In this section we will see the Oak of Moreh, Shiloh and Sechem, the Mount of blessings and curses.
What significance did the Oak of Moreh have in the Bible? It was the oak tree that Abraham sat under when God showed him the land. He told Abraham that as far as his eyes could see, the land was his. When you look at the view from this oad tree, I want you to realize, that both the Isrealis and the Palestinian Arabs both believe that this very tree was the one that Abraham came to when God showed him the land. It is still alive today, and they believe that it is kept alive by the power of God. The name means "the oak of revelation".
Shiloh was of extreme significance in the Old Testament, because for four hundred years, the Ark of the Covenant had it's home here. The priests ministered in Shiloh, until David had the Ark moved to Jerusalem. As you walk about the grounds at shiloh, the walls and the stones that have been piled up have been there ever since the time of Joshua. You are walking on pottery shards. We asked our guide why all of the pottery broken on the ground? The answer was very simple. The Priests would eat the ritual sacrifice meals, and because it was a Holy thing, they would break the dishes that they ate out of, and smash them on the ground.
Modern day Sechem is a palestinian settlement, and is built on the hills of Mt. Gerazim and Mt. Ebal. These were the mountains that God told half of the people to go on one side, and half of the people to go on the other side. Then they were to shout the blessings from one side, and the curses from the other side, of what would happen to them if they did not obey God's laws.
Here is an interesting and amusing anecdote. Jewish mothers tell their children this story to explain why there are sooo many stones in the land of Isreal.
"When God created the earth, he had many things to distribute, and to one angel he gave the flowers, and told him to fly out over the earth, and spread them out. To another, he gave the trees, and another he gave the grass and every good thing to eat. Then he gave the rocks to one angel, and commissioned him to go and spread them out over the earth, too.
That angel gathered up the rocks in the skirt of his robe, and flew out over the earth. Unfortuanely, when he flew over the land of Israel, he went A-A-A-A-A-H-H-H-CHOOOOO!!!!! and all of his rocks fell down on the ground."
