Mount Gerizim
Mount Gerizim is a mountain mentioned in both the Old and New Testaments, located in the region of Samaria in modern-day Israel. It appears across 5 verses in Scripture.
Biblical History
Mount Gerizim holds a central place in Israel's covenant theology as the mountain of blessing. Moses commanded that upon entering the Promised Land, six tribes were to stand on Mount Gerizim to pronounce blessings on the people, while six stood on neighboring Mount Ebal for curses (Deuteronomy 11:29; 27:12). Joshua carried out this ceremony after the initial conquest (Joshua 8:33-35). The mountain also features prominently in Jotham's parable, delivered from its slopes against the treacherous Abimelech at Shechem (Judges 9:7). In the New Testament, the Samaritan woman at the well refers to Mount Gerizim when she tells Jesus that her fathers worshiped on "this mountain," to which Jesus responds that true worship is not bound to any specific location but must be in spirit and truth (John 4:20-24). This exchange highlights the longstanding rivalry between the Samaritan and Jewish communities over the proper place of worship, a dispute rooted in the post-exilic period when the Samaritans built their own temple on Gerizim.
Archaeological & Historical Notes
Mount Gerizim rises to 881 meters (2,890 feet) south of Nablus in the West Bank. Excavations led by Yitzhak Magen from 1982 to 2010 on the summit uncovered the remains of a Samaritan temple complex dating to the fifth century BC, along with a surrounding sacred precinct and residential quarter. The temple was destroyed by the Hasmonean ruler John Hyrcanus in 128 BC, as recorded by Josephus. Over 400,000 animal bones were found in ash deposits, confirming extensive sacrificial activity. A monumental staircase and Hellenistic fortifications were also uncovered. Today, a small Samaritan community of approximately 400 people continues to celebrate Passover with animal sacrifice on the mountain annually.
Verse Appearances (5)
References
- Orr, J. (ed.) (1915) The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Chicago: Howard-Severance Company. [Public Domain]
- OpenBible.info (n.d.) Bible Geocoding. Available at: https://www.openbible.info/geo/. [CC BY 4.0]
- Bagnall, R. et al. (eds.) (n.d.) Pleiades: A Gazetteer of Past Places. Available at: https://pleiades.stoa.org. [CC BY 3.0]
- Wikidata contributors (n.d.) Wikidata. Available at: https://www.wikidata.org. [CC0]
- Lawrence, D. et al. (2025) Villages to Empires: a settlement dataset for the Southern Levant. doi:10.5281/zenodo.15111732. [CC BY 4.0]
- Church of England (1769) The Holy Bible, Authorized (King James) Version. [Public Domain]