The Promised Land, often referred too as Eretz Israel, that is “The Land of Israel” was a defined territory which God said belonged to Him (Leviticus 25:23). It consisted of the region God promised to the patriarch Abraham and his descendants (Genesis 15:15-21). Once Abraham arrived to settle in Canaan God told him:

To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates–the Kenites, the Kenezzites, the Kadmonites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.”  (Genesis 15:18-21 NIV).

This territory was a historical Semitic-speaking region roughly corresponding to the Levant (modern day Israel, Palestine territories, Lebanon, western Jordan, and western Syria). At that point Canaan appears to have been ruled by various small clans in an assortment of villages such as Jericho, Jebus (Jerusalem), Ai, and Hazor, all dominated by Egypt.

At the time of Abraham, the Canaanite clans had scattered, and the borders of Canaan reached [across the Mediterranean coast] from Sidon toward Gerar as far as Gaza, and then [inland around the Jordan Valley] toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, as far as Lasha. Genesis 10 (The Table of Nations), provides a brief summary of the genetic origins of the Canaanite peoples as descendants of Noah’s son Ham.

The promise to Abraham was first made to Abraham (Genesis 15:18-21) and then renewed with his son Isaac, and then to Isaac’s son Jacob (Genesis 28:13). The Promised Land in terms of the territory lie from the River of Egypt to the Euphrates River (Exodus 23:31 cf. Isaiah 27:12) and then given to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob following the Exodus (Deuteronomy 1:8).

In our world the name Palestine has in some quarters become a politically charged word. Biblical historians often use the word in a geographical sense absent political overtones. The biblical region referred to as Palestine was “The Land” of ancient Israel. Today, the state of Israel occupies only a portion of the land occupied by ancient Israel at its height.

Palestine, in a geographical sense not a political one, can be thought of as the Coastal Plain (the low lands), the Shephelah (the Judean foothills), Mountain Region (the central hill country), the Great Rift Valley, and the Negev (southern desert). While this region has few natural harbors it did have important trade routes to Anatolia, Mesopotamia, and the Nile. Three major Levantine north-south land routes supporting trade extended through Palestine—the Via Maris (“Way of the Sea” or the coastal highway), the Ridge Route (through the central mountains), and the King’s Highway (the Transjordan Highway running through the Jordan Valley).

• The Coastal Plain, along the Mediterranean Sea coast, can be broken into three parts geographically—(1) the Plain of Acco (north), (2) Upper and Lower Galilee, and (3) Samaria (Ephraim) and Judea (Judah). The Plain of Acco, whose name comes from Acco, a major town in that area, is not very wide. It is, however, quite fertile and it remained densely populated in ancient times. The Mount Carmel range of mountains interrupts the Coastal Plain separating the Acco Plain from the Plain of Sharon. The Sharon Plain is now conducive to agriculture but in ancient times settlers avoided it because it consisted mainly of forests and swamps. Ancient peoples found the Philistine Plain more attractive for it was wide, fertile, and well-drained in most parts. This is one reason why the Philistines chose to settle this part of the sea coast.
• The Shephelah (“lowland”) is a region of low valleys and hills, or foothills, lying between the Coastal Plain and the true hill or central mountain region. While well-drained and farmed, these limestone hills, suitable for pasture and for growing grapes and olive trees, were not as attractive to ancient peoples as the Coastal Plain. The Shephelah only exists in the southern part of the country. It does not appear in the area of Samaria but only in the region of Judea.
• The Mountain Region, with names essentially surviving from ancient times, consists of the mountains of Upper and Lower Galilee, Samaria, and Judea. The mountains of Galilee, called Upper and Lower because of their elevation, are considerably higher in Upper Galilee than those in Lower Galilee. The Rosh Haniqrah, a ridge on the sea line, creates a natural border with Lebanon. Cenomanian limestone highlands, running north and south, form the central mountain ridge.
• The Great Rift Valley, created by a massive eruption in the earth’s crust some twenty million years ago, is a 3,000-mile (4,830-kilometer) crack (fissure) in the earth’s surface. The rift is a deep depression in the earth’s crust extending from Mt. Hermon situated on the boundary of Lebanon and southwest Syria, along the Jordan River toward the Red Sea. The region includes the Sea of Galilee (Lake Kinneret) and the Dead Sea (Salt Sea). The rift extends beneath the Red Sea into East Africa terminating in Mozambique. This is an enormous fracture in the earth’s crust which explains why the lowest point on the surface of the earth, 1,306 feet (395 meters) below sea level, lies near the Dead Sea. Since the Jordan River flows through part of the Great Rift Valley a portion of the valley is known as the Jordan Valley. This extends from the headwaters of the Jordan to the northern end of the Dead Sea. The Arabah Valley consists of the desert section of the Jordan rift lying between the Salt Sea (Dead Sea) and the Red Sea port of Ezion-geber. The Dead Sea appears in Deuteronomy 3:17 as the Sea of Arabah (translated “Salt Sea”{ in the NKJ and “The Sea of the Plain” in the NASB). Arabs commonly refer to the Dead Sea as Bahr Lut, which means “Sea of Lot.” Many also refer to this lifeless body as the lake of Asphaltitis. “Lake” is a correct term when one considers the size of this body of water. It measures 46 miles long and only 3–10 miles wide, depending on the location. The Sea is fed by the Jordan River and contains no outlet or port. This explains its 33% salt content.
• The Negev, lying in the far south, is desert. A veritable barren wilderness. the Negev, or Negeb, comes from a Hebrew word likely meaning “dry” or “to be parched.”