The Ammonites, descendants of Abraham's nephew Lot, lived northeast of the Dead Sea in what is now Jordan. When Moses led the Israelites to the Promised Land, God told him that he shouldn't attack Ammon because it belonged to Lot's descendants. Over time, though, tensions between the groups erupted into border clashes. Once, by joining forces with other Kingdoms, the Ammonites seized the Israelite border town of Jericho and managed to control it for 18 years.
When David became king of Israel, he captured the Ammonite capital city. He forced the people to pay taxes and to work on Israelite building projects. Relations improved after Solomon became king. He married Ammonite women who convinced him to worship Milcom, god of the Ammonites. God punished the people for this idol worship by splitting Israel into two competing Kingdoms after Solomon died. With the Israelites divided and fighting among themselves, the Ammonites were able to regain their independence for about 150 years. But after they resumed attacks on the Israelites, the Ammonites were again conquered and forced to pay taxes. In 705 B.C. Ammon was taken over by Assyria, but the Ammonite culture flourished under Assyrian rule.
The Ammonite name disappeared after Alexander the Great conquered the Middle East and brought Greek culture to the region. But it resurfaced in modern times as the name of Jordan's capital, Amman.
Did you know?
Solomon's son Rehoboam, who became the next king of Israel, had an Ammonite mother.
