- published: 21 Sep 2012
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The Promised Land (Hebrew: הארץ המובטחת, translit.: Ha'Aretz HaMuvtahat) is a term used to describe the land promised or given by God, according to the Tanakh (the Hebrew Bible), to the Israelites, the descendants of Jacob. The promise is firstly made to Abraham (Genesis 15:18-21) and then renewed to his son Isaac, and to Isaac's son Jacob (Genesis 28:13), Abraham's grandson. The promised land was described in terms of the territory from the River of Egypt to the Euphrates river (Exodus 23:31) and was given to their descendants after the Exodus. (Deuteronomy 1:8)
The term should not be confused with the expression "Land of Israel" which is first used in 1 Samuel 13:19, when the Israelite tribes were already in the Land of Canaan. The term is also used in the Book of Mormon, in which it refers to the American continent.
The promise that is the basis of the term is contained in several verses of Genesis in the Torah. In Genesis 12:1 it is said:
and in Genesis 12:7:
Commentators note that it is to Abram's descendants that the land will (in the future tense) be given, not to Abram directly nor there and then. However, in Genesis 15:7 it is said:
Matthew Paige "Matt" Damon (born October 8, 1970) is an American actor, screenwriter, and philanthropist whose career was launched following the success of the film Good Will Hunting (1997) from a screenplay he co-wrote with friend Ben Affleck. The pair won an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and a Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay for their work. Damon alone received multiple Best Actor nominations, including an Academy Award for his lead performance in the film.
Damon has since starred in commercially successful films such as Saving Private Ryan (1998), the Ocean's trilogy, and the Bourne series, while also gaining critical acclaim for his performances in dramas such as Syriana (2005), The Good Shepherd (2006), and The Departed (2006). He garnered a Golden Globe nomination for portraying the title character in The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999) and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in Invictus (2009). He is one of the top 40 highest grossing actors of all time. In 2007, Damon received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and was named Sexiest Man Alive by People magazine. Damon has been actively involved in charitable work, including the ONE Campaign, H2O Africa Foundation, and Water.org.
Joe Smooth is an American producer and DJ of house music, notably during the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Smooth was a self-taught musician, and started creating original music at the age of 12. In his teenage years, he began to make a name for himself as a DJ in the underground Chicago house music scene.
Smooth gained international acclaim with the release of his late 1980s tracks "Promised Land" (featuring Anthony Thomas), "They Want To Be Free" and "I Try". He is best known for "Promised Land", which spoke of how humans as brothers and sisters will all make it to the "Promised Land". It peaked at #56 in the UK Singles Chart in February 1989. An album became available in 1988, and a music video was produced for the single. A follow up album, Rejoice, was released in 1990, and contained the hit single "They Want To Be Free."
In October 2004, "Promised Land" appeared in the video game, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Within the game, the song could be heard playing on the fictional House Music radio station SF-UR.