Mesha (2 Kings 3:4)

1. King of Moab in the ninth century BC whose name is derived from a root meaning “to save or deliver.” According to 2 Kings 3:4–5, Mesha was a sheep breeder who paid heavy tribute to Israel during the time of Ahab but rebelled after Ahab’s death (2 Kgs 1:1). Later, Jehoram the son of Ahab joined with Jehoshaphat of Judah and the king of Edom in an attempt to reestablish hegemony over Moab. When the battle went against the Moabites, Mesha took his eldest son and offered him as a human sacrifice upon the wall of the city to the Moabite god Chemosh (3:27).