Andrew Jukes and the land promise

In the excerpt below, Andrew John Jukes (1815-1901) discusses the relation between Israel possessing the promised land, as related in the Old Testament, and the Christian’s experience. He contrasts the book of Numbers with the book of Joshua, and connects the promised land with spiritual realities mentioned in Ephesians, Colossians, Philippians, and elsewhere in the New Testament.

Israel’s population at the exodus

Estimates of the number of Israelites who came out of Egypt during the exodus are based upon census records in the book of Numbers, in chapters 1 and 26. Many commentaries claim that the exodus involved an enormous number of people, perhaps two million. The traditional interpretation of these records has been challenged because the Hebrew word translated “thousand” is sometimes translated differently. [1] The same Hebrew word is also used to refer to a clan, family, troop, or divisions (אָ֫לֶפ eleph, Strong’s number 505 or 504).