Mesha מֵישַׁע

Mesha was the king of Moab who paid tribute to the kings of Israel. He was a sheep breeder and used to supply the king of Israel with a hundred thousand lambs and the wool of a hundred thousand rams (2Ki.3.4). However, after the death of Ahab, king of Israel, Mesha rebelled against Israelite rule. In response, Jehoram, the king of Israel, allied with Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, and the king of Edom to wage war against Moab (2Ki.3.6-7). During the battle, when Mesha saw that the battle was going against him, he took his firstborn son and offered him as a burnt offering on the city wall, causing great wrath against Israel and forcing the Israelite army to withdraw (2Ki.3.26-27).