Lebo-hamath
Lebo-hamath is an ancient city mentioned in the Old Testament, located in the region of Syria in modern-day Lebanon. Known today as Labweh. It appears across 12 verses in Scripture.
Biblical History
Lebo-hamath, meaning 'entrance of Hamath,' appears twelve times in Scripture as the traditional northern boundary marker of the Promised Land. God first defined it as Israel's northern limit when instructing Moses to send spies into Canaan: 'Send men to spy out the land of Canaan... from the wilderness of Zin to Lebo-hamath' (Numbers 13:21). It reappears in the boundary descriptions of Numbers 34:8 and Joshua 13:5. During Solomon's reign, Israel's influence extended to this point, fulfilling the promise: 'Solomon held the feast... from Lebo-hamath to the Brook of Egypt' (1 Kings 8:65; 2 Chronicles 7:8). The prophets also employed Lebo-hamath as a geographical reference, with Amos warning that Israel's territory 'from Lebo-hamath to the Brook of the Arabah' would face judgment (Amos 6:14). Ezekiel included it in his vision of restored tribal boundaries (Ezekiel 47:20; 48:1). The consistent use of Lebo-hamath across centuries of biblical literature, from the Torah through the prophets, underscores its role as a fixed point in Israel's theological geography, marking the full extent of God's promised inheritance.
Archaeological & Historical Notes
Lebo-hamath is identified with Labweh, a site in the Beqaa Valley of modern Lebanon, situated at the watershed between the Orontes River flowing north and the Litani River flowing south. This strategic location at a natural pass between the Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon mountain ranges makes it an ideal boundary marker between the spheres of Canaan and the kingdom of Hamath to the north. The site preserves the ancient name in its Arabic form. Archaeological surveys have confirmed occupation at Labweh during the Bronze and Iron Ages. The broader Beqaa Valley contains numerous important archaeological sites. The identification is widely accepted among scholars, as the geographical setting perfectly fits the biblical description of the northern approach to the land of Hamath.
Verse Appearances (12)
Josh
Judg
1Kgs
2Kgs
1Chr
2Chr
Amos
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]