Albert Barnes Commentary 2 Kings 3

In the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat - This date agrees exactly with the statements that Jehoshaphat began to reign in the fourth year of Ahab (1 Kings 22:41), and Ahaziah in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat (1 Kings 22:51).

On the “evil” done by Ahab, see especially 1 Kings 16:30–34. Warned by the fate of his brother (see the note on 2 Kings 1:4), Jehoram began his reign by formally abolishing the Phoenician state religion introduced by Ahab—even while tolerating its continuation among the people (2 Kings 10:26–27)—and by re-establishing the old form of worship for the kingdom as arranged by Jeroboam.

Moab, the region immediately east of the Dead Sea and the lower Jordan, though in part suited for agriculture, is in the main a great grazing country. Mesha resembled a modern Arab sheikh, whose wealth is usually estimated by the number of his flocks and herds. His tribute of the wool of 100,000 lambs was a tribute in kind, the ordinary tribute at this time in the East.

Mesha is the monarch who wrote the inscription on the “Moabite stone” (see note on 2 Kings 1:1). The points established by the inscription are:

1. That Moab recovered from the blow dealt by David (2 Samuel 8:2, 2 Samuel 8:12) and again became an independent state in the interval between David’s conquest and the accession of Omri;
2. That Omri reconquered the country, and it then became subject to the northern kingdom, and remained so throughout his reign, that of his son Ahab, and into the reign of Ahab’s son and successor, Ahaziah;
3. That independence was regained by means of a war, in which Mesha took town after town from the Israelites, including in his conquests many of the towns which, at the original occupation of the holy land, had passed into the possession of the Reubenites or the Gadites, such as Baal-Meon (Numbers 32:38), Kirjathaim (Numbers 32:37), Ataroth (Numbers 32:34), Nebo (Numbers 32:38), Jahaz (Joshua 13:18), etc.;
4. That the name of Yahweh was well known to the Moabites as that of the God of the Israelites; and
5. That there was a sanctuary of Yahweh at Nebo, in the Trans-Jordanian territory, where “vessels” were used in His service.

The close alliance between the two kingdoms continued. Jehoram therefore confidently made the same request regarding Moab that his father had made two years before concerning Syria.

Jehoshaphat consented at once, even though his previous compliance had brought him a rebuke from a prophet (2 Chronicles 19:2). Perhaps Jehoram’s removal of Baal worship influenced him (2 Kings 3:2). Jehoshaphat himself had been attacked by the Moabites the previous year, and although the attempt had failed, he would have felt that it might be renewed. It was therefore important to seize the opportunity that now presented itself to weaken his enemy.

The most direct and natural route was across the Jordan River near Jericho into the Arboth-Moab (the plains of Moab), and then along the eastern shore of the Dead Sea to Moab proper—the region south of the Arnon River.

However, the route they chose was the one that led to the land of Edom: around the southern end of the Dead Sea and across the Arabah, the valley that extends south from the Jordan River and the Dead Sea. This would allow them to join forces with Edom, which had resumed its dependence on Judah, even though the year before it had been in alliance with Moab (2 Chronicles 20:22). This strategy would let them come upon the Moabites unprepared.