In the Footsteps of Ancient Pilgrims towards Biblical Sites Part I – Mount Nebo

“Ascend this mountain Araboth, Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab over against Jericho; and view the land of Canaan; which I give to the people of Israel for a possession; and die on the mountain which you ascend.”

“Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, eastwards from Jericho ”. (Deuteronomy 34:1)

Inhibited since antiquity, Mount Nebo derived its real name from the biblical event that occurred upon it as described in the Book of Deuteronomy 34: The Death of Moses, who climbed this holy mountain at the end of his life to see the Promised Land.  Mount Nebo was the final destination in Moses’ legendary yet historic journey from Egypt to the Holy Land.

Mount Nebo

From Mount Nebo’s windswept promontory, overlooking the Dead Sea, the Jordan River Valley, Jericho and the distant hills of Jerusalem, Moses viewed the Holy Land of Canaan that he would never enter. The Lord showed him the whole land and it was here in the land of Moab, Moses the servant of the Lord died, as the Lord has said.  He was buried in Moab, “in the valley opposite Beth-peor” , a place long associated with the site known today as Ayun Musa (Springs of Moses), a small lush valley northeast of Mount Nebo, but his tomb remains unknown.

According to the 2 Maccabees 2:4-7, after consulting the Oracle, the Prophet Jeremiah reportedly hid the Ark of the Covenant, the Tent and the Altar of Incense at Mount Nebo.

The viewing platform overlooking the panoramic view around the Jordan valley and across the Dead Sea to the distant hills of Jerusalem.

During the Exodus, God instructed Moses to erect a bronze serpent on a pole to stop a plague he had sent to kill the rebellious Israelites. All who looked up at the serpent were spare death. The curative serpent wrapped around a pole would later become the symbol of the pharmaceutical industry. The raised serpent would also be recalled in the New Testament as a precursor to the lifting of Jesus on the cross  – giving life to all who looked up to the raised figure.

The serpent Cross, which stands just outside the Moses Memorial Sanctuary which is currently under restoration, is symbolic of the bronze (or brazen) serpent created and taken by Moses into the desert, and the cross upon which Jesus was crucified (John 3:14). The serpent Cross was created by Italian artist Giovanni Fantoni.

Mount Nebo became a place of pilgrimage for early Christians from Jerusalem and a small church was built here in the 4^th century to commemorate the end of Moses’ life. Some of the stones from that church remain in their original place in the wall around the apse area. The church was subsequently expanded in the 5^th and 6^th centuries into the present-day large basilica with its stunning collection of Byzantine mosaics.

The ancient pilgrimage road from Jerusalem to Mount Nebo

In memory of Moses

Joshua was anointed by Moses as his successor and he went on to complete Moses’ mission by crossing the river Jordan with his people. The crossing point has been identified as the ford, directly opposite Jericho, known as Bethabara, or Beit ‘Abarah (house of crossing). It is believed that this may be the same ford known in the Bible as Beth-barah, Beth-arabah and Bethany-Beyond-the-Jordan. This has long been identified as the place where, centuries later, the prophet Elijah and Elisha divided the Jordan’s waters “to right and to left” and crossed to the eastern bank of the river.