Mesha
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Mesha was a Moabite king who reigned around 870 BCE. The Moabites were a West-Semitic people who lived east of the Dead Sea. They were closely related to the Israelites, with their ancestral founder, Moab, being the nephew of Abraham. Their national god was Chemosh, similar to how Yahweh was the god of the Israelites.12
Mesha is known primarily from the Moabite Stone, a black basalt inscription he erected. This stone details his successful rebellion against Israel, which had previously conquered Moabite lands. Mesha recounts how King Omri of Israel had reconquered Moab, and he attributes the renewed Israelite domination to the anger of Chemosh. Mesha's inscription describes his own victories and liberation of Moab from Israelite rule, likely occurring during the reign of Omri's successor, Ahab. The Moabites eventually disappeared from history after being conquered by the Babylonians in 582 BCE.12
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- Moabite
ā¦stela that the Moabite king Mesha erected about 40 years later in the city of Dibon (modern Dhiban, Jordan). This black basalt stone, 1.1 m (44 inches) high, was discovered at Dhiban in 1868 and is now in the Louvre Museum in Paris. The stoneās text of 34 lines, writtenā¦
Read Moreā¦stela that the Moabite king Mesha erected about 40 years later in the city of Dibon (modern Dhiban, Jordan). This black basalt stone, 1.1 m (44 inches) high, was discovered at Dhiban in 1868 and is now in the Louvre Museum in Paris. The stoneās text of 34 lines, writtenā¦
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Syrian and Palestinian religionDevelopments in the 1st millennium bceKing MeshaŹæ of Moab interprets Israelās occupation of his country as a consequence of Chemoshās anger with his land. He claims that, at Chemoshās direction, he reconquered land occupied by Israel, and he attributes his success to Chemosh. He reports that he dedicated the Israelite inhabitantsā¦
Read MoreKing MeshaŹæ of Moab interprets Israelās occupation of his country as a consequence of Chemoshās anger with his land. He claims that, at Chemoshās direction, he reconquered land occupied by Israel, and he attributes his success to Chemosh. He reports that he dedicated the Israelite inhabitantsā¦
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