Shechem was mentioned 60 times in the Old Testament and plays a very important role in Biblical history.

Sitting between Mount Gerizim and Ebal, the city of Shechem was the place of numerous biblical events including where God promised the land to Abraham, and where Jacob purchased land and buried and where the covenant was confirmed. 

Shechem was also where the tragic story of Dinah's violation took place, as described in the Book of Genesis 34:13 BBE: “But the sons of Jacob gave a false answer to Shechem and Hamor his father, because of what had been done to Dinah their sister.”  

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The city of Shechem was considered to be "A Way of the Patriarchs" as it was a crossroads in central Israel, therefore, seeing a lot of passerby's and probably why many major historical events occurred there.  

Today the Biblical Shechem is called Tel-Ballata. In Samaria it was declared the first center of government as described in the Book of Judges under Abimelech, son of Jerubbaal: “And ye are risen up against my father’s house this day, and have slain his sons, threescore and ten persons, upon one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his maidservant, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your brother.” Judges 9:18 KJV

And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land. 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. And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, having Bethel on the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the LORD, and called upon the name of the LORD. And Abram journeyed, going on still toward the south.

Genesis 12:6–9 KJV

So Esau returned that day on his way unto Seir. And Jacob journeyed to Succoth, and built him an house, and made booths for his cattle: therefore the name of the place is called Succoth. And Jacob came to Shalem, a city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, when he came from Padanaram; and pitched his tent before the city. And he bought a parcel of a field, where he had spread his tent, at the hand of the children of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for an hundred pieces of money. And he erected there an altar, and called it Elelohe-Israel.

Genesis 33:16–20 KJV

This place is first mentioned in connection with Abraham’s journey from Haran. At the oak of Moreh in the vicinity he reared his first altar to the Lord in Palestine (Gen 12:6 f). It was doubtless by this oak that Jacob, on his return from Paddan-aram, buried “the strange (ARV “foreign”) gods” (Gen 35:4). Hither he had come after his meeting with Esau (Gen 33:18). Eusebius, in Onomasticon, here identifies Shechem with Shalem; but see SHALEM. To the E. of the city Jacob pitched his tent in a “parcel of ground” which he had bought from Hamor, Shechem’s father (Gen 33:19). Here also he raised an altar and called it El-Elohe-Israel, “God, the God of Israel” (Gen 33:20).

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Then follows the story of Dinah’s defilement by Shechem, son of the city’s chief; and of the treacherous and terrible vengeance exacted by Simeon and Levi (Gen 34). To the rich pasture land near Shechem Joseph came to seek his brethren (Gen 37:12 ff). It is mentioned as lying to the W. of Michmethath (el-Makhneh) on the boundary of Manasseh (Josh 17:7). It was in the territory of Ephraim; it was made a city of refuge, and assigned to the Kohathite Levites (Josh 20:7; 21:21). Near the city the Law was promulgated (Dt 27:11; Josh 8:33). When his end was approaching Joshua gathered the tribes of Israel here and addressed to them his final words of counsel and exhortation (chapter 24). Under the oak in the neighboring sanctuary he set up the stone of witness (24:26). The war of conquest being done, Joseph’s bones were buried in the parcel of ground which Jacob had bought, and which fell to the lot of Joseph’s descendants (24:33). Abimelech, whose mother was a native of the city, persuaded the men of Shechem to make him king (Jgs 9:1–6), evidently seeking a certain consecration from association with “the oak of the pillar that was in Shechem.” Jotham’s parable was spoken from the cliff of Gerizim overhanging the town (Jgs 9:7 ff). After a reign of three years Abimelech was rejected by the people. He captured the city, razed it to the foundations, and sowed it with salt.

It was then the seat of Canaanite idolatry, the temple of Baal-berith being here (Jgs 9:4,46). In the time of the kings we find that the city was once more a gathering-place of the nation. It was evidently the center, especially for the Northern tribes; and hither Rehoboam came in the hope of getting his succession to the throne confirmed (1 Ki 12:1; 2 Ch 10:1). At the disruption Jeroboam fortified the city and made it his residence (2 Ch 10:25; Ant, VIII, viii, 4). The capital of the Northern Kingdom was moved, however, first to Tirzah and then to Samaria, and Shechem declined in political importance. Indeed it is not named again in the history of the monarchy. Apparently there were Israelites in it after the captivity, some of whom on their way to the house of the Lord at Jerusalem met a tragic fate at the hands of Ishmael ben Nethaniah (Jer 41:5 ff). It became the central city of the Samaritans, whose shrine was built on Mt. Gerizim (Sir 50:26; Ant, XI, viii, 6; XII, i, 1; XIII, iii, 4). Shechem was captured by John Hyrcanus in 132 BC (Ant., XIII, ix, 1; BJ, I, ii, 6). It appears in the NT only in the speech of Stephen (Acts 7:16, AV “Sychem”). Some (e.g. Smith, DB, under the word) would identify it with Sychar of Jn 4:5; but see SYCHAR. Under the Romans it became Flavia Neapolis. In later times it was the seat of a bishopric; the names of five occupants of the see are known.

“Shechem,” ISBE, paragraph 52645.

One thought on “Biblical Shechem

  1. John Bell 2 years ago

    I would love to see the site