Lexical Summary Bath-rabbim: Bath-rabbim Original Word: בּת רַבִּים Strong's Exhaustive Concordance Bath-rabbim From bath and a masculine plural from rab; the daughter (i.e. City) of Rabbah -- Bath-rabbim. see HEBREW bath see HEBREW rab NAS Exhaustive Concordance Word Originfrom bath and rab Definition "daughter of multitudes," a name for Heshbon or its gate NASB Translation Bath-rabbim (1). Brown-Driver-Briggs בַּתרַֿבִּים proper name, of a location (daughter of multitudes) appellation of populous city of Heshbon, or of its gate, Cant 7:5 ("" חֶשְׁבּוֺן). Topical Lexicon Entry Overview Bath-rabbim appears once in Scripture, in Song of Songs 7:4, where the bride’s eyes are compared to “pools in Heshbon by the gate of Bath-rabbim”. The name itself can be rendered “daughter of multitudes” and likely denotes a populous sector or gateway of the Transjordan city of Heshbon. Geographical Setting Heshbon lay in the high table-land east of the Jordan River, territory once held by the Amorite king Sihon, later allotted to Reuben (Numbers 21:25–26; Joshua 13:15–17). Archaeology identifies the site with modern Ḥesbān in Jordan, where extensive water-storage systems—large reservoirs fed by springs—have been uncovered. A gate titled “Bath-rabbim” would have opened toward one of these engineered pools, functioning as a civic center where trade, judgment, and social life converged. The epithet “daughter of multitudes” suits an entrance that admitted crowds and symbolized the city’s vigor. Literary and Poetic Function in Song of Songs The Song layers sensory images to praise the bride’s beauty. By invoking the pools of Heshbon, Solomon draws on: 1. Clarity and depth—still waters that mirror the sky, evoking tranquil, transparent eyes. The single mention thus anchors a personal compliment in real geography, rooting romantic devotion in concrete covenantal land. Theological and Spiritual Significance 1. Provision and Refreshment: As Heshbon’s reservoirs sustained a community, so godly affection and spiritual insight sustain marriage and fellowship. Lessons for Christian Ministry • Discipleship resembles water storage: leaders dig deep reservoirs of truth to nourish many. Intertextual Resonance Heshbon’s pools recall other salvation-water motifs—Isaiah’s “wells of salvation” (Isaiah 12:3) and Christ’s living water promise (John 4:14). The bridal eyes poised at a city gate prefigure the Church as “the wife of the Lamb” (Revelation 21:9–12), whose gates are perpetually open to the nations’ multitudes. Summary Bath-rabbim serves as more than a rare toponym; it frames the eyes of the bride as clear, life-giving, and guarded, while weaving civic imagery into covenant love. Historically rooted in the water-rich precincts of Heshbon, it resonates theologically with themes of provision, protection, and missional abundance—encouraging believers to cultivate depth with God that refreshes many. Forms and Transliterations רַבִּ֔ים רבים rab·bîm rabBim rabbîmLinks Interlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel TextsEnglishman's Concordance Songs 7:4 HEB: שַׁ֙עַר֙ בַּת־ רַבִּ֔ים אַפֵּךְ֙ כְּמִגְדַּ֣ל NAS: By the gate of Bath-rabbim; Your nose KJV: by the gate of Bathrabbim: thy nose INT: By the gate of Bath-rabbim your nose the tower 1 Occurrence |
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