e
v
*
TEXTS
F,QR
STUDENTS,
GENERAL EDITORS:
H.
J.
WHITE, D.D.
;
J.
CAROLINE A.
P.
j.
No.
SKEEL, D.Lrr.
WHITNEY, D.D., D.C.L.
THE INSCRIPTION
ON THE
STELE OF MESA'
COMMONLY CALLED
THE MOABITE STONE
THE TEXT IN MOABITE AND HEBREW,
WITH TRANSLATION
%
KY
H. F.
COMPSTON, MA.
B.
VICAR OF BREDWARDINE, HEREFORD
LONDON
:
SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING
CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE
NEW YORK THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
:
1919
9
;
LONDON
:
PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED,
DUKE STREET,
S.E. I.
PREFACE
THE
text adopted in this edition
Dr. Driver's
Hebrew
is
that of the late
transcription in the
the Introduction of his Notes on the
Appendix
Hebrew Text
.
.
.
to
of
Books of Samuel, 2nd edition, 1913, by the kind
permission of the Delegates of the Clarendon Press,
the
Oxford.
The Moabite (Phoenician)
made from
re-transcription has been
the above-mentioned text.
This feature of
new
may,
the present edition
in such
works
it is
hoped, be of use to persons beginning the study of
Semitic palaeography. It should be noted that the type
used represents a more or less standardized Phoenician
script, and is not a facsimile of that of the Inscription,
several letters of which
more ancient fashion of
(e.g.
y, k, q,
s, t)
represent a
writing.
I wish to acknowledge indebtedness to Dr. Driver's
translation and
commentary, Dr.
W. H.
Bennett's The
Smend and
Konigs Mesa von Moab (1886).
Moabite Stone (1911), and the Tafel in
Die Inschrift des
H.
Jan. 22, 1919.
Socin
F. B. C.
:
CONTENTS
PREFACE
,
INTRODUCTION
Moabite Text
The Text
in
.
...
.
.
PAGE
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Translation into English
script
.
.
.
.
.
;
.
...
in Phoenician script
Hebrew square
.3
5
7
.11
.14
INTRODUCTION
THE
Inscription here set forth is accepted, with pracunanimity on the part of experts, as authentic. It
was chiselled on a monument of basalt, by order of the
Mesa', King of Moab, who is mentioned in 2 Kings iii. 4,
and who here recounts his victoriesjover Israel, to whom
Moab had long been subject. The date must be somewhere about mid-ninth century B.C., the era of Omri and
Ahab, Elijah and Elisha, and Jehu. Line 7 may allude
to the overthrow of Omri's dynasty by Jehu, circa 843 B.C.
tical
The
interest of this
famous monument
To the student
is
manifold..
a good
specimen of Phoenician script, parent of Alphabets,
used not only by Moab but by Israel (as shown e.g. by
(a)
of palaeography
it offers
the Siloam Inscription, eighth century B.C.) the older
portions of the Old Testament were, in all probability,
written in this script.
;
(6)
of
The
the
linguist can here study the essential features
Syntax, along with a useful
Grammar and
vocabulary, of the Moabite language, separated from
Hebrew by merely
dialectical differences.
A
Hebrew
student will find the inscription very like historical
narrative in the Old Testament.
(c) The historian finds in the Inscription a valuable
contribution to the little-known story of a people long
extinct.
(d) The theologian sees evidence confirming what
modern Biblical study has revealed as to Semitic
For there are, e.g. references to K e mos, the
god of Moab, and to Yah well- God of Israel, and His
shrine at Nebo, with allusions to the treatment of conreligion.
INTRODUCTION
6
cities
quered
"
devoted,"
i.e.
put under the ban (herem),
to the national god.
The
stele, or
rather the upper portion of the original
monument, measuring 3 feet in height, 2 feet in width,
and 2 feet in thickness, was discovered in 1868 by the
Eev. F. A. Klein, of the Church Missionary Society, on
the site of the ancient Moabite city of Dibon.
Its existence was known, from the report of natives, shortly
previous to this event, to Monsieur Clermont-Ganneau,
the eminent French archaeologist. The great interest
shown by Europeans, and
their offers to purchase, led
the Arabs in the neighbourhood to break it up, possibly
with the object of selling the fragments at fancy prices.
was kindled beneath the stone, cold water dashed
on the top of it, and the priceless monument was soon
Fire
cracked in pieces.
Happily, before this stupid act of
vandalism was perpetrated, rubbings of the inscription
had been secured. Later on most of the fragments were
recovered, the missing portions restored with the help of
the rubbings, and the Stele of Mesa' now stands in the
Louvre. There is a facsimile in the British Museum.
The Inscription may be studied more fully with the
aid of the works mentioned in the Preface to the present
edition
and other works named in
their bibliographies,
or in the various Dictionaries of the Bible.
Students offering the subject for examination should
practise transcription in Phoenician and Hebrew, and
should add vowel-points to the latter.
This would
prove a useful exercise. After the revision of his vocalization the student should, with a fine pen, point the
Hebrew
text on pp. 11-13, adding in the margin, or on
fly-leaf, any various readings or alternative
an inserted
pointings.
INSCRIPTION OF MESA'
THE MOABITE TEXT
T.
Words and
jecturally.
letters within square brackets are restored conOverlined letters are more or less uncertain of
identification.
.
y
.
IN PHOENICIAN SCRIPT.
yA
.
THE MOABITE STONE.
u<
Titjj
10
u
[y]
.
yo^ .>/.
12
is
fix
.
14
.
[y
fi]x
-.
fi
17
THE MOABITE STONE.
is
19
21
22
y^y
.
fit
.
"*/)}
.
y>
23
yy
25
26
27
10
THE MOABITE STONE.
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
THE MOABITE STONE.
THE TEXT
II.
Words and
letters within
Ocerlined
jecturally.
IN
11
HEBREW SQUARE
SCRIPT.
square brackets are restored conare more or less uncertain of
letters
identification.
-in
.
SND
.
man BWI
[>
"^
I
nain
i
nnipn
I
pi pr
-
xn
n
*
The
-
pxi
i
)| in Driver's text is obviously a
translation.
The Moabite
is
clearly
^
^a
nn
tr^D
misprint for
J"|
.
9
See
THE MOABITE STONE.
12
rm? pKi
.
ips
nsr nj
DnnSxi
.
ne^Ni
I
nn
nnpn
.
inx
tr^D
.
Si
mnfc?n
I
pm
yM
-
-
pffli
jsx
nn
-
.
.
ua
e^on
-
^x
nx
10
n
SD
e^a
i
nn
jnnp nx
.
aew nxDi
n
1
rrw nx
i
oyn
Dbj
ew
-
.
-
I
-
-
nxi
TD^
npn
12
nnn
13
.
i
^x^^
rnna
Sy
Dnn^xi rbhi
rone^
n
r^
nnao nr
n^li nnn^
-
-
nwi
I
nnannn
.
*wyS o nanii n
D-HM-tVO
sS Dn SHDNI nin- ^
tyDD
.
i
.
.
-
19
THE MOABITE STONE.
W3
nm
-pK
pn
13
hy
n&rn psrn
i
.
pan
i
I
ra
-
Sayn
I
21
22
bnb*u&
.
T03
^
.
23
nil
.
nnipa npn anpa
-
JK
iai
"
I
ipn
24
25
"
o
.
T^
n:j::i
.
^
'
w
26
piwa
n^a ra
-
.
|^
-
pn
o
SD
pn v
-
J^DH
5Sa
-pNi
hy ^nsD- IPK pp3 HND ^h
-
.
23
-
29
mi
.
pi
ra ro
iw
piin3 onn^n
m
Sy^
.
nx
-
piini
n
^3
^ ^3
f
tr^D
.
n^^Y
n3 [tr^i
32
33
34
THE MOABITE STONE.
14
TRANSLATION.
III.
Words in italics are required by English idiom : they are
not in the original.
The transliteration of proper names is
in accordance with the notation in the Hebrew Grammar of
Words and letters within square brackets are reWords within curved brackets are alter-
Gesenius.
stored conjecturally.
native renderings, &c.
am Mesa' son
1
I
2
-ibonite.
3
-ed after
and
6
e
my
in
king of Mo'ab the Da-
father.
And
I
made
this
high place for
Krhh.*
foes.
(?),
all
'Omr-
was king of Yisra'el, and he afflicted Mo'ab days
e
many, for K mos was angry with his la-iid.
And his son succeeded him, and he too said I
-i
will afflict Mo'ab.
7
?
father reigned over Mo'ab thirty years
[High place of sal-]
-vation, for he had saved me from all the assailants
and because he had caused me to look uponf
my
5
K mos
I reign-
K'mos
4
My
of
and
I looked
upon
f
In
days he said s[o],
him and upon his house.
And
And
'Oinri
my
Israel utterly perished everlastingly.
possessed the [la-]
8
9
M ehed e ba. And (Israel) dwelt therein, his
and
half the days of his son, forty years; and
days
e
K mos restored it in my days. And I built Ba'al-ni e"6n
and I made therein the reservoir (?), and I built
-nd of
* line 3.
Perhaps
f lines 4, 7.
Cf. Ps. lix. 10
"
" K'rehah" or " Korhah."
Look upon,"
E.V.
i.e.,
with exultation over a fallen
foe.
THE MOABITE STONE.
15
Kiryaten. Now the men of Gad had dwelt in the
land of a tarot from of old and the king of Yi[sra'el
(beginning of line 11)] built for himself
10
'
:
'
1 1
a
tarot.
And
I
And
I fought against the city
slew
all
and took
it.
the people [from]
the city, a gazing-stock for K e mos and for Mo'ab. And
I restored (or captured) from thence the altarhearth (?) of Dawdoh (or its tutelary spirit?), and
12
13
I drage
e
And I placed
mos in
riyyot.
-ged it before
* and the men of
of
the
men
Srn
therein
14
Mhrt.f
K
And
K
K mos
e
went by
15
me Go,
seize
N boh
e
I
night, and fought against
And
noon.
said unto
And
against Yisra'el.
it
from dawn unto
I sei-
it and slew all of it, 7000 men and men-sgojoumers f
and women & [women-sojourner-] |
and damsels; for to astar-K e inos had I devoted it.
16
-zed
17
s,
C
And
I took from thence the [ves-]
-sels of
18
Yah weh, and dragged them
before
K mos.
e
Now
the king of Yisra'el had built
Yahas, and dwelt therein while he fought against
c
mos drove him away from before me,
me. And
19
K
and
20
21
Mo'ab 200 men, all the head-men thereof
and I brought them up against Yahas, and seized it
I built Krhh,
the wall of
to add unto Daibon.
Ye 'arin (or the woods), and the wall of
I took from
;
* line 13.
Saron
t line 14.
Maharat
% line 16.
I.e.,
line 21.
(?)
(?)
recognised settlers.
See note, line
3.
Cf. 2
Sam.
i.
13.
THE MOABITE STONE.
10
22
'Opel
And
the Acropolis).
(or
and
thereof,
the gates
built
I
I built the towers thereof.
built the king's house, and I made the
[voirs ? for wa]ter in the middle of
And
two
23
I
24
the city. Now cistern there was none in the middle
of the city, in Krhh.* And I said to all the people,
25
you every man a cistern
Make
reser-
to
the cutting for
[-s
27
I built Bet-bfunot for it
I cut out
of the prisoner'
I built
captured from] Yisra'el.
the high-road by the Arnon.
20
And
in his house.
Krhh * by means
a
ro'er
was destroyed.
and
I
made
I built Beser
for ruins
28
[had
29
31
32
33
the head-me]n of Daibon were
Daibon was
-od [o^er] 100 in the
And
land.
30
And
become.
it
50, for all
-t
And
loyal.
cities
which
I reignI
added
to the
I buil-
M>hed e [b]a and Bet-diblaten, and Bet-ba al-m
and I brought thither the sheep-m asters (?)f
sheep of the land.
there dwelt therein ? ?
V
e
'6n
;
And Horonen,
[And] K mos said unto me,
Go down, fight against Horonen. And 1 went down
and K e mos [resto]red it in my days.
And
from thence
e
.
.
.
.
.
And
34
lines 24, 25.
See note, line
3.
I
f line 30.
See 2 Kings
Hi. 4.