successors made no moves to prevent the consolidation of his rule over the northern Moabite plateau, Mesha would have felt safe in taking over the Gadite cities of Ataroth and Nebo and the Israelite outpost at Jahaz (Miller 1989: 39). In the process, he certainly would have reclaimed control over the King’s Highway, facilitating the reconstruction of his country’s cities and his economy; line 26 of the Moabite Inscription reads: “I built Aroer and made the highway at the Arnon” (Jackson 1989: 98).