Zabal (H2064) carries the meanings of honoring, exalting, or dwelling with someone. Leah uses this root when she names her son Zebulun: 'Now my husband will honor me' (Gen 30:20). The verb also connects to the concept of a permanent dwelling place, as the temple is called zebul — the exalted dwelling.
When Leah names Zebulun using this root, she expresses the deepest longing of a woman who felt unseen — to be truly honored in the covenant relationship of marriage. God heard her cry. The word zabal threads through the theology of divine dwelling: Solomon's temple is called God's zebul (1 Kgs 8:13). God does not merely tolerate His people — He honors them with His presence. The exalted One stoops to dwell, and in dwelling, He honors.