the American Schools of Oriental Research between 1950 and 1956, revealing occupation from the Early Bronze Age through the Islamic period. The most celebrated discovery associated with Dibon is the Mesha Stele (Moabite Stone), found in 1868 near the site, bearing a ninth-century BC inscription of Moabite King Mesha celebrating his victory over Israel and mentioning both the "house of David" and the divine name YHWH. The stele provides extraordinary extrabiblical confirmation of biblical events during the divided monarchy period.

Verse Appearances (1)

Neh

Neh 11:25

References

Orr, J. (ed.) (1915) The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Chicago: Howard-Severance Company. [Public Domain]
OpenBible.info (n.d.) Bible Geocoding. Available at: https://www.openbible.info/geo/. [CC BY 4.0]
Bagnall, R. et al. (eds.) (n.d.) Pleiades: A Gazetteer of Past Places. Available at: https://pleiades.stoa.org. [CC BY 3.0]
Wikidata contributors (n.d.) Wikidata. Available at: https://www.wikidata.org. [CC0]
Lawrence, D. et al. (2025) Villages to Empires: a settlement dataset for the Southern Levant. doi:10.5281/zenodo.15111732. [CC BY 4.0]
Church of England (1769) The Holy Bible, Authorized (King James) Version. [Public Domain]

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