Moab

Moab was an ancient kingdom located east of the Dead Sea in the central Transjordan region, in what is now the country of Jordan. The Moabites were a Semitic People from Moab, the son of Lot by his elder daughter (Gen. 19:37).

The Moabites first appear in the biblical record at the time of the Exodus. Balak, the king of Moab, feared the Israelites and hired Balaam to curse them (Num. 22-24). The Moabites worshipped the god Chemosh and induced some Israelites to join in their idolatrous sacrifices (Num. 25:1-2).

Throughout the time of the judges and early monarchy, the Moabites were in frequent conflict with Israel. King Saul fought against them (1 Sam. 14:47), and David subjugated them and made them tributaries (2 Sam. 8:2,12). After the division of the kingdom, the Moabites regained their independence.

During the reign of King Omri of Israel (c. 884-872 BC), who is mentioned in 1 Kings 16:23-28, Moabite lands were reconquered. However, about 40 years later, the Moabite king Mesha rebelled against Israel, as recorded on the famous Moabite Stone discovered in 1868 in Dibon (modern Dhiban, Jordan).

The prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Amos all prophesied against Moab (Isa. 15-16, Jer. 48, Ezek. 25:8-11, Amos 2:1-2). After the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC, some Jews took refuge in Moab (Jer. 40:11). Moab disappears as a nation from the historical record sometime during the Persian period.