The Plains of Moab ( he, עַרְבוֹת מוֹאָב, translit=Arboth Mo'av, lit=Dry areas of

Moab Moab ''Mōáb''; Assyrian: 𒈬𒀪𒁀𒀀𒀀 ''Mu'abâ'', 𒈠𒀪𒁀𒀀𒀀 ''Ma'bâ'', 𒈠𒀪𒀊 ''Ma'ab''; Egyptian: 𓈗𓇋𓃀𓅱𓈉 ''Mū'ībū'', name=, group= () is the name of an ancient Levantine kingdom whose territ ...

) are mentioned in three books of the Hebrew Bible ( Numbers,

Deuteronomy Deuteronomy ( grc, Δευτερονόμιον, Deuteronómion, second law) is the fifth and last book of the Torah (in Judaism), where it is called (Hebrew: hbo, , Dəḇārīm, hewords Moses.html"_;"title="f_Moses">f_Moseslabel=none)_and_th ...

and Joshua) as an area in Transjordan, stretching along the Jordan "across from Jericho", and more specifically "from Beth Jeshimoth to Abel Shittim" (). Here is the last Station of the Exodus and the place from which Moses climbs up on

Mount Nebo Mount Nebo ( ar, جَبَل نِيبُو, Jabal Nībū; he, , Har Nəḇō) is an elevated ridge located in Jordan, approximately above sea level. Part of the Abarim mountain range, Mount Nebo is mentioned in the Bible as the place where Mose ...

"to the top of Pisgah", where he dies ().

Geography

Nelson Glueck describes the Plains of Moab as having the shape of a "truncated harp", with its northern limit marked by

Wadi Nimrin Wadi Shueib ( ar, وادي شُعَيب), Arabic for the Valley of Jethro and properly Wadi Shuʿeib but with many variant romanisations, is a wadi in Jordan. The alluvial fan of the wadi where it enters the southern part of the eastern Jorda ...

, and the southern tip created by the

hills south of Wadi el-'Azeimeh, which stretch out from the Moab Plateau toward the NE end of the Dead Sea, closing off the Plains.Glueck (1943), p. 10. Glueck names the three main streams crossing the Plains toward the Jordan as, from north to south, Wadi Nimrin, which before emerging from the hills is called Wadi Sha'ib; Wadi el-Kefrein; and Wadi er-Ramah, called Wadi Hesban in the hills, which merges with Wadi el-Kefrein two-thirds of the way across the Plains. In his 1856 book ''The Sacred Plains'' J.H. Headley described the Plains of Moab as having a wider extent: "The Plains of Moab lie east of the Dead Sea and River Jordan. The Arnon, running through its midst, divides them into two tarts. A low range of mountains, called Abarim, extending from the southern part of the Dead Sea to Mount Gilead, again subdivides them east and west. On the east they extend to the borders of the Great Desert, into which they gradually sink; and on the West, form a succession of elevated terraces, like gigantic steps, down to the shores of Jordan and Dead Sea. <...> In ancient times the Moabites had possessed the whole plains from the southern part of the Dead Sea to Mount Gilead; but the

Amorites The Amorites (; sux, 𒈥𒌅, MAR.TU; Akkadian: 𒀀𒈬𒊒𒌝 or 𒋾𒀉𒉡𒌝/𒊎 ; he, אֱמוֹרִי, 'Ĕmōrī; grc, Ἀμορραῖοι) were an ancient Northwest Semitic-speaking people from the Levant who also occupied la ...

had warred against them, and wrestled all that portion lying north of the River Arnon from them..."''The Sacred Plains'', J.H. Headley, 1856
"The Plains of Moab"
/ref>

Persian period

In the 4th century BCE, Israelites returning from the

Babylonian exile The Babylonian captivity or Babylonian exile is the period in Jewish history during which a large number of Judeans from the ancient Kingdom of Judah were captives in Babylon, the capital city of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, following their defea ...

settle the ancient site of

Beth-nimrah Beth-Nimrah or Beth-nimrah ( he, בית נמרה), also called Nimrin and Bethennabris, was an ancient city in Transjordan, which features prominently the history of ancient Israel and Judah. Tell Nimrin has been identified by Nelson Glueck as the ...

, their city marking the easternmost point of Jewish settlement in Transjordan.

References

Bibliography

* {{coord missing, Jordan Hebrew Bible places Archaeology of Jordan Jews and Judaism in Jordan

Geography

Persian period

See also

References

Bibliography