Skip to main content

The Promised Land Debate: Why Palestine Doesn't Fit the Claim

In Abraham and Jacob’s time, in the Old Testament, the Promised Land refers to the physical land which is Canaan. This land was said to be inhabited by seven nations, and these are Hittites, Girgashites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. That was the Promised Land of Yahweh to Abraham and to the Israelites back then. 

Canaan Map 1

Canaan Map 2

In the modern times, the land that once was Canaan now encompasses Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria. 

Modern-day Israel


Does that makes them all the Promised Land? Of course not. It is clearly written in the New Testament that the Promised Land has changed into the New Jerusalem which is spiritual. 

One thing that many people failed to recognize is that the Canaan was a large region that included not only the Canaanites but also other groups like the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, Jebusites and Girgashites, as mentioned in the Bible.

Whenever people hear the word "Canaan", they always think that it only pertains to that specific land where Canaanites lives, but the mere truth is, the land was a vast region that included many different groups, not just the Canaanites.

When we talk about Canaan in biblical times, we are referring to the land occupied by 7 nations.

For instance, many people think that the Promised Land was Palestine since Canaanites once lived in areas that now include Jerusalem, Jericho, Shechem (modern Nablus), Bethel (near modern Ramallah) and Hebron which are located in the West Bank, a territory that is currently part of Palestine.

As I have said, Canaanites is not solely the Promised Land. The Promised Land is the Canaan region that covers the 7 nations. However, the Canaanites were among the first to be attacked when the Israelites entered the Promised Land. This was because they occupied central and strategic areas that needed to be conquered first for Israel to establish control over the land.

The first major battle recorded in the Book of Joshua was against Jericho, a heavily fortified Canaanite city (Joshua 6). After the miraculous collapse of Jericho's walls, the Israelites moved on to Ai (Joshua 7-8), another key Canaanite stronghold. These early victories gave Israel a foothold in the land, allowing them to launch further attack against other Canaanite cities.


References:

1. https://www.britannica.com/place/Israel

2. https://geography.bible-history.com/products/land-of-canaan-color-map-hi-res-download-1-year-license/

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Was It Really Samuel? Examining Saul's Encounter with the Medium of Endor

In Christian theological discourse, 1 Samuel 28 is often cited to maintain that divination, or any magical arts, were approved by Yahweh. However, this claim collapses under careful reading of the text. First thing first, we should examine the truth on why Saul consulted the medium in Endor. In 1 Samuel 8, the Israelites were pleading to Samuel into giving them a king who will rule them and lead them in their battles just like in other countries. Samuel prayed to Yahweh about this matter, where God answered, "Do what they want and give them a king." A quite some time, Saul, the son of Kish, was chosen to be the first king of Israelites. At first, Saul conveyed obedience to God until he started to become arrogant and disobedient. (1 Samuel 16:4) As a result, Yahweh abandoned him, and the Holy Spirit departed from him. Following this, evil spirits were said to surround him, and his primacy began to deteriorate. When he saw the Philistines assembling near the town ...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Pope: A Man-Made Office Not Found in the Bible.

The concept of papal supremacy is unbiblical. We know this because the Bible, specifically the New Testament, never mention it in the very first place. The Bible – the highest and ultimate authority for Christians – only teach bishops and deacons. Some Catholics (members of the physical church) would say that "some things need to be redefined". Wait, what? As I have said, papal supremacy does not exist in the 1st century CE. You cannot add or change what is written in the Sacred Scriptures. Moses once said to the Israelites in Deuteronomy 4:2, "Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it but keep the commands of the Lord your God that I give you." Moses here was acting as Yahweh's mouthpiece passing on God's own instruction to the Israelites. Okay, remove the Israelites from the picture – the truth of the message remains universal. It's because the same warning is given by Paul the apostle in Galatians 1:8-9, no one should ch...
Post a Comment
Read more

What you need to know about monitoring spirits.

 1. Monitoring spirits are a type of demonic spirit with the mission to make your life miserable and lose your faith in God. They are different from Incubus and Succubus. Monitoring spirits appear in your life to destroy your peace by bringing you negativity, block you from reaching your success, create disturbances in your surroundings to increase your stress or negative emotions and to distract you from whatever you are doing, most especially if you are reading the Bible or praying. 2. Unlike angels who are assigned to real human beings at birth, monitoring spirits are not assigned at birth. Not everyone has monitoring spirits. They only target and they only appear in individuals who are in a vulnerable state or disconnected from God, as this gives the demons an easier opportunity to influence or manipulate the person.  3. An individual can have one or more monitoring spirits influencing them. One monitoring spirit is the one affecting them directly, while the other monito...
Post a Comment
Read more