Promised Land or Lands of Promise

CONTENTS:

1. Introduction: The Theology of the Land in the Garden of Eden 1

2. The Land and Holiness 9

3. The Covenanted Land 13

4. Kingship, Vicegerency, and Universal Dominion 17

5. The Land in the New History 23

6. The Theology of the Land in the Old Testament 29

7. The Jesus‐event and the Land 37

8. Jesus and Holy Space 41

9. Jesus and the Covenanted Land 45

10. Jesus and the Kingdom of God on Earth 53

11. The Land as Eden Restored 61

12. Conclusions: Towards a Missional Theology of the Land 67

Epilogue: Towards a Shared Land Theology in Palestine and Israel 83

Further Reading 89

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Munther Isaac is a Palestinian pastor, theologian and activist. He pastors the Evangelical Lutheran Christmas Church in Bethlehem and the Lutheran Church in Beit Sahour. He is director of the Bethlehem Institute of Peace and Justice and director of the highly acclaimed and influential Christ at the Checkpoint conferences. Munther has degrees in engineering and theology and a PhD from the Oxford Centre for Mission Studies. He is the author of numerous books, including The Other Side of the Wall: A Palestinian Christian Narrative of Lament and Hope (2020) and a forthcoming book, Christ in the Rubble: Faith, the Bible, and the Genocide in Gaza (Eerdmans 2025) He is involved in many reconciliation and interfaith forums and is also a Kairos Palestine board member.

This book develops a biblical theology of the Land, based on the author’s ground‐breaking PhD thesis. The whole biblical history in the Old and New Testaments can be studied and analysed through the theme of ‘the land’. From its beginnings in the Garden of Eden to the renewal of creation, this book approaches the theme from three distinct perspectives – holiness, the covenant, and the kingdom. The author’s careful analysis reveals how the promise of the land, as anticipated in the Old Testament, has been universalized in Christ and as a result promotes a missional theology of the land that underlines the social
and territorial dimensions of redemption. This is a book for anyone who seeks to understand Old Testament promises in the light of current events in the Middle East.

Regnum’s shorter treatments of critical themes brings us accessible, compelling presentations of theological issues relevant to our times. Isaac’s long‐awaited Promised Land or Lands of Promise? is no different. This is an abbreviated version of Isaac’s Oxford dissertation on land theology. With clarity and simplicity, he lays out a biblical theology of The Land, moving from the Eden in Genesis to the new Eden promised in the Book of Revelation. The missional relevance becomes clear
on every page: The Promised Land belongs to God, those who live there must abide by their covenant, and all assumptions about The Land shift with the coming of Christ. Isaac’s theological presentation is as courageous as it is expert and we are in his debt for clearing away the fog of unfortunate arguments that have started debates and even wars.
Gary M. Burge, PhD. Professor of New Testament, Calvin Theological Seminary (USA) and author of Whose Land? Whose Promise? and Jesus and the Land