Mount Moriah

God Chose Mt. Moriah as His Permanent Place of Sacrificial Offerings.

     God chose Mt. Moriah (the Temple Mount) as His permanent place on earth for man to offer sacrifices to Him. The LORD calls Abraham out of Ur of the Chaldeans to the land of Canaan. Abraham meets the priest of God Almighty who abides in Jerusalem and gives him tithes of all he possesses as an offering to God. Afterwards, the LORD tests Abraham’s faith. Mt. Moriah is located outside of Jerusalem city limits at this time. Abraham is the only one tested in this manner because he was God’s friend and the LORD could trust Abraham. Abraham is tested on Mt. Moriah with the ultimate sacrifice. Mt. Moriah is the Old Testament name and exact location of the Temple Mount as we know it today.

Abraham Sojourns To The Promised Land

     Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: …and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came (Gen. 12:1-5).
 

Abraham Meets The Priest and King Of Jerusalem

     … after his return from the slaughter of Chedorlaomer…Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth: And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all (Gen.14:17-20). For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him; To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace; Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually (Hebs. 7:1-3).

Abraham Is Tested On Mt. Moriah

     And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.... And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. And Abraham called the name of that place Jehovahjireh: as it is said to this day, In the mount of the LORD it shall be seen (Gen. 22:1-14).

     Abraham’s test of faith is a picture of the future sacrifices that will be made in the same exact location of Mt. Moriah, the mount of the LORD. The Temple Mount is the mount of the LORD and is the chosen place of God to offer His permanent sacrifices for the nation of Israel. The picture of Abraham’s test of faith is God sacrificing His only begotten Son, the Lamb of God which taketh away the sins of the world. Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God, the sacrifice for our sins.

      There are several reasons why the crucifixion took place on Mt. Calvary rather than on Mt. Moriah. The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus is much more than just a picture of the sacrificial lamb. The sins of the world being placed on Jesus was also, among other things, a picture of the scape goat let out into the wilderness. Therefore, Jesus was crucified outide the gate, rather than inside the city of Jerusalem (Hebs. 13:12-13). The veil of the Temple was rent in half at the crucifixion, signifying God was not going to honor the sin offerings of the old covenant. A new covenant was put into place at the crucifixion (Hebs. 10:8-10). However, Mt. Moriah still plays an important role in the scheme of God’s plans in the future.