Palestine

In the Bible

The word "Palestine" does not appear in the Revised Korean Version. The Hebrew word Peleshet, from which the name derives, is rendered there as "Philistia." The English King James Version renders a few of these occurrences as "Palestina" or "Palestine" (Exodus 15:14; Isaiah 14:29; Joel 3:4; and elsewhere). Even in these verses, the term refers not to the land as a whole but to the coastal region of Philistia.

The Bible generally calls this land "Canaan" (Genesis 12:5), "the land of Israel" (1 Samuel 13:19), and "the land of promise" (Hebrews 11:9).

Origin of the Name

The Philistines lived on the southern Mediterranean coastal plain in five cities: Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron (Joshua 13:3). The Greek Palaistinē is generally understood to derive from "Philistia," and it already appears in the writings of a Greek historian of the fifth century BC.

After suppressing a Jewish revolt in the second century, Rome is generally said to have renamed the province from "Judaea" to "Syria Palaestina." The name thereafter became established as a designation for the entire region.

Extent and Geography in Biblical Times

In biblical geography, Palestine generally refers to the area between the Great Sea (the Mediterranean) on the west and the Jordan River and the Transjordanian plateau on the east. The land is divided into the coastal plain, the central hill country, the Jordan Valley, and the Transjordanian plateau.

The Old Testament often describes the northern and southern limits of the land with the phrase "from Dan even to Beer-sheba" (Judges 20:1; 1 Samuel 3:20). The promise given to Abraham (Genesis 15:18) and the boundaries in Numbers 34 are broader than this. In New Testament times, regional names such as Galilee, Samaria, Judea, and Perea were used. The precise boundaries are understood differently depending on the period and the scholar.

Significance in Scripture as a Whole

This land is the inheritance (a portion passed down from generation to generation) promised in the Abrahamic covenant. It is also the setting in which the history of Israel and the life of Jesus unfolded. The New Testament connects the promise of the land with a broader hope, speaking of "the heir of the world" (Romans 4:13) and "a better country" (Hebrews 11:16).

Interpretation and Points of Debate

Interpretations of the land promise differ among traditions. Dispensationalism holds that the promise will be literally fulfilled for ethnic Israel and often connects it with the modern State of Israel. Covenant theology and the Reformed tradition tend to see the promise as expanded and fulfilled in Christ in the hope of the new heavens and the new earth.

The name "Palestine" also carries modern political connotations. For this reason, some prefer terms such as "the land of Israel" or "the Holy Land." In biblical geography, however, the name is used as a conventional regional designation.

In the Korean Church

Bible maps and biblical geography textbooks in the Korean church widely use "Palestine" as a regional name. Pilgrimages to the Holy Land, covering Israel and Jordan, are also commonly undertaken by churches and seminaries.