Question Show  Answer Repeatedly in the Old Testament, God describes the Promised Land as “a land flowing with milk and honey” (Exodus 3:8; Numbers 14:8; Deuteronomy 31:20; Ezekiel 20:15). This poetic description of Israel’s land emphasizes the fertility of the soil and bounty that awaited God’s chosen people. The reference to “milk” suggests that many livestock could find pasture there; the mention of “honey” suggests the vast farmland available—the bees had plenty of plants to draw nectar from. In Exodus 3:8, God says to Moses, “I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites.” A couple things to note about this verse: First, before the plagues, the land of Egypt supported Israel and the Egyptians quite well, yet God called the new land “good and spacious.” The Hebrew word translated “good” means “pleasant, beautiful, and fruitful, with economic benefits.” Second, simultaneously with promoting the goodness of the land, God mentions the enemies in the land that must be overcome. The nations displaced by Israel from the land “flowing with milk and honey” were significant in number, and they valued that land enough to fight and die for it. Later, we have the record of the ten faithless spies who were sent into the Promised Land by Moses. The ten spies disagreed that Israel was able to conquer the inhabitants of the land, but they did agree on this: it was a land of flowing with milk and honey. “They gave Moses this account: ‘We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit’” (Numbers 13:27). The “fruit” the spies showed Moses was a single cluster of grapes that had to be carried on a pole between two men (verse 23). They also brought some pomegranates and the figs from Canaan. It is true that there are areas of very arid land in Israel, but this does not negate the fact that, overall, it is a land flowing with milk and honey. There are many areas of Israel that are extremely fertile and produce many types of fruits and vegetables. The area north of present-day Israel is biblical Mesopotamia, also known as the “Fertile Crescent,” which is just that—fertile (and crescent-shaped). It is also true that the Bible records severe drought and famine in the land of Israel, but those times were connected to God’s judgment on the sinful people (Deuteronomy 11:16–17; 1 Kings 18:1–2, 18). God’s description of the Promised Land as “a land flowing with milk and honey” is a beautifully graphic way of highlighting the agricultural richness of the land. God brought His people out of slavery in Egypt to a prosperous land of freedom and blessing and the knowledge of the Lord. Return to:Miscellaneous Bible Questions Why was Israel called the land of milk and honey? Subscribe to theQuestion of the WeekGet our Question of the Week delivered right to your inbox! WHAT DOES “A LAND FLOWING WITH MILK AND HONEY” MEAN?by Shawn Brasseaux Anyone who has grown up in church has undoubtedly heard the Promised Land being referred to as “a land flowing with milk and honey.” It is a most curious expression, is it not? Have you ever wondered what it means? As always, whenever we have a Bible question, we need to search the Bible to gain insight. “For what saith the Scriptures?” The phrase “a land flowing [or ‘that floweth’] with milk and honey” appears 20 times in our King James Bible—Exodus 3:8, Exodus 3:17, Exodus 13:5, Exodus 33:3, Leviticus 20:24, Numbers 13:27, Numbers 14:8, Numbers 16:13, Numbers 16:14, Deuteronomy 6:3, Deuteronomy 11:9, Deuteronomy 26:9, Deuteronomy 26:15, Deuteronomy 27:3, Deuteronomy 31:20, Joshua 5:6, Jeremiah 11:5, Jeremiah 32:22, Ezekiel 20:6, and Ezekiel 20:15. While you are encouraged to look at all of these references on your own, we will look at a few of them here. As just mentioned, the expression first appears in the Bible is Exodus 3:8, when the LORD appeared to Moses in the burning bush. The LORD said to Moses: “And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.” God said He would deliver the nation Israel from Egyptian slavery and bring them into the Promised Land, “a land flowing with milk and honey.” Later, as He promised, He rescued them from Egypt, and He brought them to the edge of the Promised Land. By the time of Numbers chapter 13, Israel had been free from Egypt for just over a year. The Jews had sent 12 spies to explore the land of Palestine. Moses instructed these spies: “And [see] what the land is, whether it be fat or lean, whether there be wood therein, or not. And be ye of good courage, and bring of the fruit of the land. Now the time was the time of the firstripe grapes” (verse 20). In verse 23, the spies arrived at the brook of Eshcol, and cut down a grape cluster (“Eshcol” is Hebrew for “grape cluster;” verse 24). This one cluster of grapes was so enormous that two men had to carry it on a pole! The spies also collected figs and pomegranates. After 40 days of scouting, the spies returned to Moses and Israel’s camp and showed them Canaan’s fruit: “And they told him [Moses], and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it” (verse 27). Numbers 14:7-8 continues: “[7] And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land. [8] If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey.” Deuteronomy 11:10-12 and Deuteronomy 31:20 also confirm that “flowing with milk and honey” indicated Canaan was a land of high agricultural productivity (pollination, green grass, flowering trees, water resources, abundant food, et cetera). Just think… rebellious Israel refused to go in! God had been faithful in delivering Israel from centuries of Egyptian slavery. Now, He would be faithful to bring her into an “exceeding good land.” But, Israel doubted God, and wanted to send 12 spies to explore that land. After 40 days of exploring Canaan, the spies returned to Israel’s camp. Canaan, the Promised Land, was abounding with food and water, high agricultural productivity (“a land flowing with milk and honey”). The presence of milk-producing animals implied grasses and other vegetation. Honey indicated pollinating creatures such as bees. The spies showed Israel the large grape cluster, the pomegranates, and the figs they had collected in Canaan (Numbers 13:21-27). The 12 spies confirmed that God had indeed given them a very great land, but 10 spies feared military defeat by the Gentiles dwelling therein, so Israel refused to enter (Numbers 13:28–14:11). Thus, God, in His righteous anger, punished them via the 40-year wilderness wandering (Deuteronomy 1:21-ff.). Today, the Promised Land does not exhibit the beauty it had in Moses’ day. It is desolate and barren. But, that will change at Christ’s Second Coming and the following earthly kingdom. The Promised Land will be restored, and the curse of sin will be broken (Isaiah 51:3; Joel 3:17-21, Micah 4:1-3; et al.). In fact, according to Amos 9:11-15, the LORD promised: “[11] In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old: [12] That they may possess the remnant of Edom, and of all the heathen, which are called by my name, saith the LORD that doeth this. [13] Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt. [14] And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. [15] And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the LORD thy God.” One day, Israel will eternally dwell in her land, “a land flowing with milk and honey.” The best is yet to come for the little nation of Israel! Also see: What land is the land of milk and honey?Israel is referred to numerous times in the Bible as “a land flowing with milk and honey,” indicating its abundant fertility.
What does the land of Canaan represent in the Bible?To the authors of the Bible, Canaan is the land which the tribes of Israel conquered after an Exodus from Egypt and the Canaanites are the people they disposed from this land. The Old Testament of the Bible (also known as Tanak) is principally concerned with the religious history of Israel in Canaan.
What is the land of milk and honey mean?noun phrase
: a place where there is plenty of food and money and life is very easy. Many immigrants thought that America was a land of milk and honey.
Is Canaan the same as the promised land?The Israelites occupied and conquered Palestine, or Canaan, beginning in the late 2nd millennium bce, or perhaps earlier; and the Bible justifies such occupation by identifying Canaan with the Promised Land, the land promised to the Israelites by God.
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Was Canaan, the land of milk and honey
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