1Now these are the kings of the land, whom the children of Israel struck, and possessed their land beyond the Jordan toward the sunrise, from the valley of the Arnon to Mount Hermon, and all the Arabah eastward: 2Sihon king of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon, and ruled from Aroer, which is on the edge of the valley of the Arnon, and the middle of the valley, and half Gilead, even to the river Jabbok, the border of the children of Ammon; 3and the Arabah to the sea of Chinneroth, eastward, and to the sea of the Arabah, even the Salt Sea, eastward, the way to Beth Jeshimoth; and on the south, under the slopes of Pisgah: 4and the border of Og king of Bashan, of the remnant of the Rephaim, who lived at Ashtaroth and at Edrei, 5and ruled in Mount Hermon, and in Salecah, and in all Bashan, to the border of the Geshurites and the Maacathites, and half Gilead, the border of Sihon king of Heshbon. 6Moses the servant of Yahweh and the children of Israel struck them. Moses the servant of Yahweh gave it for a possession to the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.
7These are the kings of the land whom Joshua and the children of Israel struck beyond the Jordan westward, from Baal Gad in the valley of Lebanon even to Mount Halak, that goes up to Seir. Joshua gave it to the tribes of Israel for a possession according to their divisions; 8in the hill country, and in the lowland, and in the Arabah, and in the slopes, and in the wilderness, and in the South; the Hittite, the Amorite, and the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite:
9the king of Jericho, one;
the king of Ai, which is beside Bethel, one;
10the king of Jerusalem, one;
the king of Hebron, one;
11the king of Jarmuth, one;
the king of Lachish, one;
12the king of Eglon, one;
the king of Gezer, one;
13the king of Debir, one;
the king of Geder, one;
14the king of Hormah, one;
the king of Arad, one;
15the king of Libnah, one;
the king of Adullam, one;
16the king of Makkedah, one;
the king of Bethel, one;
17the king of Tappuah, one;
the king of Hepher, one;
18the king of Aphek, one;
the king of Lassharon, one;
19the king of Madon, one;
the king of Hazor, one;
20the king of Shimron Meron, one;
the king of Achshaph, one;
21the king of Taanach, one;
the king of Megiddo, one;
22the king of Kedesh, one;
the king of Jokneam in Carmel, one;
23the king of Dor in the height of Dor, one;
the king of Goiim in Gilgal, one;
24the king of Tirzah, one:
all the kings thirty-one.
The site of Tel Megiddo has a long history. Its significance is not defined by its size, but by its location. The city overlooked the Plain of Esdraelon, also known as the Valley of Jezreel, and served to monitor a major military and trading route in northern Israel that begins in Egypt and ends in Mesopotamia. As well, it governed the northwest-southeast route between the Phoenicia and Jerusalem. It is later called Armageddon in Revelation 16:16, from Megiddo.
The site is first mentioned in Joshua 12:21 as one of the cities that was conquered by Joshua, and later rebuilt by king Solomon in the 10th century, as well as Hazor and Gezer, according to 1 Kings 9:15. A important archaeological discovery was the six chamber gates of Megiddo. Since Hazor and Gezer are mentioned along with Megiddo, archaeologists made the correct assumption that the same architect of Solomon would follow the design at Megiddo.
We know from an inscribed stele record that Sheshonk I, king of Egypt circa 935 B.C. occupied the city, and King Ahaziah of Judah died at Megiddo in 842 B.C. and King Josiah of Judah died there in 609 B.C. when opposing Egyptian King Necho II.