2 Kings 3:4 kjv
And Mesha king of Moab was a sheepmaster, and rendered unto the king of Israel an hundred thousand lambs, and an hundred thousand rams, with the wool.
2 Kings 3:4 nkjv
Now Mesha king of Moab was a sheepbreeder, and he regularly paid the king of Israel one hundred thousand lambs and the wool of one hundred thousand rams.
2 Kings 3:4 niv
Now Mesha king of Moab raised sheep, and he had to pay the king of Israel a tribute of a hundred thousand lambs and the wool of a hundred thousand rams.
2 Kings 3:4 esv
Now Mesha king of Moab was a sheep breeder, and he had to deliver to the king of Israel 100,000 lambs and the wool of 100,000 rams.
2 Kings 3:4 nlt
King Mesha of Moab was a sheep breeder. He used to pay the king of Israel an annual tribute of 100,000 lambs and the wool of 100,000 rams.
2 Kings 3 4 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| 2 Kgs 1:1 | Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab. | Precedes Mesha's tribute details. |
| 2 Kgs 3:5 | But when Ahab died, the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel. | Mesha's rebellion confirms the prior tribute. |
| 2 Sam 8:2 | And he struck Moab and measured them with a line... So Moab became David's servants and brought tribute. | Historical precedent for Moab's subjugation. |
| Gen 14:4 | Twelve years they had served Kedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled. | Pattern of vassalage and rebellion. |
| 1 Kgs 4:21 | Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines and to the border of Egypt. They brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life. | Example of kings receiving tribute. |
| Isa 16:1 | Send lambs from Sela to the ruler of the land... | Later reference to Moab's tribute, post-revolt. |
| Psa 72:10-11 | May the kings of Tarshish and of the coastlands render him tribute... may all kings bow down to him and all nations serve him. | Prophetic ideal of tribute to a righteous king. |
| Dan 11:43 | He shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt, and the Libyans and the Cushites shall follow in his train. | Control through economic demands. |
| Amos 1:1 | The words of Amos, who was among the sheep breeders of Tekoa... | Amos's similar profession to Mesha. |
| Gen 13:2 | Abraham was very rich in livestock, in silver, and in gold. | Illustrates wealth derived from livestock. |
| Gen 30:43 | So the man grew exceedingly prosperous and had large flocks... | Shows increase of wealth through flocks. |
| Job 1:3 | He had 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, and 500 female donkeys... | Job's immense wealth largely from livestock. |
| Deut 28:12 | The Lord will open for you his good treasury, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hands. You shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow. | Blessings of economic prosperity for obedience. |
| 2 Kgs 8:12 | Then Hazael said, "Why does my lord weep?" He answered, "Because I know the evil that you will do to the people of Israel: you will set their fortresses on fire, and you will kill their young men with the sword and dash in pieces their little ones and rip open their pregnant women." | Shows the harsh realities and devastation of warfare in that era driven by tribute/control. |
| Eze 27:21 | Arabia and all the princes of Kedar were your handlers; with lambs and rams and goats, they dealt with you. | Illustrates livestock as a major commodity. |
| Prov 27:23-27 | Know well the state of your flocks... For you will have enough goats' milk for your food, for the food of your household... The lambs will supply your clothing... | Value and provision from sheep and their produce. |
| Mt 17:24 | When they came to Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma tax went up to Peter and said, "Does your teacher not pay the tax?" | NT context of paying taxes/tribute. |
| Rom 13:6-7 | For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed. | Biblical principle of paying what is due, even tribute. |
| Tit 3:1 | Remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work... | Call to civil obedience, applicable to tribute payments. |
| Jer 48:4-5 | Moab is broken; her little ones have cried out. For at the ascent of Luhith they go up weeping; for at the descent of Horonaim they hear the distress of the cry of destruction. | Prophecy of Moab's destruction, often related to their pride and rebellions against God's people. |
2 Kings 3 verses
2 Kings 3 4 Meaning
This verse reveals that Mesha, the king of Moab, was a wealthy and successful sheep breeder. He had been paying an extremely large annual tribute to the king of Israel, consisting of 100,000 lambs and the wool from 100,000 rams. This substantial payment highlights the economic power of Moab and its state of subjugation under Israel prior to Mesha's rebellion.
2 Kings 3 4 Context
2 Kings chapter 3 opens immediately following the death of Ahab and introduces Jehoram (Joram), his son, as the new king of Israel. Crucially, 2 Kings 1:1 has already stated, "Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab." This current verse (2 Kgs 3:4) provides the necessary background information explaining why Moab rebelled: the immense tribute it was compelled to pay. This clarifies the significant economic stake Israel had in maintaining control over Moab and sets the stage for the military campaign led by Jehoram of Israel, Jehoshaphat of Judah, and the king of Edom against Mesha of Moab, detailed in the subsequent verses (2 Kgs 3:6-27). Historically, Moab had been a subjugated kingdom under Israel since David's reign (2 Sam 8:2), and their regular tribute provided substantial revenue. The annual payment mentioned highlights the financial burden on Moab, likely fueling their desire for independence.
2 Kings 3 4 Word analysis
- Now Mesha: Introduces the antagonist king by name. Mesha is a crucial figure in Israel's history, later corroborated by the extra-biblical Mesha Stele (Moabite Stone), providing a Moabite perspective on his revolt against Israelite domination.
- king of Moab: Designates his political leadership over the nation of Moab, located east of the Dead Sea. The Moabites were traditional adversaries of Israel, descended from Lot (Gen 19:37), and their relationship was often one of conflict or subjugation.
- was a sheep breeder (Hebrew: `נֹקֵד` noqed): This is a key descriptor. The term noqed indicates more than just a simple shepherd; it refers to a raiser of specific breeds of sheep, often implying substantial wealth and status derived from large-scale pastoralism. It highlights Mesha's personal connection to the source of his nation's economic power, and the primary industry that made such enormous tribute possible. The prophet Amos is also identified as a noqed (Amos 1:1), suggesting it could refer to a prominent, perhaps princely, stockbreeder.
- and he used to pay (Hebrew: `וְהֵשִׁיב` veheyshiv): The verb 'to pay' here (from the root shuv) can mean 'to return' or 'to bring back,' which implies that the payment was a regular, established obligation, a "return" for a prior agreement or previous subjugation. It underscores the custom of annual tribute rather than a one-time offering.
- the king of Israel: Refers to the reigning monarch of the Northern Kingdom, specifically Jehoram (son of Ahab), though the tribute likely originated during Ahab's reign. This specifies the recipient of Moab's vassal payment, highlighting Israel's political dominance.
- 100,000 lambs (Hebrew: `מֵאָה אֶלֶף כָּרִים` me'ah elef karim): `Karim` typically denotes plump, fatted male lambs. This was an enormous quantity, indicating the vast scale of Moab's sheep farming industry and the tremendous value of the live animals being given. Such a large number represents significant liquid wealth.
- and the wool of 100,000 rams (Hebrew: `וּמֵאָה אֶלֶף אֵילִים צָמֶר` ume'ah elef eilim tsamer): Rams (eilim) were valued for their wool. This phrase indicates the sheer quantity of wool equivalent to what could be shorn from 100,000 rams. Wool was a crucial commodity in the ancient world, used for clothing, textiles, and trade. The double mention of "100,000" emphasizes the massive, burdensome nature of the annual tribute on Moab's economy.
2 Kings 3 4 Bonus section
- The Mesha Inscription (Moabite Stone): This extra-biblical artifact discovered in Diban, Jordan, profoundly confirms aspects of Mesha's reign and his rebellion mentioned in 2 Kings 3. The inscription, written from Mesha's perspective, describes his deliverance of Moab from Omri's oppression (implicitly including the tribute mentioned in 2 Kgs 3:4) and his devotion to Chemosh, the Moabite god. While not detailing the tribute explicitly, it provides corroboration for Moab's vassalage and its successful revolt against Israelite dominance under Mesha. This historical consistency enhances the biblical account's reliability.
- Significance of "Noqed": The choice of the word
noqedto describe Mesha carries additional weight. In the ancient Near East, control of vast flocks was a sign of great power and wealth. By identifying Mesha as anoqed, the biblical author subtly highlights that the very source of Moab's strength—its abundant livestock—was also the primary mechanism of its subjugation under Israel. This creates a compelling dramatic irony leading into his rebellion.
2 Kings 3 4 Commentary
2 Kings 3:4 serves as the critical explanatory clause for Moab's rebellion, elucidating the immense financial pressure that provoked it. Mesha, unlike previous subdued Moabite rulers, is characterized as a "sheep breeder," not merely a king. This detail is not incidental; it reveals the direct source of Moab's wealth and thus, the severity of Israel's economic exploitation. The tribute—a staggering 100,000 lambs and wool from 100,000 rams annually—was not merely symbolic. It represented a colossal drain on Moab's national resources, limiting its self-sufficiency and autonomy. Such heavy imposition would naturally foster deep resentment, making rebellion not just a political maneuver but a desperate act of economic liberation. This verse powerfully sets the motivation for the war to follow, portraying the conflict as one stemming from national identity and economic survival against imperial tribute. It demonstrates how biblical narratives often root grand historical events in tangible economic realities and human struggles for freedom.