King Mesha and the Tribe of Dibon

The Mesha Inscription has attracted much attention and scholarly debate ever since its discovery. King Mesha of Moab, mentioned in the Bible, threw off the yoke of Omride supremacy and reigned from his capital of Dibon over a kingdom that extended both north and south of the Wadi Mujib (the river Ar...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Van Der Steen, Eveline J. (Author) ; Smelik, Klaas A. D. 1950- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Sage 2007
In: Journal for the study of the Old Testament
Year: 2007, Volume: 32, Issue: 2, Pages: 139-162
Further subjects:B Dibon
B state formation
B Moab
B Kir-Hareseth
B Mesha
B Tribes
B Carchoh
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Parallel Edition:Electronic
Description
Summary:The Mesha Inscription has attracted much attention and scholarly debate ever since its discovery. King Mesha of Moab, mentioned in the Bible, threw off the yoke of Omride supremacy and reigned from his capital of Dibon over a kingdom that extended both north and south of the Wadi Mujib (the river Arnon). The identification of modern-day Dhiban with Dibon has never been doubted. In this article, however, it is suggested that Dibon, mentioned in the inscription, was not Mesha's capital, but the tribe of which he was the leader. Mesha forged a tribal confederation into a tribal kingdom in Moab. The name of Mesha's capital was Carchoh, also mentioned in the inscription and located at present-day Dhiban. Biblical Kir-Hareseth is identified with this same Carchoh, and the heartland of Mesha's kingdom is north of the Wadi Mujib.
ISSN:1476-6728
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal for the study of the Old Testament
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1177/0309089207085880