Israel is called the Holy Land because it is the land God promised to Abraham and his descendants in the Old Testament. According to the Bible, God called Abraham out of Mesopotamia to go to a land that He would show him, which turned out to be Canaan (Genesis 12:1-7). God made a covenant with Abraham, promising to give the land of Canaan to him and his descendants as an everlasting possession (Genesis 17:8). Later, the covenant was reaffirmed to Abraham’s son Isaac (Genesis 26:2-3) and grandson Jacob (Genesis 28:13-15), whose name was changed to Israel (Genesis 32:28).
The term “Holy Land” refers specifically to the land promised to the Israelites in the Old Testament. It is called “holy” because of the special religious significance it has for Jews, Christians and Muslims. Three major world religions – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – consider Israel/Palestine a holy place because of important religious events that happened there according to the Bible and the Quran.
Here are some reasons why Israel is considered a holy land:
- It is the Promised Land given by God to the Israelites as an inheritance.
- It is the land where the Jewish patriarchs – Abraham, Isaac and Jacob – lived.
- It is the land where the Israelites became a nation after being delivered out of slavery in Egypt.
- It contains Jerusalem, the holy city of the Jews. Jerusalem has been the spiritual center of Judaism for thousands of years.
- It is the land where many important events of the Bible took place – from the stories of the patriarchs to the kings and prophets.
- It is the land where Jesus Christ, the Messiah, was born, ministered, died and rose again.
- It contains places of pilgrimage sacred to Christians, like Bethlehem, Nazareth, the Sea of Galilee, etc.
- It is the land associated with the ministry of the apostles and early church.
- It is considered holy in Islam because of Jerusalem, the site of Muhammad’s ascension to heaven.
God promised to give the land of Canaan to Abraham and his offspring as an “everlasting possession” (Genesis 17:8). After the exodus from Egypt, God fulfilled His promise by giving the Promised Land to Abraham’s descendants, the Israelites, under the leadership of Joshua. Jerusalem became the center of Jewish worship once David established it as the capital of Israel. His son Solomon built the first temple there.
The Old Testament records God referring to the land of Israel as “holy” and speaking of the requirement for the people to also be holy since the land belonged to Him (Zechariah 2:12). The land itself was not intrinsically holy, but it was holy because God dwelt among His chosen people there and set it apart for them. He required the Israelites to follow His laws and worship only Him to occupy the land. Repeated idolatry and sin among the kings and people led to their exile from the land.
After the exile in Babylon, a remnant of Jews returned to rebuild Jerusalem and reconstruct the temple under leaders like Ezra and Nehemiah. Israel remained under foreign domination during the 400 “silent years” between the Old and New Testaments. Finally, Jesus Christ, the Messiah, was born in Bethlehem during the Roman era. Jesus launched His ministry from Galilee and did most of His preaching in the towns and villages of ancient Palestine. Though He was rejected by the Jewish leaders and crucified in Jerusalem, His resurrection and Great Commission turned Israel into the launchpad of Christianity.
The book of Acts records the beginnings of the Christian church in Jerusalem as the disciples waited for the coming of the Holy Spirit and took the gospel to the ends of the earth. The apostles traveled throughout Israel preaching repentance and forgiveness of sins in Jesus’ name. The early church was headquartered in Jerusalem until its destruction in 70 AD by the Romans. Thus, the land of Israel forms the backdrop for most of the redemptive history recorded in the Bible.
When the Muslim Arabs conquered the Middle East in the 7th century AD, they built the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem. According to Islamic tradition, Muhammad visited the Temple Mount during his Night Journey. So Jerusalem became holy to Muslims as the site of Muhammad’s ascent to heaven. But Jewish and Christian interest in the land continued through the centuries. Finally, after almost 1900 years of exile, the modern state of Israel was re-established in 1948 after World War 2.
To summarize, Israel is called the “Holy Land” because:
- God set apart Israel as holy for His chosen people, the Israelites.
- It was the site of many monumental events recorded in the Old Testament.
- The Messiah was born, ministered, died and rose from the dead there.
- It was the birthplace of the Christian church.
- It contains places like Jerusalem that are sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims.
So for thousands of years, Israel has been a geographic focal point for the major events described in the Bible that are central to Judaism and Christianity. The land itself reflects God’s redemptive plan for humanity’s salvation. Its enduring holiness comes from God’s promises and presence despite centuries of conquest and exile.