Useful Bible Studies > 2 Kings Commentary > chapter 3
For the original attack on Moab, King Joram had the support of armies from Israel, Judah and Edom. In the first battle, Moab’s army suffered a terrible defeat (3:21-24).
The Bible then seems to describe a war that may have lasted for several months against Moab. It was not practical for such a vast army to fight in a long war. So, probably, most of the men went back home. For these later battles, Israel’s soldiers had the support of Edom’s king and his army. Edom was on the south side of Moab, and Israel controlled land on the north side of Moab.
Previously, Israel had gained much from the wealth of Moab (3:4). However Joram, who was probably a young man, seemed to care much more about his power than his wealth. He wanted to destroy Moab completely. God had shown Elisha that this would happen. Joram ordered his soldiers to spoil Moab’s fields and to destroy its supplies of water. They even cut down the trees and ruined the cities. The effect would be to make Moab into a poor and weak country. In the past, Moab had paid great amounts in taxes to Israel; in the future, it would hardly be able to pay any tax whatever to Israel’s king.
In the end, only one extremely strong city, Kir Hareseth, remained. It was like a castle on a steep hill, with a deep valley round it. The King of Moab had escaped there, with his son and 700 soldiers. So, the soldiers from Israel and Edom began to attack this last strong place in Moab. This would be the final battle in this terrible war.
Next part: Moab's king murders his son in an act of religion (2 Kings 3:26-27)
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