Blessings And Curses
Q. Re: Deut 11:29. When the LORD your God has brought you into the land you are entering to possess, you are to proclaim on Mount Gerizim the blessings, and on Mount Ebal the curses. What does this verse mean?
A. These two “mountains” come down to meet in a common valley in central Israel, and the same highway that the Lord described in Deut. 11:30 passes to the east of them today. I’ve stood between them and the contrast is every bit as striking now as it was then. The slope of Mt. Gerizim faces to the south and is lush and green, and that’s what the Israelites beheld as they looked up to hear the blessings. Then they turned toward the north facing slope of Mt. Ebal, which is rocky and barren, reminding them of the consequences of disobedience as they listened to the curses. The message was clear.
