| Next revision | Previous revision |
| mesha_stele:lemaire [2025/08/07 06:40] – created graham | mesha_stele:lemaire [2025/08/07 07:43] (current) – graham |
|---|
| - I am Mesha, son of Kemosh‑yît, king of Moab, the Dibonite. | * I am Mesha, son of Kemoshyat, king of Moab, the Dibonite. |
| - My father reigned over Moab thirty years; and I reigned after my father. | * My father reigned over Moab thirty years, and I reigned after my father. |
| - I made this high place for Kemosh in Qarho, a sanctuary of salvation, because he saved me from all my enemies and brought me back from all around. | * I made this high place for Kemosh in Qarho because he saved me from all the kings and made me look down on all my enemies. |
| - Omri king of Israel oppressed Moab many days; and Kemosh was angry with his land. | * Omri was king of Israel, and he oppressed Moab many days, for Kemosh was angry with his land. |
| - So Omri took possession of the land of Medeba, and lived there during his days and half the days of his son—forty years. | * And his son succeeded him, and he too said: I will oppress Moab. In my days, he said so. |
| - But in my days, Kemosh restored it in full. | * But I looked down on him and on his house, and Israel has gone to ruin forever! |
| - And I built Baal‑meon and I made in it the reservoir. | * Omri had taken possession of the whole land of Medeba, and he lived there during his days and half the days of his son, forty years. |
| - I built Kiriathaim. | * But Kemosh restored it in my days. I built Baal-Meon, and I made in it a reservoir. |
| - The men of Gad dwelt in Ataroth from of old; and the king of Israel built Ataroth for himself. | * I built Kiriathaim. |
| - But I fought against the city and captured it, and I killed all of them for the delight of Kemosh and Moab, and I brought back from there the altar hearth of its devotee and dragged it before Kemosh in Qerioth. | * The men of Gad had dwelled in Ataroth from of old, and the king of Israel built Ataroth for himself. |
| - And I settled in it (two hundred) select men from Moab and from the land of Madmen. | * But I fought against the city and captured it. I killed all the people from the city as a sacrifice for Kemosh and for Moab. |
| - And Kemosh said to me, “Go down, fight against Nebo, and take it!” | * And I brought back from there the altar-hearth of his beloved, and I dragged it before Kemosh in Kerioth. |
| - So I went down by night and fought against it from dawn till noon, and I captured it and killed of them seventy consecutive cities — men, women, boys, girls—and devoted them to Ashtar‑Kemosh. | * I settled in it the men of Sharon and the men of Maharith. |
| - And I captured the vessels of Yahweh and dragged them before Kemosh. | * And Kemosh said to me, "Go, take Nebo from Israel!" |
| - And the king of Israel built Jahaz and lived there while fighting against me. | * So I went by night and fought against it from the break of dawn till noon. |
| - But Kemosh drove him out before me; and I captured it, along with two hundred men from Moab, all of them men, and I placed them in Jahaz. | * And I took it and killed all of them: 7,000 men, boys, women, girls, and maidservants, for I had devoted them to Ashtar-Kemosh. |
| - I built Aroer, and I made the road across the Arnon. | * And from there I took the vessels of Yahweh, and I dragged them before Kemosh. |
| - I built Beth‑bamoth, for it was destroyed; I built Bezer, for it lay in ruins. | * And the king of Israel had built Jahaz and lived in it while he fought against me, but Kemosh drove him out before me. |
| - And I built the house of the king; and I made for himself cells for the prisoners. | * I took from Moab 200 men, all its warriors, and I led them up against Jahaz and seized it to add it to Dibon. |
| - And the men of Dibon were obedient to me. | * I built Aroer, and I made the highway in the Arnon valley. |
| - And I had the land of Medeba, and I caused those dwelling in [Yah]us to dwell in it, and the men of Sopher‑maon, for it was destroyed. | * I built Beth-Bamoth, for it was destroyed. I built Bezer, for it was in ruins. |
| - And I built [Hawr]onān, and I brought there therefrom the sheep of the land; and Horonain, in it dwelt the ?? House of David??. | * And the men of Dibon were armed, for all of Dibon was under my command. |
| - And Kemosh said to me, “Go down, fight against Horonain!” So I went down and took it, and killed all of them seven thousand men, boys, women, girls, and maidservants—and ?? devoted them to Ashtar‑Kemosh. ?? | * I ruled over 100 towns that I added to the land. |
| - And I brought therefrom the altar hearth of the beloved; and I dragged it before Kemosh in [the city of] Horonain. | * And I built... [damaged] |
| - And Baal‑meon was restored, and I built in it the reservoir; and I built Kir‑haresh. | * ...with the prisoners of Israel. I built... |
| - And I built Beth‑gamul and Beth‑diblaṯaim; and the land was in front of me. | * ...the house of the king. I made... [damaged] |
| - Then I built these…[the house] of the king and the reservoirs, and I built… | * ...broad cisterns in the midst of the city. |
| - And there was no house that was not seized; and I made… | * And there was no cistern in the city of Qarho, and I said to all the people: "Make yourselves every man a cistern in his house." |
| - And the men of Gad dwelt in Ataroth… | * And I cut out the moat for Qarho by means of prisoners from Israel. |
| - ?? sheep of the land and Nebo ?? | * I built Qarho, the wall of the forests and the wall of the citadel. |
| - ... text lost ... | * And the men of Horonaim dwelled in it before. And the House of David lived in Horonaim... [fragmentary] |
| - ... text lost ... | * And Kemosh said to me, "Go down, fight against Horonaim and seize it." |
| - ... text lost ... | * And I went down and fought against the city, and I took it and Kemosh restored it in my days. |
| - ... text lost ... | * ...I built... [final lines too damaged to reconstruct fully] |
