Original Word: לָבַן
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: laban
Pronunciation: lah-VAHN
Phonetic Spelling: (law-ban')
KJV: make brick, be (made, make) white(-r)
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to be (or become) white
2. (as denominative from H3843) to make bricks

make brick, be made, make whiter

A primitive root; to be (or become) white; also (as denominative from lbenah) to make bricks -- make brick, be (made, make) white(-r).

see HEBREW lbenah

[לָבֵן] verb be white (on ֵ֯ see Ba^{NB 166}; Lag^{BN 33}, compare 53, 54 infers לָבֹן ֗֗֗ from לְבֹנָה; Late Hebrew id., Pi`el Hiph`il, and derivatives; Phoenician לבן white; Arabic milk; also be white, dialect of Yemen, Maltzan^{ZMG xxvii, 1873, 247}; apparently √ of following fourteen words, but this dubious especially in case of II. III. לָבָן, לְבָנָא, לִבְנָה, II. לְבוֺנָה, I. II. לִבְנִי); —

Hiph`il Perfect3plural הִלְבִּינוּ Joel 1:7; Imperfect1singular אַלְבִּין Psalm 51:9; 3plural יַלְבִּינוּ Isaiah 1:18; Infinitive construct וְלַלְבֵּן (= וּלְהַלְבֵּן) Daniel 11:35; —

1 make white = purify (ethical) Daniel 11:35 (no object expressed, "" צָרַף, בָּרֵר).

2 shew whiteness, grow white, of fig-tree, stripped by locusts, Joel 1:7; figurative of moral purity, ׳כַּשֶּׁלֶג יַלְב Isaiah 1:18; ׳מִשֶּׁלֶג אַלְב Psalm 51:9.

Hithpa`el Imperfect יִתְלַבְּנוּ Daniel 12:10 be purified (ethical, "" יִתְבָּֽרֲרוּ). — לָבַן, make brick, see below

[לָבַן] verb denominative make brick (as Assyrian labânu fromlibittu Dl^{HWB 370}); —

Qal Imperfect1pluralנִלְבְּנָה Genesis 11:3 (with accusative of congnate meaning with verb); Infinitive construct לִלְבֹּן Exodus 5:7 (with accusative of congnate meaning with verb), Exodus 5:14 (absolute)

Literal Usage: Bricks and Human Endeavor

Genesis 11:3 records humanity’s first large-scale building project after the Flood: “And they said to one another, ‘Come, let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.’” The verb לָבַן describes the manufacturing of the bricks that would form the Tower of Babel, a monument to self-glory and independence from God. The same root appears in Exodus 5:7 and 5:14, where Pharaoh’s taskmasters order Israel to maintain an impossible brick quota. Thus the word marks both rebellious pride (Babel) and cruel oppression (Egypt). In both narratives the Lord intervenes—scattering the builders in Shinar and delivering Israel through the Exodus—demonstrating His sovereignty over every human structure raised against Him.

Figurative Usage: Whiteness, Cleansing, and Purity

Outside the building context, the root לָבַן takes on a moral dimension:
• Psalm 51:7 – “Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.”
• Isaiah 1:18 – “Though your sins are scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.”
• Daniel 11:35; 12:10 – End-time refinement will “purify, cleanse, and make them white.”
• Joel 1:7 – The devastation of the vine “strips off the bark and casts it white,” a picture of judgment leaving a bleached-out ruin.

Here whiteness symbolizes cleansing from sin, restoration, and refined holiness. The same root that once served human pride now portrays God’s gracious work of purification.

Redemptive Thread through Scripture

1. Babel’s bricks show the futility of self-salvation.
2. Egypt’s bricks highlight bondage from which only divine intervention can rescue.
3. The prophets and psalmist proclaim a cleansing that God alone provides, pointing forward to the atoning blood of Jesus Christ, whose transfigured garments became “dazzling white” (Mark 9:3), the ultimate fulfillment of לָבַן imagery.

Eschatological Hope

Daniel 11:35 and 12:10 link “making white” with end-time purification of the saints. The trials of the last days are not punitive only; they refine believers for eternal fellowship, echoing Revelation 7:14 where the redeemed “washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”

Ministry Implications

• Preaching: Contrast the brick-making of Babel and Egypt with God’s call to be cleansed and built into a “spiritual house” (1 Peter 2:5).
• Discipleship: Encourage believers that present trials are instruments of divine whitening, preparing a spotless Bride (Ephesians 5:27).
• Evangelism: Use Isaiah 1:18 to assure sinners that, however deep the stain, God promises a whiteness no human effort can achieve.

Summary

לָבַן moves from baked clay to purified heart—from man-made towers to God-made holiness. It warns against self-reliance, exposes oppressive systems, and ultimately celebrates the Father’s power to wash His people “whiter than snow.”

אַלְבִּֽין׃ אלבין׃ הִלְבִּ֖ינוּ הלבינו וְיִֽתְלַבְּנ֤וּ וְלַלְבֵּ֖ן ויתלבנו וללבן יַלְבִּ֔ינוּ ילבינו לִלְבֹּ֥ן לִלְבֹּן֙ ללבן נִלְבְּנָ֣ה נלבנה ’al·bîn ’albîn alBin hil·bî·nū hilBinu hilbînū lil·bōn lilBon lilbōn nil·bə·nāh nilbeNah nilbənāh velalBen veyitlabbeNu wə·lal·bên wə·yiṯ·lab·bə·nū wəlalbên wəyiṯlabbənū yal·bî·nū yalBinu yalbînūInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts