
Moab was an ancient Levantine kingdom that existed in present-day Jordan from the 13th century BC to 400 BC, with Dibon (Dhiban) as their capital. Said to be descended from Lot's son Moab, the Moabites initially inhabited the area around the Dead Sea before the warlike Amorites crossed the Jordan and forced the Moabites to migrate south. The Moabites warred with the neighboring Israelites to the west for centuries, and they worshipped the war god Chemosh in opposition to the Jewish god Yahweh. The Israelite king Rehoboam forced them into vassalage during the 10th century BC, but they rebelled on Ahab's death in 897 BC. The Moabites accepted Nebuchadnezzar II's overlordship, aiding him in his conquest of Jerusalem in 586 BC. The Kedarites and Nabateans of Arabia overwhelmed Moab in approximately 400 BC.