Imagine if for centuries, people could not travel freely, so most of their knowledge was dependent on the land where they lived. We know that this way of thinking has had a huge impact on the development of people. If you want to discover the spiritual meaning of land in the Bible, we invite you to read this free guide on the spiritual meaning of land in a dream and the biblical meaning of buying land in a dream.
The word “land” may carry different meanings, depending on the context in which it is being used. In the Bible and in Christian tradition, land refers to either the earth (or soil), generally, or to a region, territory, or country, as here: And Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan. –Genesis 12:4-5
Spiritual Meaning of Land In The Bible
The Bible is full of references to land and its spiritual meaning.
The first reference to land in the Bible appears in Genesis 1:28, when God tells Adam and Eve to “subdue” it. This is a reference to Genesis 1:26, where God says that man and woman are made in God’s image and are given dominion over all the earth. The commandment to “subdue” land means that humans have a responsibility to care for it—to be stewards of the earth.
In the New Testament, Jesus referred to himself as the “bread of life,” referring to John 6:35. This passage refers back to Deuteronomy 8:3–4 (Deuteronomy 8:3–4), which describes how God provides manna from heaven so that his people can survive in the wilderness on their journey toward Canaan. Jesus’ words about being the bread of life were intended as a spiritual metaphor for his role as savior, but they also carry with them an important message about how Christians should treat creation today.
The idea of humans having dominion over creation was taken up again by St. Paul in Romans 8:19-22 (Romans 8:19-22), which speaks about how we are “he
What Does The Promised Land Symbolize?
The land is a place of great spiritual meaning in the Bible. The book of Genesis says that God created man and woman “in his own image” (Genesis 1:27), and that he gave them dominion over the Earth (Genesis 1:28). That dominion meant that they were to tend the Earth and to use it for their own purposes.
In Genesis 2:15-17, God tells Adam and Eve that they can eat from any tree in the garden except one. He then warns them not to eat from that tree because if they do, they will die.
In Genesis 3:1-7, Eve eats from the forbidden tree and gives some to Adam who also eats from it. They both immediately realize that they have sinned by disobeying God’s command. They are then banished from Eden and are told that they will never be able to return there again because their disobedience has changed them forever (Genesis 3:8).
The story continues with Cain killing Abel because God does not accept Cain’s offering but accepts Abel’s (Genesis 4:1–15). This leads to Cain being banished from Eden as well as being cursed by God (Genesis 4:16-24).
What Is The Spiritual Significance of Land
The land of Canaan in the Bible refers to the ancient geographical area God promised to give to Abraham and his descendants. It is not merely the land where the Israelites would live, but the sworn inheritance of God’s chosen people: “The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God” (Genesis 17:8; see also Exodus 6:4; Leviticus 25:38; Deuteronomy 32:49; 1 Chronicles 16:18; Psalm 105:11).
Where is Canaan now? The boundaries of the ancient land of Canaan included territory on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea west of the Jordan River, which today encompasses modern Lebanon, portions of southern Syria, and Israel.
Noah’s grandson was Canaan, the son of Ham, from whom the Canaanite peoples originated (Genesis 9:18). The Canaanite race was cursed, probably because of the sin of Ham against his father, Noah (Genesis 9:25–26). The Bible does not specify the sin of Ham (in which Canaan may have been involved), but the act was disgraceful enough for God to pronounce judgment on Canaan’s descendants, the Canaanites.
Canaanite is also a term used to designate the Northwest Semitic languages of the people living in the land of Canaan.
When the Israelites, led by Moses, arrived at Canaan, they found the inhabitants of the land to be mighty people, giants even, with many large, fortified cities (Numbers 13:28). The Canaanites worshiped numerous foreign deities, and their religion and culture were known to be extremely immoral and wicked (Genesis 10:19; Exodus 13:5; Leviticus 18:27; Judges 1).
Canaan was also an exceptionally fertile region, described in the Bible as “a land flowing with milk and honey” (Exodus 3:17; Numbers 13:27).
In Deuteronomy 7:1, as Israel was poised to take possession of the land of Canaan under Joshua’s leadership, seven separate nations inhabited the region: Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.
Scripture depicts the people of Canaan as idolatrous and superstitious (Deuteronomy 29:17). God warned the Israelites not to follow in the detestable practices of the Canaanites: “When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you, be very careful not to imitate the detestable customs of the nations living there. For example, never sacrifice your son or daughter as a burnt offering. And do not let your people practice fortune-telling, or use sorcery, or interpret omens, or engage in witchcraft, or cast spells, or function as mediums or psychics, or call forth the spirits of the dead” (Deuteronomy 18:9–11, NLT; see also Leviticus 18:26).
God’s chosen people were to conquer the Canaanite nations, utterly destroying them and occupying their land. They were to show them no mercy, make no treaties with them, or intermarry with them (Deuteronomy 7:23–24; Joshua 23:12; Judges 2:2). God strictly warned Israel, “Do not bow down before their gods, worship them or follow their practices. You must demolish them and break their sacred stones to pieces” (Exodus 23:24; see also Deuteronomy 7:5, 25).
Moses encouraged Joshua and all of Israel not to fear the Canaanites. The same God that had brought them out of Egypt would take them into the Promised Land: “Be strong and courageous! For you will lead these people into the land that the LORD swore to their ancestors he would give them” (Deuteronomy 31:7, NLT; see also Deuteronomy 7:17–18).
The land of Canaan beautifully signifies the believer’s blessings in Jesus Christ. Some Bible readers mistakenly view Canaan—the Promised Land—as a portrait of heaven. But Christians do not have to go to war to gain entrance into heaven. Conquering Canaan represents living the victorious Christian life, which involves hard-fought battles as well as abundant blessings. Israel’s conquest of the land of Canaan also symbolizes entering into God’s rest, which is the victory won for believers through faith in Jesus Christ (Hebrews 4—5).
Joshua led Israel into the land of Canaan and thus became a type of Christ. It is Jesus who takes believers into the place of spiritual rest and victory and gives them their promised inheritance. As Joshua assigned the tribes of Israel their allotted inheritance of land, so Jesus has granted us our spiritual inheritance (Ephesians 1:3–23).
Biblical Meaning of Buying Land In A Dream
When you think about the spiritual meaning of land in the Bible, think about how the land was a home for God’s people. It was their place to rest, to learn, and to grow.
In Genesis 1:1–2, we learn that God created the heavens and earth. He made them perfect, but then he decided to create man. After creating man and placing him in a garden, God gave him one command: “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” (Genesis 1:28)
This means that God gave humans authority over all things on Earth—but why? There aren’t any other references to this command elsewhere in Scripture, so it’s hard to say exactly why he gave us this power. However, Matthew 5:5 says that we are “sons of God,” and Romans 8:14 tells us that we’re destined for eternal life with him. Perhaps giving us dominion over Earth is part of His plan for helping us achieve this destiny?