Gerizim, Mount
The Mountain of Blessing
Mount Gerizim rises to 2,849 feet above sea level on the southern side of the narrow pass that cuts through the central mountain range of Israel, directly opposite Mount Ebal to the north. The modern city of Nablus, built near the site of ancient Shechem, lies at its foot. Copious springs emerge in this valley, creating a landscape of remarkable fertility that contrasts sharply with the barren hills to the east.
Moses commanded that when the Israelites entered the Promised Land, they were to conduct a great ceremony of covenant renewal between these two mountains. Six tribes were to stand on Mount Gerizim to pronounce blessings, and six on Mount Ebal to pronounce curses (Deuteronomy 11:29; 27:12-13). Joshua carried out this ceremony after the conquest, with the Levites and the ark positioned in the valley between as they read the blessings and curses of the Law to the assembled people (Joshua 8:33-35).
Jotham's Parable
Mount Gerizim is also the setting for one of the earliest parables in the Bible. After Abimelech, an illegitimate son of the judge Gideon, murdered seventy of his brothers to seize power in Shechem, the youngest surviving brother Jotham climbed to a rocky outcrop on Mount Gerizim and shouted his famous parable of the trees to the people below (Judges 9:7-21).
In the parable, the trees seek a king and approach the olive, the fig, and the vine, each of which declines because they are busy producing good fruit. Only the worthless thornbush accepts the crown, warning the trees to take shelter under its shade or face destruction. Jotham's message was clear: the people of Shechem had chosen a worthless and dangerous ruler, and disaster would follow.
The Samaritan Temple
Mount Gerizim's most enduring significance lies in its role as the holy mountain of the Samaritans. Around 432 BC, a rift occurred when Manasseh, a member of Jerusalem's high-priestly family, married the daughter of Sanballat the Horonite (Nehemiah 13:28). Rather than dissolving this forbidden marriage, Manasseh and his supporters established a rival temple on Mount Gerizim, creating a permanent schism between Jews and Samaritans.
According to Josephus, Sanballat built this temple with Persian permission, and it became the center of Samaritan worship. The Samaritans accepted only the Pentateuch as Scripture and maintained that Mount Gerizim, not Jerusalem, was the place God had chosen for worship. Their version of the Pentateuch even altered Deuteronomy 27:4 to read "Mount Gerizim" instead of "Mount Ebal" as the site where an altar should be built.
The Samaritan temple was destroyed by the Jewish leader John Hyrcanus around 110 BC, but this did not end Samaritan worship on the mountain. The destruction only deepened the hostility between the two communities.
Jesus and the Samaritan Woman
The theological significance of Mount Gerizim comes into sharp focus in Jesus' conversation with the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well, located at the foot of the mountain. The woman raised the central point of dispute: "Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem" (John 4:20).
Jesus' response transcended the centuries-old debate: "A time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem... True worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth" (John 4:21-23). With these words, Jesus declared that the location of worship was no longer the defining issue. What mattered was the manner of worship, in Spirit and truth, opening the way for worship that would not be bound to any single sacred place.
Modern Samaritan Worship
The Samaritan community, now numbering only a few hundred, continues to worship on Mount Gerizim to this day. Each year they celebrate the Passover on the mountainside in strict accordance with the instructions of the Pentateuch, slaughtering lambs at twilight and roasting them in fire pits. This open-air ceremony, conducted without a temple, is one of the oldest continuously practiced religious rituals in the world.
Archaeological excavations on the summit have uncovered the remains of Justinian's fortress, built in 533 AD to protect a church constructed in 475 AD. Near the center of the plateau, a bare piece of rock is traditionally identified as the site where the altar of the Samaritan temple once stood.
Biblical Context
Mount Gerizim is mentioned in Deuteronomy 11:29 and 27:12 as the mountain of blessing in the covenant renewal ceremony. Joshua carried out this ceremony in Joshua 8:33-35. Jotham delivered his parable from the mountain in Judges 9:7. The schism that led to the Samaritan temple is connected to events in Nehemiah 13:28. Jesus addressed the theological dispute over Mount Gerizim in His conversation with the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well (John 4:20-24).
Theological Significance
Mount Gerizim represents the tension between competing claims about the proper place of worship and God's ultimate purpose to transcend such disputes. Jesus' declaration that true worship is conducted 'in Spirit and in truth' (John 4:23) resolved the Gerizim-versus-Jerusalem debate by establishing that God's presence is not confined to any mountain or building. This teaching laid the foundation for Christian worship as a universal practice accessible to all people in every place.
Historical Background
Archaeological surveys on Mount Gerizim have uncovered remains from multiple periods, including a large sacred precinct from the Persian and Hellenistic periods that likely relates to the Samaritan temple. Over 400,000 animal bones found at the site testify to extensive sacrificial activity. The temple was destroyed by John Hyrcanus around 110 BC. Justinian built a fortress on the summit in the sixth century AD. The Samaritan community, which traces its origins to the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh, maintains that Mount Gerizim is the place chosen by God in the Pentateuch, and they continue to celebrate Passover there annually.