God’s plan was not only to get the children of Israel out of Egypt, but also to plant them in their Promised Land.
Following their deliverance through the Red Sea, Moses and the children of Israel sang to the Lord:
“You will bring them in and plant them in the mountain of Your inheritance, in the place, O Lord, which You have made” (Ex. 15:17).
And once He planted them in their land, God’s perfect will was that His people never leave: “Moreover I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in a place of their own and move no more” (2 Sam. 7:10; see also Amos 9:15).
Their eventual replanting in the land is not a side interest, but at the very heart of God’s purposes: “I will assuredly plant them in this land, with all My heart and with all My soul” (Jer. 32:41).
Just as God’s whole heart is devoted to Israel’s planting in the land, eventually their whole hearts will turn back to Him: “For I will set My eyes on them for good, and I will bring them back to this land; I will build them and not pull them down, and I will plant them and not pluck them up. ‘Then I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me with their whole heart’” (Jer. 24:6-7).
By the way, what is this territory called in the New Testament? The land of Israel. (See Matthew 2:19-20.)
I’d love to hear your perspective. Drop me a line.
Along with his wife, Ann, Wayne Hilsden has served as lead pastor of King of Kings Community in Jerusalem, Israel, since 1983.
For the original article, visit waynehilsden.com.
