Eretz Israel

It is used by the Jews who made their aliyah to describe Israel. The addition of the term Eretz ("earth") refers to religious and cultural character that represents the promised land in the eyes of the Jews. The purpose is primarily symbolic. It also refers to the roots of Zionism whose early members were farmers who were cultivating the land. The use is intended in this context "positive."

Often accompanies nationalist claim term and use the term Eretz Israel is used to denote the territories claimed as to be part of Israel. Historically, the Zionist revisionists claimed the opportunity for Jews to settle in the territories that were allocated to the British Mandate of Palestine , based on political arguments related to the Balfour Declaration and religious arguments related to the historic the Kingdom of Israel and the Promised Land. This usage is still current. It is the official policy of the Likud , the party of the Revisionist Zionist heir to claim the West Bank and Gaza Strip as to be part of Israel. It is also used by the Zionist Orthodox Jewish circles to justify their presence in the occupied territories. One of their argument, the political and historical characters, is to say that Jews have abandoned the east of the Jordan to the Palestinians and that therefore the West in any justice they deserve. Other more radical and minority religious voices argue in Eretz Israel and see all the land promised by God to his people, but the Bible does not specifically define those limits.

Typically movements Zionists use the term Eretz Israel with a pejorative: in denouncing the leader of Israel's desire to grow (when they speak of a Greater Israel which will potentially expansive stresses over the Land of Israel that emphasizes the potential legitimacy). Generally, they oppose the policy of colonization of occupied territories and put the controversy at the political level. Others criticize the religious character of the claim that land was promised by God and denouncing what they consider to be the fundamentalist religious. Among these, some resume interpretation of biblical texts that put boundaries of Eretz Israel from the Nile to the Euphrates , which depicts Israel as having expansionist ambitions of proportion. The latter usage of Eretz Israel is often seen as anti-Semitic because it is based on an interpretation of biblical texts that is reversed by any current Judaism movements but only anti-Zionist of the most radical.

In a political context, David Ben-Gurion believed that southern Lebanon until the Litani River would be part of Eretz Israel. This view was echoed by several Israeli leaders. The motivations are the Litani River forms a natural border and clear that this region of southern Lebanon controlled one of the sources of water in Israel and in itself constitutes an important reserve.

Biblical passages

Several verses of the Torah , a verse from the book of Joshua , and a passage from the book of Ezekiel define the borders of the Promised Land.

• Genesis 15:18-21
  • To your descendants I give this land, the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river of Euphrates , the Qnens the Qenizzens the Qadmonens, Hittites, Perizzens, the Rephaim , Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites and Jebusites.

• Exodus 23:20-33
  • Behold, I send an angel before you to guard you on the road, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. Stand on your guard in his presence and hear his voice, do not rebel against him, because he will not forgive your sins, for My Name is in him. But if you listen to his voice, and if you do everything I tell you, I am an enemy to your enemies and an adversary unto thine adversaries. My angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, the Hittites, the Pherezite, Canaanites, Jebusites and Hivites, and I will cut them off. Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, and you do not serve them imitate you point these people in their conduct, but you destroy them, and you break down their images. Worship the Lord your God, and He will bless your bread and your water, and I will take away sickness from among you. There will be in your country or miscarrying or barren. I will fulfill the number of thy days. I will send My terror before thee, I will destroy all the nations whom you shall come, and I will turn their backs unto thee all thine enemies. I will send hornets before thee, and they will drive away from your face Hivites, the Canaanites and the Hittites. I will not drive them in just one year away from your face, lest the land become desolate and the beasts of the field multiply against thee. I will drive slowly away from your face until you increase in number and that you can take possession of the country. I will set thy bounds from the Red Sea to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the desert unto the river: for I will give your hands the locals, and you drive them out before you. You shall make no covenant with them nor with their gods. They dwell in thy land, lest they make thee sin against Me: for if thou serve their gods, it would be a trap for you.

• Numbers 34:1-12
  • The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Command the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye come into the land of Canaan, the country will become your inheritance, the land of Canaan, with the following limitations. The south side will begin in the wilderness of Zin near Edom. Thus, your limit will begin at the southern end of the Salt Sea, eastward, it will turn south to the rise of Akrabbim, will Zin, and will extend to south of Kadesh Barnea and will continue through Hazar Addar and go to Azmon; Atsmon since it will turn to the torrent of Egypt, leading to the sea Your western boundary will be the great sea: this shall be your boundary on the west. This shall be your northern boundary: from the great sea, you draw it up to Mount Hor; from Mount Hor you'll pass by Hamath, and reach Tsedad and will continue through Ziphron, leading Hazar enan: this shall be your boundary on the north. You go your eastern boundary of Hazar Enan at Shepham and it will descend to Shepham Riblah, east of Ain and it will come down, and extend along the Kinneret Sea, to the east, it descends again to Jordan, leading to the salt sea. This will be your land with its boundaries all round.

• Deuteronomy 1:7 11:24
  • Turn around and go, and go to the mountain of the Amorites and all the neighboring places in the plains, the mountains, and in flat country, and in the south and on the seashore at home the Canaanites and to Lebanon, to the great river, the river Euphrates.

• Deuteronomy 11:24
  • Every place that treads the sole of your foot will be yours, your limit will be from the wilderness and Lebanon, from the river, the river Euphrates to the Sea of the West.

• Joshua 1:4
  • You have to land from the wilderness and Lebanon unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites to the Great Sea toward the setting sun.

• Ezekiel 47:13-20
  • Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold the limits of the country you distribute an inheritance to the twelve tribes of Israel. Joseph has two parts. You'll possession as the other one, because I swore, his hand raised, to give to your fathers. This country will fall so you share. Here are the limits of the country. The north side, from the great sea, the path to Hethlon Tsedad, Hamath Berothah, Sibram, the border between Damascus and the border of Hamath, Hatz-Hatthicon to the border of Havran, so the limit is, from the sea, Hazar-Enon, the border of Damascus, Zaphon north and the border of Hamath will be the north side. The eastern side will be the Jordan, between Havran, Damascus and Gilead , and the land of Israel, you will measure from the north boundary to the eastern sea: this is the east side. The southern side, at noon, will be from Tamar to the waters of Meribah in Kadesh, to the brook to the Great Sea will be the southern side. The west side is the ocean, far from the border vis--vis Hamath: This is the west side. You will share this land to you according to the tribes of Israel. You will divide into an inheritance for you and for foreigners who will stay among you, who father children among you, you look like natives among the children of Israel, they will share the fate with the legacy you among the tribes of Israel. You will give foreign heritage in the tribe where he will stay, "said the Lord GOD.

Notes

The size of the Promised Land described in the Tanakh (Jewish Bible) is a region extending from the Great River of Egypt "to the Euphrates, which includes the modern State of Israel including the West Bank The Lebanon , most of Syria modern and Peninsula Sinai. In fact, it takes the route taken by the Hebrews during the Exodus out of Egypt.

However, the most accurate descriptions, those of Numbers and Ezekiel describe a much more limited area, limited by the Jordan River to the east, the Nile to the west. It does not include much of the desert Negev but still includes a small portion of territory now under Egyptian control, the South Lebanon and the southern tip of Syria.

Another point of disagreement concerns the Hittites , whose lands are included within the borders of the Land of Israel. Is this one of the tribes occupying the land of Canaan conquered by Joshua , or the greatest empire that occupied most of central Turkey today?

See also

Related articles

• Palestine
• History of Palestine
• History of Jews in the Land of Israel
• Holy Land
• Promised Land
• Israel
• Daughter of Zion

References

• Portal of the Ancient Near East
• Israel portal
• Portal in the Middle East