A Land Flowing With Milk And Honey

[C. Nyal de Kaye]

For some reason the phrase, A land flowing with milk and honey has been running through my mind recently. So I have been considering just what it could mean. It is easy to simply read the words, conclude that they mean "a good land", and leave it at that. I began to consider why it means good, and here are a few thoughts for your consideration.

I have no other platform at the moment to "talk" to someone about this so, for better or worse, you lot are my congregation.

Flowing with milk obviously implies an abundance of milk producing animals, cows, goats and even sheep are milked. But it also implies plentiful pasture, and thus adequate rain. The idea also ensures a continuing source of meat from domestic and wild animals, wool, skins etc. All would be abundant in such an environment. It also must mean a friendly climate, and thus a good place to live.

"Flowing with honey" obviously means an abundance of bees. Thus it implies cross-fertilisation of all plants, fruit producing or otherwise. So, abundant crops, plenty of domestic or wild meat, a pleasant climate, adequate rain: what more could we need?

There are many examples that automatically flow from these ideas, but I won't list them as I want these comments to be succinct.

Maybe these thoughts will be helpful to some. For all I know everyone may have already thought this through and my comments will therefore seem rather puerile. However I had not considered its implications before, and maybe you have not either, so here it is.

 

[Ma Betty in MO]

the land would be very good for living in as God provides for His own and only wants the best for each of us as His Child adopted into His family! As a farmer's daughter, your post would be right on with your thinking, as we raised cows, hogs, goats, chickens and had meat at butchering time, milk when cows were fresh after delivering their calves...which when churned produced butter and also other dairy products like buttermilk and cheese! Grass, hay and shelter was needed to feed and protect them before producing what we needed in return! The land has to be conquered and then cultivated for whoever works and uses it! The land the Israelites entered into was full of danger but by believing in what God told them and doing it....the land was their milk and honey!

My grandpa kept bees in their hives and used protective hat and clothing while using a smoker when taking their honey comb from them! The poor hard working bees sure didn't like him taking what they produced! Honey is good for the body's health and the by products of Bees Wax help in many other ways! Mom used the clean wax by rubbing it on the bottoms of our flat irons to make them smoother and not stick when ironing our clothes after we washed them in an iron kettle sitting over an outdoor fire and using a plunger to stir them and then a big stick to lift them out and put in rinse water several times before hanging outdoors on the clothes line and the rags thrown on the bushes in summer and winter!

When Abraham and his ancestors followed God's leading it wasn't very easy on any of them until the enemy and the land itself was conquered! By following God's Holy Spirit's leading we too can have it good but we also have to work for it, as He doesn't throw the worms and bugs in the birds' nests, as they have to get out and get it! Thanks again for your thoughts and I enjoy your posts! Mine are long ones, but hope you don't mind them because being of the older generation, I have a lot of memories to write about but older folks do tend to repeat them when telling stories! Ma Betty

 

[Hank68]

I heard my Dad preach and say that very thing, you help me see it in a new direction, thank you for that C. Nyal De Kaye!