[26–27] The Moabite king attacked the king of Edom because he
perceived the Edomites as the weak link in the forces of the Israelite
coalition. When the attempt failed, the Moabite king sacrificed his own son to
appease the Moabite god Chemosh. Human sacrifice is attested in biblical
tradition and elsewhere in the ancient world in times of emergency (Judg
11:29–40; 2 Kgs 16:3; Mic 6:7; see Montgomery and Gehman 363; Cogan and Tadmor
47). The notice, “and great wrath was upon Israel” (Hebrew, wayěhî qeṣep gādôl ʿal yiśrāʾēl) is
frequently understood as a reference to Chemosh’s wrath that then plays a role
in Israel’s defeat. Although the term qeṣep,
“wrath,” generally describes YHWH’s anger “against” (ʿal) wrongdoers (see Num 18:5; Deut 29:27; Josh 9:20; 22:20; Cogan
and Tadmor 47), the phrase here can hardly refer to wrath directed “against”
Israel. Such an interpretation requires that YHWH’s oracle concerning the
defeat of Moab would remain unfulfilled and thereby raises doubts about its
legitimacy. There is otherwise no indication in this narrative that YHWH’s
oracle is to be considered as false. The reference to anger must be read as
“upon” (ʿal) Israel, that is, Israel
became angry at the sight of Mesha’s sacrifice of his son, and consequently
withdrew from Kir Haresheth. Israel/Jehoram—and not YHWH—would be responsible
for the failure to achieve victory over the Moabites. The scenario provides a
parallel to the wilderness tradition—for example, the Israelite spies refused
to accept YHWH’s guarantees of victory and suffered as a result (Num 14). (Marvin
A. Sweeney, I & II Kings: A
Commentary [The Old Testament Library; Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John
Knox Press, 2013], 284)
