A Visit to the Promised Land

SUPPOSE a friend told you that he had purchased for you—as a gift—a brand-new house amid beautiful, quiet surroundings. ‘What does it look like?’ you would wonder. No doubt you would be eager to see this house for yourself, to walk through and inspect each room. After all, this is your new home!

In 1473 B.C.E., Jehovah bequeathed to the nation of ancient Israel a new home—the Promised Land, a strip of territory measuring about 300 miles [500 km] from north to south and 35 miles [55 km] wide, on an average.a Situated in what has been called the Fertile Crescent, the Promised Land was a delightful place to live, blessed with its own unique characteristics.

But why should you today be interested in a “home” that was given to someone else, especially someone living long ago? Because a knowledge of this historic land can enhance your appreciation of Bible accounts. “In the land of the Bible,” wrote the late Professor Yohanan Aharoni, “geography and history are so deeply interwoven that neither can be really understood without the help of the other.” Furthermore, at its height the Promised Land provided a small-scale example of what Paradise under God’s Kingdom will soon mean for mankind earth wide!—Isaiah 11:9.

During his earthly ministry, Jesus Christ drew upon common sights in the Promised Land to teach practical lessons. (Matthew 13:24-32; 25:31-46; Luke 13:6-9) We too can learn much in a practical way from a consideration of certain features of ancient Palestine. Let us walk through some of its rooms, so to speak, inspecting some distinct characteristics of this land that served as home to God’s people for many centuries. As we will see, there is much that we can learn from the Promised Land.

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Cover: Pictorial Archive (Near Eastern History) Est.

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Garo Nalbandian