Mt. Gerizim & Ebal – The Mountain of Choice

Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal are located near the city of Nablus in the West Bank (the Biblical name of the city was Shechem). The city sits in a valley between the two mountains. Mt. Ebal forms the northern side and Mt. Gerizim the southern side. Mt. Ebal is 935 m (3,068 ft) and Mt. Gerizim is 881 m (2,890 ft) above sea level (70 m (230 ft) lower than Mount Ebal). The mountains are very real.

When the Israelites were preparing to enter the promised land, Moses was giving them some of his final instructions and reminders. In Deuteronomy 11, Moses reminds the children of Israel to always love the Lord. If they did, He would always be with them and blessing them. If they did not, they would be cursed/punished by the Lord for their disobedience.

See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse— the blessing if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today;  the curse if you disobey the commands of the Lord your God and turn from the way that I command you today by following other gods, which you have not known. When the Lord your God has brought you into the land you are entering to possess, you are to proclaim on Mount Gerizim the blessings, and on Mount Ebal the curses.  As you know, these mountains are across the Jordan, westward, toward the setting sun, near the great trees of Moreh, in the territory of those Canaanites living in the Arabah in the vicinity of Gilgal. You are about to cross the Jordan to enter and take possession of the land the Lord your God is giving you. When you have taken it over and are living there, be sure that you obey all the decrees and laws I am setting before you today.

Moses instructed them to go to Mt. Ebal and Gerizim once they entered the promised land and proclaim the blessings and curses from the mountaintops. Half the people were to go to one and half the other. The way the mountains are situated they form a perfect natural amphitheater so as the one half was shouting the blessings from Mt. Gerizim the half on Ebal heard and visa versa.

Moses did not actually witness the proclamation of blessings and cursings or the vow the children of Israel made with God atop those mountains because he was not allowed to enter the promised land. But, after defeating Jericho and AI, the Israelites, led by Joshua, did exactly as Moses instructed them. They proclaimed the blessings and curses of the Lord atop the mountains. They vowed to always obey the Lord and worship only Him.

Interestingly enough when Joshua was older and near death he gathered the people of Israel back to Shechem. He reminded them of the ceremony they had performed years ago and of the blessings and curses. He reminded them one again of the choice they must make:

“Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.  But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

Like the children of Israel, we must all make the choice of Mt. Ebal or Mt. Gerizim. Each of us. And like the children of Israel, we all need to be reminded about the promises we’ve made to God. We also need to be reminded of the consequences of not keeping those promises and disobeying God.

Outside of life itself and the pathway to salvation, free will aka choice is God’s greatest blessing to us, Rather than making us like robots or animals who live a life based on instinct He made us like Him – beings with eternal souls and free will. The blessing of choice is what required Jesus’ death/the path to salvation. Even knowing what it was going to cost, God chose to give it to us anyway.

🏔️ Mount Gerizim – the mountain of obedience to God and access to His blessings.

🏔️ Mount Ebal – the mountain of disobedience to God and face His punishment.

God blessed us with free will. We get to choose how we live our lives. Ultimately there are only two choices:

But – just like the children of Israel – the choice is yours to make and yours alone. But make no mistake one choice leads to blessings while the other leads to punishment.

Choose wisely.

Will you choose to serve the gods of this world or will you choose to serve Jehovah? #TheMountainsofGod #MountaineeringForGod