'eretz - land/earth

Appearing more than 2400x, 'aretz is the fourth most frequently used noun in the OT (TWOT). The word is used in two main senses, designating a) 'the earth' in contrast to 'the heavens' (i.e., in a 'cosmological' sense), or (b) a specific territory, but primarily the land of Israel.).

From the OT's perspective, all creation is divided into two primary spheres: "the heaven/s" and "the earth" ('aretz). The latter is then divided into "the heaven/sky," the realm of the birds and flying creatures, "the sea," the realm of the fishes and swimming creatures, and "the land" ('aretz), the habitable sphere of land animals but, most of all, it is the land where humans live, the stage where their story played out.

More narrowly, ha'aretz ("the land") is where Israel lived as a nation. But it is, significantly, more than just 'their'territory; it is a "prism" refracting all the colours of Israel's relationship with Yahweh that is captured in the noun 'walk'. It is a tantalizing experience to learn to think of the Bible as "organized around three histories of the land: (a) the history of promise into the land, (b) the history of management into exile, and (c) the new history of promise which begins in exile and culminates in kingdom.[1] Though little appreciated until about five decades ago, the land is now recognized as a major theme in OT theology.

1. W. Brueggemann, The Land: Place as Gift, Promise, and Challenge in Biblical Faith (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1977), xv.