Then Joshua built an altar to the LORD, the God of Israel, on Mount Ebal. … Then on the altar they presented burnt offerings and peace offerings to the LORD. … Then all the Israelites… were divided into two groups. One group stood in front of Mount Gerizim, the other in front of Mount Ebal. …Joshua then read to them all the blessings and curses Moses had written in the Book of Instruction. (Joshua 8:30-35 NLT) The Israelites had just experienced a curse – defeat at the hands of the warriors of Ai. And like any curse, it was not only the sting of the enemy; it was the sting that the Israelites, by their actions, had been responsible for the curse.

Then the Israelites had experienced blessing – total victory over the king and town of Ai. Their enemy had been utterly destroyed, and they had received the bounty of the victory. And they knew that the blessing was from the hand of their God. And they knew that this time, they had sought Him first and been obedient to His command.

Yes, they had just lived through a very practical – and difficult – object lesson of the blessing and the curse.

They have just turned away from Ai, there in the Valley of Shechem. Though they still have enemies to face in cities to the north and cities to the south, the LORD determines that now is the time for the Israelites to offer sacrifices, to be reminded of the law, and to say “Amen” to the blessings and the curses. It is fitting that this take place in the Valley of Shechem. Because it was here that God first repeated His promises to Abraham when he arrived in Canaan (Genesis 12:6-7).

As a matter of fact, this was not an impromptu stop. This solemn assembly was planned well before they had crossed over the Jordan River (Deuteronomy 11:26-32). Every detail was recorded by Moses – the location of the assembly, the staging location for each tribe and the Ark, even the “order of service”, including the words to be said (Deuteronomy 27 and 28). No detail had been omitted for how this solemn assembly would be conducted.

Moses had given the charge, “When you cross the Jordan River, the tribes of Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph, and Benjamin must stand on Mount Gerizim to proclaim a blessing over the people. And the tribes of Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali must stand on Mount Ebal to proclaim a curse” (Deut 27:12-13). Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal are the two steep, rocky mountains that stand like sentinels on each side of the Valley of Shechem. For this assembly Gerizim would be the platform from which blessings would be proclaimed, and Ebal would be the stand from which curses would be pronounced. Ebal would represent the Law, and the reality that all of us are cursed under the Law. It is a picture of what Paul wrote, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23 NKJ). And it was for that reason that Joshua had the altar to the LORD built there. It would be on Ebal that the animals would be sacrificed and the offerings presented unto the LORD to pay their sin debt under the Law. Mount Gerizim, on the other hand, is a picture of God’s grace. Because our reality is that “…there is none who does good, no, not one” (Psa 14:3 NKJ). God has blessed us and saved us “by His grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it” (Eph 2:8-9).

Even the assignments as to which tribe stood where had meaning. Those on Mount Gerizim – the mount of blessing – are the tribes of Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph, and Benjamin. These are the children of Jacob’s lawful wives, Leah and Rachel (Genesis 35:23-26). Those on Mount Ebal – the mount of cursing – are the tribes of Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali. These are the children of Bilhah and Zilpah, the servant women of Jacob’s two lawful wives. (Reuben is the exception—though he was one of Leah’s legitimate sons, he was cursed because he had sexual relations with Bilhah, his father’s concubine – Genesis 35:22, 1 Chronicles 5:1).

Moses had placed the charge before them, “Look, today I am giving you the choice between a blessing and a curse! You will be blessed if you obey the commands of the LORD your God that I am giving you today. But you will be cursed if you reject the commands of the LORD your God and turn away from him and worship gods you have not known before” (Deut 11:26-28).

Today as they stood on their respective mounts, one group facing the other, with the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant between them, they were again reminded of the choice that stood before them as they recited:

“If you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully keep all his commands that I am giving you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the world. You will experience all these blessings if you obey the LORD your God:

                  Your towns and your fields will be blessed.

                  Your children and your crops will be blessed.

                  The offspring of your herds and flocks will be

                        blessed.

                  Your fruit baskets and breadboards will be

                        blessed.

                  Wherever you go and whatever you do,

                        you will be blessed.” (Deut 28:1-6)

“But if you refuse to listen to the LORD your God and do not obey all the commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come and overwhelm you:

                  Your towns and your fields will be cursed.

                  Your fruit baskets and breadboards will be cursed. Your children and your crops will be cursed.

                  The offspring of your herds and flocks will be

                        cursed.

                  Wherever you go and whatever you do,

                        you will be cursed.” (Deut 28:15-19)

As i read through these words that Moses gave and Joshua led the people to recite, i am mindful that the choice between blessing and curse remains today as it was that day standing in the Valley of Shechem. If you will permit me to paraphrase:

If you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully keep all His commands you will experience all these blessings; however, if you refuse to listen to the LORD your God and do not obey all the commands and decrees, all these curses will come to overwhelm you and:

Your cities and governments,

Your homes and neighborhoods,

Your children and families,

Your places of business and labor, and

The fruit of your fields and your flocks.

In essence – wherever you go and

whatever you do.

Yes, we too stand in the Valley of Shechem between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim. We look back to Mount Ebal when we remember Christ’s sacrifice to remove the curse of sin on us while we were still lost in our sin. And we remember Mount Gerizim as we walk in the light of our salvation by grace through faith in Jesus. Through the shed blood of Christ we are no longer under bondage to the curse of our sin nature, but daily we must choose whether we will walk in our flesh, or in the fullness of walking with Christ. Jesus Himself explained that continuous choice when He said, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me” (Lk 9:23 NKJ).

Blessing or curse – the choice is ours.

(Excerpt from “Lessons Learned In The Wilderness — Possessing The Promise”. For more information about the book see http://www.wildernesslessons.com/Possessing_The_Promise.html.)