Basic History
When Abraham first entered the Land in 2023 (1737 BCE), his first stop was the "place of Shechem," where G‑d appeared to him and promised: "To your descendants I will give this land." This was the first time that G‑d informed our Patriarch of this ultimate intention.
Two generations later, returning from Charan with his wives and children, Jacob came to Shechem and purchased a piece of land on the perimeter of the town. The prince of the town, also named Shechem, abducted and violated Jacob's daughter, Dina. Her brothers, Simon and Levi, rescued her and killed all the men of Shechem in retaliation.
Sixteen years later, Jacob sent 17-year old Joseph to "check on the welfare of his brothers" who were shepherding their father's herds near Shechem. When Joseph found his brothers, they sold him into slavery, setting off a chain of events that would lead to the Egyptian exile.
Many years later, when the entire family was already in Egypt, Jacob promised the city of Shechem to Joseph. It would make up part of the territory of Joseph's son, Ephraim.
Following the Exodus from Egypt, Joshua led the nation into the Land of Israel. As soon as they entered the Land, Joshua built an altar on Mount Ebal, one of the two mountains flanking Shechem. (Recently, an archeologist claims to have discovered this altar on Mt. Ebal.)
Half of the nation then stood atop Mount Ebal and the other half atop Mount Gerizim, while the Levites who stood between the mountains shouted the curses they would be subjected to if they disobeyed G‑d the law, and the blessings they would receive if they obeyed.
The Jews then buried Joseph's remains – which had been carried along from Egypt – in the plot of land which Jacob had bought, and designated Shechem as a City of Refuge and a Levite city.
Before Joshua died, he gathered the nation in Shechem and made a covenant between them and G‑d. He set up a stone in Shechem, and said, "Behold, this stone shall be a witness against us, for it has heard all the words of the Lord which He spoke to us; it shall be a witness against you, lest you deny your G‑d."
Throughout the period of the Prophets and the Kings, the city of Shechem played a pivotal role. When King Solomon died, the people gathered in Shechem, and it was there that the Ten Tribes seceded from Davidic rule and formed the Northern Kingdom.
Eventually, Shechem also served as a stronghold for the Samaritans, an ethnic group that was transferred to the Holy Land by Sennacherib King of Assyria. Though they officially converted to Judaism, they retained their pagan practices and beliefs, and were consistently a thorn in the Jews' side.
After the destruction of the Temple, the Romans changed Shechem's name to "Neapolis" (meaning "new city"); this then became "Nablus." Nevertheless, although the Jewish nation was dispersed and weakened, there remained a continuous Jewish presence in Shechem, and Joseph's Tomb stayed a focus of Jewish pilgrimage and prayer.
Today
In 1926, the Jewish inhabitants of Shechem were forced to leave in the face of Arab pogroms. A year later, an earthquake destroyed most of the Old City of Shechem, including the Jewish quarter.
With the Six Day War in 1967, Shechem and the surrounding areas reverted to Jewish control; however, while tourism in the area was encouraged, Jews were not permitted to live there.
Dedicated activists refused to accept this untenable situation, and as a result of their persistence there are now several established Jewish communities on the mountain ranges surrounding Shechem: Kedumim, Yitzhar, Har Bracha and Elon Moreh. Within Shechem itself, a yeshivah was formed at Joseph's Tomb in 1982, called "Od Yosef Chai" ("Joseph still lives"—the famous words spoken to Jacob following many years that he presumed Joseph to be dead).
Unfortunately, the situation today is far from ideal. In 1996, Shechem was given over the Palestinian Authority. Joseph's Tomb was to remain in Jewish hands, but in the early days of the 2000 terrorist offensive, that, too, was given up under fire. The Palestinian Authority promised to prevent damage to the site, but within a few hours a mob broke into the compound and destroyed everything. Furniture and holy books used by the yeshivah were burned and the place was reduced to rubble.
The first Jews weren't allowed to visit the site again until 2003. Now there are a few visits a year which take place in the middle of the night. Recent visitors found the tomb in ruins and covered with garbage.
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