Mount Ebal

Biblical Text

Mount Ebal appears in Deuteronomy and Joshua.

• Deuteronomy 11:29: Moses commands that when Israel enters Canaan, the blessing is to be proclaimed on Mount Gerizim and the curse on Mount Ebal.
• Deuteronomy 27:4–8: After crossing the Jordan, the people are to set up great stones on Mount Ebal, coat them with plaster, and write the words of the law on them. They are also commanded to build an altar of uncut stones and to offer burnt offerings and peace offerings on it.
• Deuteronomy 27:12–26: The tribes of Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph, and Benjamin stand on Mount Gerizim to bless, while the tribes of Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali stand on Mount Ebal to curse. The Levites then pronounce twelve curses, and the people respond, "Amen."
• Joshua 8:30–35: Joshua builds an altar on Mount Ebal and writes the law of Moses on stones. The people stand divided on either side of the ark of the covenant, half in front of Mount Gerizim and half in front of Mount Ebal. Before them Joshua reads aloud all the blessings and curses of the law.

Ebal also appears as a personal name. The Ebal of Genesis 36:23 is a son of Shobal the Horite, and the Ebal of 1 Chronicles 1:22 is a son of Joktan.

Background

The ancient city of Shechem lay in the valley between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, in the area of present-day Nablus. Mount Ebal stands to the north and Mount Gerizim to the south; Mount Ebal is somewhat higher. The original meaning of the name is uncertain.

In the 1980s the Israeli archaeologist Adam Zertal identified a structure he had excavated on the slopes of Mount Ebal as Joshua's altar. Other scholars, however, regard it as a watchtower or a farmhouse, and the question remains unresolved. In 2022 it was claimed that a small lead tablet inscribed with a curse formula had been found in soil taken from the site. Its reading and date are likewise disputed.

Significance in Scripture as a Whole

The ceremony at Mount Ebal is understood as a covenant renewal in which Israel, having entered Canaan, reaffirmed the Sinai covenant. Through this ceremony Israel enacted the terms of the covenant: blessing for keeping the law and curse for breaking it. The exhortation in Deuteronomy 30:15–20 to choose between "life and good, and death and evil" belongs to the same line of thought.

In the New Testament, Paul quotes the final curse of Deuteronomy 27:26 in Galatians 3:10. In Galatians 3:10–14 he explains that Christ bore the curse of the law in our place. For this reason Protestant interpreters frequently read the curses of Mount Ebal as a text that illustrates the relationship between law and gospel.

Interpretation and Issues

• The reading of the Samaritan Pentateuch: In Deuteronomy 27:4 the Masoretic Text names Mount Ebal as the place where the altar was to be built. The Samaritan Pentateuch, transmitted by the Samaritans, reads Mount Gerizim at this point instead. On the basis of this reading the Samaritans regarded Mount Gerizim as the true place of worship. Some scholars suggest that Gerizim may have been the original reading, but opinion is divided. The "this mountain" mentioned by the Samaritan woman in John 4:20–23 is Mount Gerizim.
• The placement of Joshua 8: The position of this passage varies among the textual witnesses; the Septuagint, for example, places it after 9:2. As a result, there are several views on when the ceremony actually took place.
• Popular explanations: Some say that Mount Ebal is barren and Mount Gerizim green, so that the two mountains symbolize curse and blessing respectively. Others say that voices carried well across the valley between the two mountains, so that each side could hear the other. Both explanations are common in sermons and travel guides, but neither is stated in the biblical text.