Jermain Defoe and Michael Dawson scored twice in the opening 15 minutes of the second half, but goals from Louis Saha and Tim Cahill, plus an injury time penalty save from Tim Howard, gave Everton a share of the spoils and stopped Spurs moving past rivals Arsenal into third place.
Both sides began brightly with Everton's Jack Rodwell being the first to test the opposition goalkeeper with a low drive that was easily kept out by Heurelho Gomes.
Peter Crouch had a golden chance to put Spurs ahead after he breached the Everton offside trap, but he disappointingly shot over from 12 yards.
Crouch's strike partner Defoe came close on the ten minute mark after a neat turn on the edge of the box, but his left foot shot was saved by Howard.
Everton's injury crisis deepened after 15 minutes when Joseph Yobo was forced off, which gave youngster Seamus Coleman his Goodison Park debut.
Despite the change, it was Everton who were gaining the upper hand and Jo came close with a volley across the box, after a disguised pass from Rodwell.
Spurs defender Dawson gave away a free kick on the edge of the box after half an hour and goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes was forced into action to keep out Leighton Baines' curling free kick.
Two minutes later, the visitors should have taken the lead when Niko Kranjcar found Defoe, but the in-form striker dragged his shot wide.
Tempers boiled over in the 36th minute when Maruoane Fellaini reacted to a challenge from Benoit Assou-Ekotto with resulted in a tussle between the pair, earning both players a yellow card.
Four minutes before half time, the increasingly threatening Defoe forced Howard into action once again, but the American goalkeeper did well to get a hand to the ball after Defoe attempted to take it past him.
A minute after the break, Defoe finally got his goal. Aaron Lennon whipped in a cross to the near post and Defoe half-volleyed the ball into the roof of the net.
Crouch came agonisingly close to doubling Spurs' lead in what would have been fortunate circumstances. Tony Hibbert's attempted clearance rebounded off Crouch's foot and was heading into the corner, but Howard pulled off a remarkable save to push the ball inches past the post.
Everton were struggling to create any opportunities of note, with a speculative effort from Jo their only attempt on goal.
However, the away side doubled their lead just before the hour when Dawson powerfully headed in a Kranjcar corner to leave Everton with a mountain to climb.
It was Spurs who looked more likely to extend their lead rather than Everton pull a goal back, with Gareth Bale and Crouch seeing their efforts miss the left hand post by inches.
However, an inspired run by the impressive Coleman helped the Toffees reduce the deficit. He breezed past Bale down the right hand side and delivered a precise cut-back for substitute Saha to volley high into the net.
A bit of magic from Saha nearly brought his team level with seven minutes to go. Steven Pienaar delivered a ball into the box and the French striker connected with an overhead kick from 12 yards that just missed Gomes' left-hand post.
But Everton equalised with four minutes to go after another burst down the right by Coleman. His cross went to the back post was met by Baines and his cross-shot was turned in at the back post by Cahill to the delight of the Goodison Park crowd.
However, one minute into injury time, Spurs were awarded a penalty when Hibbert barged into Wilson Palacios, leaving the referee no option but to award the spot-kick. Defoe stepped up, but his penalty was saved by the feet of Howard to gain his side a deserved point.
Both sides began brightly with Everton's Jack Rodwell being the first to test the opposition goalkeeper with a low drive that was easily kept out by Heurelho Gomes.
Peter Crouch had a golden chance to put Spurs ahead after he breached the Everton offside trap, but he disappointingly shot over from 12 yards.
Crouch's strike partner Defoe came close on the ten minute mark after a neat turn on the edge of the box, but his left foot shot was saved by Howard.
Everton's injury crisis deepened after 15 minutes when Joseph Yobo was forced off, which gave youngster Seamus Coleman his Goodison Park debut.
Despite the change, it was Everton who were gaining the upper hand and Jo came close with a volley across the box, after a disguised pass from Rodwell.
Spurs defender Dawson gave away a free kick on the edge of the box after half an hour and goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes was forced into action to keep out Leighton Baines' curling free kick.
Two minutes later, the visitors should have taken the lead when Niko Kranjcar found Defoe, but the in-form striker dragged his shot wide.
Tempers boiled over in the 36th minute when Maruoane Fellaini reacted to a challenge from Benoit Assou-Ekotto with resulted in a tussle between the pair, earning both players a yellow card.
Four minutes before half time, the increasingly threatening Defoe forced Howard into action once again, but the American goalkeeper did well to get a hand to the ball after Defoe attempted to take it past him.
A minute after the break, Defoe finally got his goal. Aaron Lennon whipped in a cross to the near post and Defoe half-volleyed the ball into the roof of the net.
Crouch came agonisingly close to doubling Spurs' lead in what would have been fortunate circumstances. Tony Hibbert's attempted clearance rebounded off Crouch's foot and was heading into the corner, but Howard pulled off a remarkable save to push the ball inches past the post.
Everton were struggling to create any opportunities of note, with a speculative effort from Jo their only attempt on goal.
However, the away side doubled their lead just before the hour when Dawson powerfully headed in a Kranjcar corner to leave Everton with a mountain to climb.
It was Spurs who looked more likely to extend their lead rather than Everton pull a goal back, with Gareth Bale and Crouch seeing their efforts miss the left hand post by inches.
However, an inspired run by the impressive Coleman helped the Toffees reduce the deficit. He breezed past Bale down the right hand side and delivered a precise cut-back for substitute Saha to volley high into the net.
A bit of magic from Saha nearly brought his team level with seven minutes to go. Steven Pienaar delivered a ball into the box and the French striker connected with an overhead kick from 12 yards that just missed Gomes' left-hand post.
But Everton equalised with four minutes to go after another burst down the right by Coleman. His cross went to the back post was met by Baines and his cross-shot was turned in at the back post by Cahill to the delight of the Goodison Park crowd.
However, one minute into injury time, Spurs were awarded a penalty when Hibbert barged into Wilson Palacios, leaving the referee no option but to award the spot-kick. Defoe stepped up, but his penalty was saved by the feet of Howard to gain his side a deserved point.
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