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Theoretically, the mitzva to settle the Land applies to a vast area, within the boundaries God promised to Abraham. As it says, “On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, ‘To your offspring I assign this land, from the river of Egypt [the Nile] to the great river, the river Euphrates’” (Genesis 15:18; see also Exodus 23:31 and Deuteronomy 1:7-8). However, in practice, the mitzva needs to be applied gradually, based on what the Jewish people is able to do. This is why God’s instructions were to begin by conquering the land to the west of the Jordan River (the land with the most sanctity), and only afterwards to broaden out gradually to the east of the Jordan and the rest of the promised area. It was only because Kings Sihon and Og refused the Israelites’ offer of peace, and instead waged war against them, that their land to the east of the Jordan was conquered. There are degrees of sanctity within the Land to the west: Judea and Samaria are the holiest, as this was where the patriarchs and matriarchs walked and prophesied. This was also the location of the Tabernacle (in Shiloh) and the Temple (in Jerusalem).
