Shechem has been important in the history of the family of Israel since Abraham built an altar there.
The bible translation "plains of Moreh" should read "oaks of Moreh"
Gen 12:3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
Gen 12:4 So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran.
Gen 12:5 And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.
Gen 12:6 And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain [ RHS note: the Hebrew here actually says, elon or oak tree] of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land.
Gen 12:7 And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.
This is where Jacob settled upon his return to the land after leaving Laban.
Jacob had a well dug there. It is still providing water: 15 feet of water in a well 130 feet deep.
This is where Joseph's brothers were herding sheep when he took them food and they threw him in a pit and sold him as a slave.
This is where Joseph's decendants brought his bones from Egypt and buried him in a tomb there.
This is where Moses told Joshua to bring the 12 tribes and put them under covenant to obey his commandments. Six tribes stood on Mt Ebal to hear the curses and six on Mt Gerizim said amen to the blessings associated with obedience.
This is where Joshua returned at the end of his life, renewing the covenant with the 12 tribes on the two hills.
Jos 24:1 And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers; and they presented themselves before God. . . .
Jos 24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.
This is where the Samaritans built their own temple to worship the LORD after the Jews returning from Babylon refused their help and would not let them worship in Jerusalem. The Jews, led by King John Hyrcanus in the 2nd century BCE (according to Josephus), destroyed that temple.
This is where Jesus sat and talked with the woman at the well and where the twelve apostles were invited by Jesus to teach and convert the Samaritans.
John 4:5 Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.
John 4:6 Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour.
John 4:7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. . . .
John 4:35 Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. . . .
John 4:39 And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He told me all that ever I did.
John 4:40 So when the Samaritans were come unto him, they besought him that he would tarry with them: and he abode there two days.
John 4:41 And many more believed because of his own word;
John 4:42 And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.
Shechem is an important crossroads and the city was built, attacked, destroyed and rebuilt many times. Here is a great article with maps and photos of Shechem.
Gen 12:1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:
Gen 12:2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:Gen 12:3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
Gen 12:4 So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran.
Gen 12:5 And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.
Gen 12:6 And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain [ RHS note: the Hebrew here actually says, elon or oak tree] of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land.
Gen 12:7 And the LORD appeared unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him.
Elon Moreh is the first place that the Bible names when Abram (later: Abraham) comes from his native country with his wife and family. God appears to him in the plains of Moreh, and he is told to build an altar to commemorate the event of arriving to the promised land on a mountain near Shechem (Genesis 12 5-8):
The KJV version translated the Hebrew word "Elon Moreh" to the "plain of Moreh". The original version (Elon, or Eloni) means an oak tree or oak trees. This place appears in another verse, but with the plural form "Eloni Moreh" (Deuteronomy 11 30): "Are they not on the other side Jordan, by the way where the sun goeth down, in the land of the Canaanites, which dwell in the campaign over against Gilgal, beside the plains of Moreh?".
The actual place of the oaks of Moreh is not known. These were probably Holy trees, located on a high point around the city of Shechem, where Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim can be seen.
Jacob had a well dug there. It is still providing water: 15 feet of water in a well 130 feet deep.
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| Orthodox monastery currently built over Jacob's well |
This is where Joseph's brothers were herding sheep when he took them food and they threw him in a pit and sold him as a slave.
This is where Joseph's decendants brought his bones from Egypt and buried him in a tomb there. |
| Joseph's tomb |
This is where Moses told Joshua to bring the 12 tribes and put them under covenant to obey his commandments. Six tribes stood on Mt Ebal to hear the curses and six on Mt Gerizim said amen to the blessings associated with obedience.
This is where Joshua returned at the end of his life, renewing the covenant with the 12 tribes on the two hills.
Jos 24:1 And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers; and they presented themselves before God. . . .
Jos 24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.
This is where the Samaritans built their own temple to worship the LORD after the Jews returning from Babylon refused their help and would not let them worship in Jerusalem. The Jews, led by King John Hyrcanus in the 2nd century BCE (according to Josephus), destroyed that temple.
This is where Jesus sat and talked with the woman at the well and where the twelve apostles were invited by Jesus to teach and convert the Samaritans.
John 4:5 Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.
John 4:6 Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour.
John 4:7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. . . .
John 4:35 Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest. . . .
John 4:39 And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He told me all that ever I did.
John 4:40 So when the Samaritans were come unto him, they besought him that he would tarry with them: and he abode there two days.
John 4:41 And many more believed because of his own word;
John 4:42 And said unto the woman, Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.
Shechem is an important crossroads and the city was built, attacked, destroyed and rebuilt many times. Here is a great article with maps and photos of Shechem.
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