While it appears
relatively rarely in the Bible, the name Eretz Yisrael is obviously of
great significance.
Maharal of Prague comments
that the Land is named “Israel” because it draws its vitality from the People
of Israel. Only when its people are within her can the Land reach its full
level of sanctity. Eretz Yisrael can achieve its potential only when the
People of Israel live in the Land.
Similarly, Rabbi Moshe
Alshikh (c. 1508 - 1600) wrote that the quality of the Land after the arrival
of the Israelites is vastly different than its quality before their arrival,
for it is the Israelites who sanctify the Land.
Expanding on Alshikh’s
comment, Be’er Mayyim Hayyim (Ḥassidic Master Rabbi Ḥayyim of Chernowitz
[1760 – 1818]) comments that the Land cannot receive its sanctity nor its
spiritual vitality without the People of Israel living within it.
Maharal also notes the
“flip side”: not only does the Land draw its vitality from the People’s
presence in her, but the People of Israel too draw strength from the Land.
Following up on the
Maharal’s comment, Be’er Mayyim Ḥayyim stresses the reciprocal nature of
the relationship between Israel and its land, and states: “Israel and the Land
require each other for each to be able to reach fulfillment.”
It is the Land which
unites the People and the Land is the point of contact between the People of
Israel and God.
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