Taberah
“Burning”
Summary
Taberah was a place in the wilderness where fire from the Lord consumed Israelites who complained against Him.
☩The Burning
The name Taberah means 'burning' and was given to commemorate a severe divine judgment. As the Israelites journeyed from Horeb through the wilderness, they began to complain, and 'when the LORD heard it, his anger was kindled; and the fire of the LORD burnt among them, and consumed them that were in the uttermost parts of the camp.' The fire was only quenched when Moses interceded in prayer for the people.
☩Location and Significance
Taberah was located at the next station beyond Horeb, somewhere in the wilderness of Paran. It was close to or possibly identical with Kibroth-hattaavah, where the people later sinned by lusting for meat. Some scholars argue they were the same location because the fire consumed those 'in the uttermost parts of the camp' and Taberah is not separately listed in the itinerary of Numbers 33. Deuteronomy 9:22 lists Taberah alongside Massah and Kibroth-hattaavah as places where Israel provoked the Lord, showing the pattern of rebellion that characterized the wilderness generation.
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Taberah," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. X (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Taberah," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. V (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
- 3.George Morrish, "Taberah," in Morrish's Concise Bible Dictionary (George Morrish, 1898).
- 4.Andrew Robert Fausset, "Taberah," in The Englishman's Critical and Expository Bible Cyclopædia (Hodder & Stoughton, 1878).