Should Israel be made to move their boundaries to achieve peace? I firmly believe Israel should be made to move their boundaries. The next question should be, "Where should these boundaries be set?"
I have learned over the last several years, that for the really hard questions I must go to the voice of authority. The Sovereign God of all the universe gave us these boundaries approximately 3500 years ago.
I will plant Israel in their own land, never again to be uprooted from the land I have given them ~ Amos 9:15
Boundaries of the Promised Land
Some 3,500 years ago the Canaanites inhabited the land that God promised to give to the offspring of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. God promised that He would give the land of Israel to the Jewish people as an eternal possession. The promise was unconditional. God confirmed it at least 55 times with an oath and stated, at least 12 times, that the covenant was everlasting.
God did bring the Israelites into the Promised Land, 40 years after the Exodus from Egypt. Israel reached the peak of her power some 500 years later, under King Solomon.
The map above shows the area that Israel controlled at that time. It almost matched the boundaries of the land that God had promised. Gaza was not taken from the Philistines in Solomon’s day, and the land of the Canaanites promised to Abraham included the coastal strip all the way to Sidon – the city of Canaan’s first-born son. 1 Chronicles 1:13 Canaan was the father of Sidon his firstborn, and of the Hittites ...Genesis 10:19... and the borders of Canaan reached from Sidon toward Gerar as far as Gaza, and then toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, as far as Lasha. Areas of Moab, Ammon and Edom, east of the Dead Sea, were occupied by King Solomon, but were not part of the Promised Land. This is part of modern-day Jordan.
Israel entered the Promised Land and, hundreds of years later under King Solomon, they occupied a large part, but not all, of the territory which God had promised to them. Israel was required to obey the Law of Moses and, when they failed, God thrust them out of the land. However, God’s promise that they will inherit the land still stands.
May 14, 1948 Israel began to regather for the first time since the Crucifixion of Christ. God's promise being fulfilled in our generation and we expect to see God’s Word fulfilled promising Israel that they will receive their full inheritance.
The next question is: What are the boundaries of the Promised Land as described in the Bible?
God says in Numbers 34:1-12.
The LORD said to Moses, “Command the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter Canaan, the land that will be allotted to you as an inheritance is to have these boundaries:
“‘Your southern side will include some of the Desert of Zin along the border of Edom. Your southern boundary will start in the east from the southern end of the Dead Sea, cross south of Scorpion Pass, continue on to Zin and go south of Kadesh Barnea. Then it will go to Hazar Addar and over to Azmon, where it will turn, join the Wadi of Egypt and end at the Mediterranean Sea.
“‘Your western boundary will be the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. This will be your boundary on the west.
“‘For your northern boundary, run a line from the Mediterranean Sea to Mount Hor and from Mount Hor to Lebo Hamath. Then the boundary will go to Zedad, continue to Ziphron and end at Hazar Enan. This will be your boundary on the north.
“‘For your eastern boundary, run a line from Hazar Enan to Shepham. The boundary will go down from Shepham to Riblah on the east side of Ain and continue along the slopes east of the Sea of Galilee. Then the boundary will go down along the Jordan and end at the Dead Sea.
“‘This will be your land, with its boundaries on every side.’”
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And again in Ezekiel 47:13-20 God gives us the boundaries that He alone has the authority to set as the Sovereign God of all the universe.
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It all seem clear to me, for we know that ultimately the authority of God's Word rules over all that there is.
