57 Bible Verses about Land, As A Divine Responsibility
Most Relevant Verses
And {you shall declare} and you shall say {before} your God, 'My ancestor [was] a wandering Aramean, and he went down to Egypt, and there he dwelt as an alien {few in number}, and there he became a great nation, mighty and numerous. And the Egyptians treated us badly, and they oppressed us and imposed on us hard labor. And we cried to Yahweh, the God of our ancestors, and Yahweh heard our voice and saw our affliction and our toil and our oppression.read more.
And Yahweh brought us [out] from Egypt with a strong hand and an outstretched arm and with great terror and with signs and with wonders. And he brought us to this place and gave to us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey.
"{And then} when you come to the land that Yahweh your God [is] giving to you [as an] inheritance, and you take possession of it and you settle in it,
Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by yourself, and you told them, 'I will multiply your offspring like the stars of the heavens, and all this land that I promised I will give to your offspring, and they will inherit [it] forever.'"
"And Yahweh was angry with me {because of you}, and he swore {that I would not cross the Jordan} and {that I would not go to the good land} that Yahweh your God is giving you as an inheritance.
Nevertheless, there shall not be among you a poor [person], because Yahweh will certainly bless you in the land that Yahweh your God [is] giving to you [as] an inheritance, to take possession of it.
[Do this] so that innocent blood will not be shed in the midst of your land that Yahweh your God [is] giving to you [as an] inheritance and [thereby] bloodguilt would be on you.
Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, "For these the land must be divided as an inheritance according to the number of names. For the larger group you must increase their inheritance, and for the smaller group you must make smaller their inheritance; each must be given {their} inheritance according to the number of the ones counted of them.read more.
Surely the land will be divided by lot. They will inherit according to the names of the tribes of their ancestors.
So Moses gave to them, to the descendants of Gad and the descendants of Reuben, and to half of the tribe of Joseph's son Manasseh, the kingdom of Sihon the king of Amorites and the kingdom of Og the king of the Bashan, the land with its cities [and their] territories, the cities of the surrounding land.
Moses Yahweh's servant and the {Israelites} defeated them; and Moses Yahweh's servant gave it [as] a possession to the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.
With it the Reubenites, and the Gadites received their inheritance, which Moses gave them beyond the Jordan to the east, just as Moses Yahweh's servant gave to them:
"These [are] the names of the men who divide up the land for your inheritance: Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun. You will take one leader from every tribe to divide up the land for inheritance. These [are] the names of the men: of the tribe of Judah, Caleb son of Jephunneh;read more.
of the tribe of the descendants of Simeon, Samuel son of Ammihud; of the tribe of Benjamin, Elidad son of Chislon; of the tribe of the descendants of Dan, the leader Bukki son of Jogli; of the descendants of Joseph, the tribe of the descendants of Manasseh, the leader Hanniel son of Ephod. Of the tribe of the descendants of Ephraim, the leader Kemuel son of Shiphtan; of the tribe of the descendants of Zebulum, the leader Elizaphan son of Parnach; of the tribe of the descendants of Issachar, the leader Paltiel son of Azzan; of the tribe of the descendants of Asher, the leader Ahihud son of Shelomi; of the tribe of the descendants of Naphtali, the leader Pedahel son of Ammihud." These are those whom Yahweh commanded to allot to the {Israelites} the land of Canaan.
These [are the territories] that the {Israelites} inherited in the land of Canaan, which Eleazar the priest, Joshua son of Nun, and the heads of the families of the tribes of the {Israelites} gave as an inheritance to them.
The allotment for the tribe of the descendants of Judah according to their families reached to the border of Edom, to the wilderness of Zin, {to the far south}.
And the allotment of the tribe of Benjamin came up according to their families, and the border of their allotment fell between the descendants of Judah and the descendants of Joseph.
The second allotment {fell} for Simeon, for the tribe of the descendants of Simeon, according to their families. And their inheritance was in the midst of the inheritance of the descendants of Judah.
The ones counted were twenty-three thousand, every male from {a month old} and above, because they were not counted in the midst of the {Israelites} since no inheritance was given to them in the midst of the {Israelites}.
"And there shall not be for the Levitical priests, the whole tribe of Levi, a plot of ground and an inheritance with Israel, [rather] they may eat an offering made by fire [as] their inheritance, for Yahweh.
Only the tribe of Levites Moses did not give an inheritance; the offerings made by fire to Yahweh the God of Israel [are] their inheritance, just as he promised to them.
Thus an inheritance of the {Israelites} will not go around from tribe to tribe. Rather, the inheritance of each tribe of his father will remain with the {Israelites}. Every daughter who possesses an inheritance from the tribes of the {Israelites} will {marry} one of the clan of the tribe of her father, so that the {Israelites} will possess the inheritance of his ancestors. Therefore an inheritance will not go around from [one] tribe to another tribe because the tribes of the {Israelites} will each hold to their [own] inheritance.'"
Naboth said to Ahab, "Far be it from me from Yahweh that I should give the inheritance of my ancestors to you."
But the prince shall not take from the inheritance of the people to rob them, [separating them] from their property; from his [own] property he shall bestow an inheritance on his sons, so that my people will not be driven away, any one, from his property."
" 'But the land must not be sold in perpetuity, because the land [is] mine, because you [are] aliens and temporary residents with me.
"Listen to another parable: There was a man--a master of a house--who planted a vineyard, and put a fence [around] it, and dug a winepress in it, and built a watchtower, and leased it to tenant farmers, and went on a journey. And when the season of fruit drew near, he sent his slaves to the tenant farmers to collect his fruit. And the tenant farmers seized his slaves, [one of] whom they beat, and [one of] whom they killed, and [one of] whom they stoned.read more.
Again, he sent other slaves, more than the first [ones], and they did the same [thing] to them. So finally he sent his son to them, saying, 'They will respect my son.' But [when] the tenant farmers saw the son, they said among themselves, 'This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and have his inheritance!' And they seized him [and] threw [him] out of the vineyard and killed [him]. Now when the master of the vineyard arrives, what will he do to those tenant farmers?" They said to him, "He will destroy those evil [men] completely and lease the vineyard to other tenant farmers who will give him the fruits in their season." Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the scriptures, 'The stone which the builders rejected, this has become {the cornerstone}. This came about from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes'? For this [reason], I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and will be given to a people who produce its fruits. And the one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, and [the one] on whom it falls--it will crush him!" And [when] the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they knew that he was speaking about them, and [although they] wanted to arrest him, they were afraid of the crowds, because they looked upon him as a prophet.
" 'And any tithe of the land from the land's seed [or] from the fruit of the trees [is] for Yahweh; it [is] a holy object for Yahweh.
And [you will keep] the Feast of Harvest, [with] the firstfruits of your work, what you sow in the field. And [you will keep] the Feast of Harvest Gathering when the year goes out, when you gather your work from the field.
" 'And you shall count for yourselves {from the day after} the Sabbath, from the day of your bringing the wave offering's sheaf--[there] shall be seven full weeks. Until {the day after} the seventh Sabbath you shall count fifty days; then you shall present a new grain offering for Yahweh. You shall bring from your dwellings for a wave offering two [loaves of] bread {made with} two-tenths [of an ephah] of finely milled flour; they must be baked with leaven--[the] firstfruits {belonging to} Yahweh.read more.
And, in addition to the bread, you shall present seven {yearling} male lambs without defects and one {young bull} and two rams--they shall be a burnt offering for Yahweh with their grain offering and their libations, an offering made by fire, an appeasing fragrance for Yahweh. And you shall {offer} one he-goat as a sin offering and two {yearling} male lambs as a sacrifice of fellowship offerings And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the firstfruits [as] a wave offering {before} Yahweh; in addition to [the] two male lambs, they shall be holy for Yahweh for the priest. And {you shall make a proclamation} on {this very same day}; it shall be a holy assembly for you; you shall not do {any regular work}; [this is] a {lasting statute} in all your dwellings throughout your generations
Then Yahweh spoke to Moses on {Mount Sinai}, saying, "Speak to the {Israelites}, and say to them, 'When you come into the land that I [am about to] give to you, then the land shall observe a Sabbath for Yahweh. Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard, and you shall gather its yield.read more.
But in the seventh year it shall be {a Sabbath of complete rest} for the land--a Sabbath for Yahweh; you must not sow your field, and you must not prune your vineyard. You must not reap your harvest's aftergrowth, and you must not harvest the grapes of your unpruned vines--it shall be {a year of complete rest} for the land. And a Sabbath of the land shall be for food for you: for you and for your slave and for your slave woman and for your hired worker and for your temporary residents who are dwelling as aliens with you; and all its yield shall be for your domestic animal and for the wild animal, which [are] in your land to eat.
" 'And you shall count for yourself seven Sabbaths of years, seven times seven years, and they shall be for you {time periods of} years: {forty-nine} years. And you shall cause {a loud horn blast} to be heard on the seventh month on the tenth of the month; on the Day of Atonement you shall cause a ram's horn to be heard in all your land. And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and you shall proclaim a release in the land for all its inhabitants. It [is] a Jubilee; it shall be for you, and you shall return. You must return--everyone to his property and everyone to his clan.read more.
{You shall have the fiftieth year as a Jubilee}; you must not reap its aftergrowth, and you must not harvest its unpruned vines. Because it is a Jubilee, it shall be holy to you. You must eat its produce from the field. " 'In this Year of Jubilee {each of you shall return} to his property.
"You shall not move the boundary [marker] of your neighbor that {former generations} set up on your property in the land that Yahweh your God [is] giving to you to take possession of it.
'Cursed be the one who moves the boundary [marker] of his neighbor.' And all the people shall say, 'Amen.'
The house of the proud, Yahweh will tear [it] down, but he will maintain the {property line} of the widow.
Do not remove an ancient boundary marker, and on the fields of orphans do not encroach;
The princes of Judah have become like those who remove a landmark; on them I will pour out my wrath like water.
Ah! Those who {join} house with house, they join field together with field until {there is no place} and you are caused to dwell alone in the midst of the land.
The word of Yahweh came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, "Arise, go down to meet Ahab the king of Israel who is in Samaria. Look in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone to take possession of it. You shall say to him, 'Thus says Yahweh: "Have you committed murder and also taken possession?" ' You shall also say to him, 'Thus says Yahweh: "In the place where the dogs licked the blood of Naboth, the dogs will also lick your blood." '"
for he has oppressed; he has abandoned [the] poor; he has seized a house but did not build it.
[This] shall be to him {with respect to the land} as property in Israel; [and so] my princes shall not again oppress my people, but they shall give the land to the house of Israel according to their tribes." Thus says the Lord Yahweh, "Enough [of this] for you, the princes of Israel; put away violence and destruction and do justice and righteousness; revoke your [acts of] dispossession from upon my people!" {declares} the Lord Yahweh.
They covet fields and seize [them], and houses, and they take [them] away. They oppress a man and his house; a man and his inheritance.
" 'And six years you will sow your land and gather its yield. But the seventh you will let it rest and leave it fallow, and the poor of your people will eat, and their remainder the animals of the field will eat. You will do likewise for your vineyard and for your olive trees.
And a Sabbath of the land shall be for food for you: for you and for your slave and for your slave woman and for your hired worker and for your temporary residents who are dwelling as aliens with you; and all its yield shall be for your domestic animal and for the wild animal, which [are] in your land to eat.
"At the end of seven years you shall grant remission of debt. And this [is] the manner of the remission of debt: every {creditor} shall remit his claim that he holds against his neighbor, and he shall not exact payment [from] his brother because there remission of debt has been proclaimed unto Yahweh. [With respect to] the foreigner you may exact payment, but {you must remit} what shall be [owed] to you [with respect to] your brother.
" 'And at your reaping the harvest of your land you must not finish reaping the edge of your field, and you must not glean the remnants of your harvest. And you must not glean your vineyard, and you must not gather your vineyard's fallen grapes; you must leave them behind for the needy and for the alien; I [am] Yahweh your God.
And when you reap the harvest of your land, you must not finish the edge of your field at your reaping, and you must not glean the remnants of your harvest--you shall leave them behind for the needy and for the alien; I [am] Yahweh your God.'"
"When you reap your harvest in your field and you forget a sheaf in the field, you shall not return to get it, for it shall be for the alien, for the orphan, and for the widow, so that Yahweh your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. When you beat off the fruit of your olive trees you shall not search through the branches afterward, for it shall be for the alien, for the orphan, and for the widow. When you harvest [grapes], you shall not glean your vineyards {again}; it shall be for the alien, for the orphan, and for the widow.read more.
And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, therefore I [am] commanding you to do this thing."
And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, "Please let me go [to] the field and glean among the ears of grain after [someone] in whose eyes I [may] find favor." And she said to her, "Go, my daughter." So she went and came and gleaned in the field behind the reapers. And she happened [by] chance [upon] the tract of field {belonging to} Boaz, who [was] from the clan of Elimelech.
"And it will happen [that] if you indeed listen to the voice of Yahweh your God, {to diligently observe} all his commandments that I [am] commanding you {today}, then Yahweh your God will set you above all the nations of the earth. And all of these blessings shall come upon you, and {they shall have an effect on you} if you listen to the voice of Yahweh your God: "You will be blessed in the city, and you will be blessed in the field.read more.
"Blessed will be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground and the fruit of your livestock, {the calf of your cattle and the lambs of your flock}. "Blessed will be your basket and your kneading trough. "Blessed will you be {when you come in and blessed will you be when you go out}.
" 'And you shall do my statutes, and you must keep my regulations, and you shall do them, so that you shall live {securely} on the land. And the land shall give its fruit, and you shall eat {your fill}, and you shall live {securely} on it.
"And it will happen [that] if you listen carefully to my commandments that I [am] commanding you {today}, to love Yahweh your God, and to serve him with all [of] your heart and with all [of] your soul, then 'I will send the rain for your land in its season, early rain and later rain, and you will gather your grain and your wine and your olive oil. And I will give vegetation in your field for your livestock, and {you will eat your fill}.'
You care for the land and water it; you greatly enrich it. The stream of God [is] filled with waters. You provide their grain, for so you have established it. You drench its furrows, penetrating its ridges. With rains you soften it; its growth you bless. You crown the year with your {bounty}, and your wagon paths drip with {richness}.read more.
They drop [on the] pastures of [the] wilderness, and the hills gird themselves with joy. [The] pasturelands put on flocks, and [the] valleys clothe themselves with grain. They shout in triumph; they even sing.
Let [the] peoples praise you, O God; let all [the] peoples praise you. [The] earth has yielded its produce. God, our God, will bless us.
"{And then} if you do not listen to the voice of Yahweh your God {by diligently observing} all of his commandments and his statutes that I [am] commanding you {today}, then all of these curses shall come upon you, and they shall overtake you:
" 'You must not make yourself unclean in any of these [things], because the nations whom I am driving out from your presence were made unclean by all of these. So the land became unclean, and {I have brought the punishment of} its guilt upon it, and the land has vomited out its inhabitants. But you ([neither] the native nor the alien who is dwelling in your midst) shall keep my statutes and my regulations, and you shall not {practice} any of these detestable thingsread more.
(because the people of the land, who [were] {before you}, did all these detestable things, so the land became unclean), so that the land will not vomit you out when you make it unclean [just] as it vomited out the nation that [was] {before you}.
" 'And you shall keep all my statutes and all my regulations, and you shall do them, so that the land, to which I am bringing you to inhabit it, shall not vomit you out. And you shall not follow the statutes of the nation that I am driving out {from before you}, because they did all these things, and I detested them. So I said to you, "You yourselves shall take possession of their land, and I myself shall give it to you to possess it--a land flowing with milk and honey"; I [am] Yahweh your God, who {has set you apart} from the nations.
I will remember my covenant [with] Jacob; and I will remember also my covenant [with] Isaac and also my covenant [with] Abraham, and I will remember the land. And the land shall be deserted by them, and it shall enjoy its Sabbaths in its being desolate from them, and they themselves must pay for their guilt, {simply because} they rejected my regulations, and their inner self abhorred my statutes. And {in spite of} this, {when they are} in the land of their enemies I will not reject them, and I will not abhor them to destroy them, to break my covenant with them, because I [am] Yahweh their God.read more.
And I will remember [the] first covenant for them--whom I brought out from the land of Egypt {in the sight of} the nations {to be their God}. I [am] Yahweh.'"
Elijah the Tishbite from Tishbe of Gilead said to Ahab, "{As Yahweh lives}, the God of Israel before whom I stand, there shall surely not be dew nor rain these years {except by my command}."
