In the Bible, mountains are where heaven and earth meet.
Biblical mountains are places where God dwells and encounters man. We see this at the very beginning of the Bible in the Garden of Eden, which was on a mountain.
The land of Eden gives us a Biblical pattern for the world that the Bible brings up in various forms throughout the Bible. The mountain of God in Eden becomes
- Mt. Sinai
- the Tabernacle
- Solomon’s Temple
- Jesus
- believers in the New Covenant
- Church
- and finally, the New Jerusalem, the City of God
Since Adam’s fall in the Garden of Eden, God has worked to get humanity back to God’s holy mountain to dwell with Him, as David writes in Psalm 15 below. That is why we see the pattern of the mountain in Eden brought up throughout God’s salvation plan.
Psalm 15:1
O Lord, who shall sojourn in your tent?
Who shall dwell on your holy hill?
The mountain is a powerful and important symbol, and understanding the significance of mountains in the Bible will give you great insights into understanding the Bible in the larger context.
Contents
The Garden of Eden was on a mountain
The book of Genesis, and especially the first 11 chapters of it, gives you the foundation to build your understanding of the Bible. We learn from Genesis that the Garden of Eden was a place where God dwelled on earth. A river flowed from the Land of Eden to the Garden, where the river divided into four more rivers.
Rivers flow from a higher place to a lower. The Garden of Eden had to be on a mountain because the four rivers were flowing from there to four different locations on the earth.
Chapter 28 of Ezekiel also talks about Eden being on a mountain.
Ezekiel 28:13-16
You were in Eden,
the garden of God.
Every precious stone adorned you:
ruby, topaz, emerald,
chrysolite, onyx, jasper,
sapphire, turquoise, and beryl.
Gold work of tambourines
and of pipes was in you.
They were prepared in the day that you were created.
You were the anointed cherub who covers.
Then I set you up on the holy mountain of God.
You have walked up and down in the middle of the stones of fire.
You were perfect in your ways from the day that you were created,
until unrighteousness was found in you.
By the abundance of your commerce, your insides were filled with violence,
and you have sinned.
Therefore I have cast you as profane out of God’s mountain.
I have destroyed you, covering cherub,
from the middle of the stones of fire.
So, the very place where God chose to dwell on earth before man fell into sin was a garden that was located on a mountain.
God’s Holy Mountain as a world pattern
Adam met and talked with God in the Garden of Eden, on God’s holy mountain.
Genesis 2:8
Yahweh God planted a garden eastward, in Eden, and there he put the man whom he had formed.
According to the above verse, the Garden of Eden was located on the east side of the Land of Eden. From this, we can construct a 3-zone pattern of the world that repeats later throughout the Bible.
The three zones are
- Garden
- Land
- World
The Garden was where God would dwell. Since God cast Adam out from the Garden, we see Him repeatedly reconstructing the 3-zone world pattern to create a place where man could meet God.
We see God meeting with Moses on Mt Sinai, talking to him from a burning bush, and later giving him the Law and the blueprints to the Tabernacle on the same mountain. Once the Tabernacle was ready, God came to dwell in it.
Both Mt Sinai and the Tabernacle have the same 3-zone world pattern.
The Bible mentions that the Tabernacle was built according to a heavenly pattern (Heb 8). Moses brought heaven on earth in the architecture and design of the Tabernacle.
The Temple that Solomon built had the same 3-zone design. The Temple was more glorious than the Tabernacle, and the visionary Temple that Ezekiel sees (Eze 40-48) was yet more glorious. However, even Ezekiel’s grand Temple can’t compare to the Heavenly Jerusalem coming down from God at the end of the Book of Revelation.
These are the historical and visionary structures for God’s dwelling places on earth. The blueprints for all three structures are given to a prophet on a mountain.
Book of revelation 21:9-10
One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls, who were loaded with the seven last plagues came, and he spoke with me, saying, “Come here. I will show you the wife, the Lamb’s bride.” He carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,
Ezekiel 40:2
In the visions of God he brought me into the land of Israel, and set me down on a very high mountain, on which was something like the frame of a city to the south.
The Garden, Mt Sinai, the Tabernacle, the Temples of Solomon and Ezekiel, and the City of God are all dwelling places for God. The New Testament uses this language about Jesus, the believers, and the Church.
In John 1:14, the text says that Jesus tabernacled among people and that the fullness of God dwells bodily in Jesus.
John 1:14 (YLT)
And the Word became flesh, and did tabernacle among us, and we beheld his glory, glory as of an only begotten of a father, full of grace and truth.
Colossians 2:9
For in him all the fullness of the Deity dwells bodily,
Matthew 5:14 says Christians are the light of the world and a city on a hill that no one can hide. Hebrews 12 tells us believers have come to Mount Zion (God’s holy mountain) and to the city of the living God.
Hebrews 12:22
But you have come to Mount Zion, and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable multitudes of angels,
Believers become the light because they are temples for the Holy Spirit to dwell in.
1 Corinthians 6:19
Or don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God?
Every believer comes to the Church, which is God’s holy mountain, and at the same time, helps to build the very same God’s temple, in which Jesus is the cornerstone.
Ephesians 2:19-22
So then you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and of the household of God, being built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the chief cornerstone; in whom the whole building, fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together for a habitation of God in the Spirit.
The pattern repeats just before Jesus’ arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus goes to Gethsemane to pray with His disciples. He first leaves nine of them in one place and continues with Peter, John, and James. He tells His inner circle of three to keep watch while He goes to pray alone. Jesus returns “from the mountain” to act according to God’s blueprints. (Matthew 26:36-46)
The world pattern gives Christians and the Church calls to action to follow.
- The believer is on God’s holy mountain, receiving the blueprints of Heaven through the indwelling Spirit. The believer can reflect the heavenly blueprints in his/her actions. In other words, the believer brings Heaven on earth.
- The believer is God’s mountain because of the indwelling Spirit and his participation in the Church as a building block. This way, the believer enlarges the mountain of God until it fills the whole world, just like we see in the 2nd chapter of the Book of Daniel.
Daniel 2:34-35
You saw until a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet that were of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were broken in pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors. The wind carried them away, so that no place was found for them. The stone that struck the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.
What do mountains symbolize in the bible
Mountains are the highest points on earth and “closest to heaven and God.” They symbolize a meeting point of God and man, heaven and earth.
Think about the mountain as a triangle with the peak on top.
- It’s about a hierarchy of values. There are many things at the bottom, but only one on top.
- It’s about ascending and descending on the hierarchy of values.
- On the top, there is God. At the very bottom, you have your multiple desires. The conflicting desires pull you in different directions. Some are good, and others bad. When you ascend the mountain, there are fewer harmful desires because you aim towards God, the ultimate good.
- If, at the bottom, multiple conflicting desires almost rip you apart, on the top, you have peace and oneness with God. You have the mind of Christ.
Think about the mountain triangle as “looking at the particulars” versus “seeing everything.” At the very bottom, lying in the grass, you can only see the individual blades of grass. As you lift yourself, you start seeing more; you see bushes, trees, and how the trees form a forest. As you ascend the mountain, you see how far the forest reaches and that there’s a river on the other side of it.
The closer to the top you get, the more you see and understand about the landscape. On the very peak of the mountain, you have a 360-degree view of everything. Now, “you see everything.” Clarity, however, comes only at the very top. Even one step before the peak, there is still something that you could see more.
You must select the thing at the top from the highest good. If you choose it from the good stuff that merely points to the highest thing, you end up corrupting that value.
Jesus discusses selecting the highest value in Matthew 6 and emphasizes the correct prioritization of values in Mark 14.
Matthew 6:33
But seek first God’s Kingdom and his righteousness; and all these things will be given to you as well.
Mark 14:7
For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want to, you can do them good; but you will not always have me.
When you select the ultimate good as your highest value, rivers of renewing waters will flow from you everywhere. The image is the same as in the Garden of Eden (and in Dan 2 above, with the mountain filling the world), where the river from God was divided into four rivers that flowed to all four corners of the earth.
Genesis 2:10
A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers.
Most important events in the Bible happen in the mountains
Arguably, the most significant events in the Bible happen in the mountains. The events show that we are not just constructing fancy theoretical ideas to puff up the importance of mountains in the Bible. The events prove that the mountain is a significant Biblical symbol, and we should pay close attention to what happens in and around the stories about mountains.
- Eden was on top of a mountain
- Noah landed on a mountain after the flood (Gen 8)
- Abraham was about to sacrifice Isaac on a mountain (Gen 22)
- God appears to Moses in a burning bush on a mountain (Exodus 3)
- God gave the Law to Moses on a mountain (Exodus 19-32)
- Jerusalem is on a mountain
- Jesus gives His most recognized sermon from a mountain
- Jesus’ transfiguration happens on a mountain
- Jesus often went on a mountain to pray (in the night of His arrest, he was praying on the Mount of Olives)
- Scripture doesn’t tell us, but most scholars think that Jesus was crucified on a mount
- Jesus ascends to heaven from a mountain
Top 10 mountains in the Bible
Below, we have listed the top 10 most significant mountains in the Bible. We have included images, the essential biblical events, and verses related to the mountain with each listing.
In the table below, you will find elevation in meters and feet for each of the top 10 mountains in the Bible.
| Mountain | Elevation |
|---|---|
| Mount of Olives | 826 m / 2,710 ft |
| Mount Sinai | 2,285 m / 7,497 ft |
| Mount Zion | 765 m / 2,510 ft |
| Mount Moriah | 740 m / 2,428 ft |
| Mount Ararat | 5,137 m / 16,854 ft |
| Mount Tabor | 575 m / 1,886 ft |
| Mount of Beatitudes, Mount Eremos | -25 m / – 82 ft |
| Mount Hermon | 2,814 m / 9,232 ft |
| Mount Carmen | 525 m / 1,724 ft |
| Mount Gerizim | 881 m / 2,890 ft |
1. Mount of Olives
- On the night of His arrest, Jesus prayed on the Mount of Olives.
- Jesus gave His famous Olivet Discourse prophesies about the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD and the end times on the Mount of Olives.
- Jesus ascended to the Father from the Mount of Olives.
- Luke 22, Acts 1:9-12, 2 Samuel 15:30, Zechariah 14:4, Matthew 21:1, Matthew 24:1 – 25:46, Mark 11:1
2. Mount Sinai
- God appears to Moses in a burning bush and later gives the Law to Moses on Mt Sinai.
- Exodus 31:18, Exodus 34:2, Leviticus 7:38, Numbers 1:1, Numbers 3:1, Deuteronomy 33:2
3. Mount Zion
- In the Old Testament, Mount Zion is the City of David. It’s where God dwells and reigns.
- In the New Testament, Mount Zion refers to the heavenly New Jerusalem. Christians are said to have “come to Mount Zion.”
- 2 Samuel 5:1-10, 1 Kings 8:1, Isaiah 8:18, Isaiah 24:23, Psalm 2:6, Psalm 74:2, Hebrews 12:22–23, Revelation 14:1.
4. Mount Moriah
- Abraham was about to sacrifice Isaac on a mount Moriah.
- In 1 Chronicles 21:15-16 the Angel of the LORD appears to David “by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.” According to 2 Chronicles 3:1, the LORD appeared to David “on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite”, connecting the Angel of the LORD directly to Yahweh. (Read more in 8 proofs that the Angel of the LORD is Jesus.)
- Solomon built his temple on Mount Moriah.
- Today, Mount Moriah is known as the Temple Mount.
- Genesis 22:2, 2 Chronicles 3:1
5. Mount Ararat
- Noah landed on Mount Ararat after the flood.
- Genesis 8:4
6. Mount Tabor
- Deborah, a Jewish prophetess, called upon Barak from the tribe of Naphtali and relayed God’s command to go up to Mount Tabor, where God would deliver their enemy, a Canaanite Sisera and his army, into their hands. Once the enemy approached Mount Tabor, the Israelites descended from the mountain and launched an attack, defeating Sisera and the Canaanites.
- Some traditions place Jesus’ transfiguration on Mount Tabor.
- Judges 4
7. Mount of Beatitudes, Mount Eremos
- Traditional site of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount.
- Its negative altitude (around 25 meters below sea level, nearly 200 meters above the Sea of Galilee) makes it one of the lowest mountains in the world.
- Matthew 5-7
8. Mount Hermon
- The highest mountain in Israel and the northern boundary of the Promised Land.
- In the apocryphal Book of Enoch, Mount Hermon is the place where “the Watchers,” fallen angels, descended to earth before Noah’s Flood. (Read more about biblically accurate angels and cherubim in the Bible.)
- Some traditions place Jesus’ transfiguration on Mount Hermon.
- Today, Mount Hermon hosts the only ski resort in Israel.
- Deuteronomy 3:8–9, Joshua 12:1, 13:11, Psalm 42:6, Song of Songs 4:8, Psalm 133:3
9. Mount Carmel
- Elijah challenged 450 prophets of Baal to a contest at the altar on Mount Carmel, and won.
- Today, the mountain range is a UNESCO biosphere reserve. Haifa, Israel’s third largest city, is located on its slopes.
- 1 Kings 18:16-46, 2 Kings 2:25
10. Mount Gerizim
- When Israelites celebrated entering the Promised Land with ceremonies of blessings and cursings, the ceremonies of blessings took place on Mount Gerizim.
- Deuteronomy 11:29, Judges 9:7-15, Joshua 8:33
Summary of the significance of the mountains in the Bible
In the Bible, mountains are significant meeting points between heaven and earth, symbolizing places where God dwells and encounters humanity. This symbolism is evident from the Garden of Eden, believed to have been on a mountain, to various biblical narratives and prophetic visions.
From the Garden, the pattern of God’s holy mountain recurs in Mt. Sinai, the Tabernacle, Solomon’s Temple, and ultimately in Jesus, believers, and the Church. These sacred spaces represent God’s dwelling among His people and His ongoing plan to reconcile humanity to Himself.
The imagery of the mountains underscores themes of redemption and renewal throughout biblical history. It also reflects a hierarchy of values, with the pinnacle representing the ultimate good—God Himself.
Many pivotal events in the Bible occur on mountains, highlighting their profound significance in biblical theology and narrative. Understanding the symbolic importance of mountains provides insights into the larger context of biblical themes and the divine-human encounter.