BUILDING MEMORIALS ON THE RIDGE ROUTE

GENESIS 24–36

The connection between events in the book of Genesis can be very subtle and, consequently, easily missed. That is the case with the memorials that were built by Abraham and his grandson Jacob along the Ridge Route. We will see how five events, three locations, and one roadway all came together in a way that reminds us that these memorials were built where they were for a reason.

In order to read about the five events, we must turn to four different chapters of Genesis. When Abram entered the land of Canaan, he built an altar to the Lord at Shechem (Gen. 12:6–7). Shortly after this we find Abram building another altar between Bethel and Ai (Gen. 12:8). After Abram and Lot went their separate ways, Abram traveled to Hebron and built an altar (Gen. 13:18). When Abraham’s grandson Jacob used deception to steal the birthright of his brother, the burning anger of Esau sent Jacob fleeing in the direction of Haran. En route he stopped at Bethel, where he set up and anointed a stone in remembrance of the vision he had there (Gen. 28:18–19). And years later when he returned to the Promised Land from Haran, Jacob took his household to Bethel. There they rededicated themselves to the Lord and built an altar (Gen. 35:6–7).

Standing stone of the Israelite temple at Arad. Jacob set up and anointed a standing stone to dedicate the site of Bethel.

While these accounts are scattered across many pages in Genesis, several points of similarity invite us to see them as connected to one another. First, the Lord spoke to Abraham and Jacob about the enduring plans that he had for their family, particularly reminding them that their descendants would become a great nation and inherit the land of Canaan. Therefore they built memorials, either altars or standing stones,14 commemorating that experience.

The standing stone from the temple at Shechem with Mount Gerizim in the background.

Next, when we plot these memorials on a map, we find they were all built on the same roadway, the Ridge Route, a secondary road through the country. This eighty-five mile path stretched between the Negev and the Jezreel Valley, following the watershed line of the central mountains.15 The most topographically trouble-free route was the International Highway, which ran down the coast along the western side of Canaan. At that time of history, however, it was under Egyptian dominance. The Ridge Route through the hill country of Canaan was more difficult to travel but more secure from Egypt’s military. Shechem, Bethel, and Hebron, where the memorials were constructed, were along the Ridge Route.16 When the Lord appeared to these men and when they built memorials, they did so along this Ridge Route.

When Abram and Jacob built memorials along the Ridge Route, they did so for a reason. As Abram and his descendants moved their livestock north and south through Canaan, they used the Ridge Route, which brought them into regular contact with these memorials. Each stop provided the opportunity for the members of this family to review, reflect, worship, and recommit to proclaiming the Creator’s message of rescue to the nations of the world. Just as we might turn our eyes to the promises of God written in his Word, the family of Abraham turned their eyes to these places and memorials to see the words and promises of God.

The Ridge Route

Bethel region.