Yes, I remember that but did not comment in my review. My review would be 15 pages long if I did. Thanks for noticing that, shotgun.
Another case of doublespeak. From my review
"Reside in the earth," David continues "and deal with faithfulness." (Psalm 37:b) (S) "The earth" of David?s day was the territory Jehovah had given to Israel, the Promised Land. During Solomon?s reign its boundaries reached from Dan in the north to Beer-sheba in the south. This was Israel?s residence. (1 Kings 4:25) (S)
Paradise Alert
Today, where we live on earth, we look forward to the time when the whole planet will become a paradise in the new world of righteousness. In the meantime, we reside in spiritual security (the organization).?Isaiah 65:13,14 (S)
Blondie
Notice how they dance around the issue below. The WTS was trying to do a verse by verse study of Psalm 37 and had to come up with something to explain "earth" since they tie it in with verse 11.
w86 1/1 31 Questions From Readers ***
Since Psalm 37:29 has been translated "The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever," does it refer simply to Israel?s permanently occupying the Promised Land?No, that interpretation would be an unfounded limitation of this inspired promise. Psalm 37 holds before righteous ones the prospect of living forever on our earth.
The above rendering of Psalm 37:29 is from the King James Version. As is true of many other versions, it renders the Hebrew ?e'rets as "land." ?E'rets can refer to a distinct region or to the territory of a nation, such as "the land of Shinar" or "the land of Egypt."?Genesis 10:10, 11; 21:21; Psalm 78:12; Jeremiah 25:20.
So Psalm 37:11, 29 might indicate that the Israelites could have been and should have been permanent occupants of the Promised Land. In accord with God?s covenant with Abraham, they could have remained in that territory that God gave them, with generation after generation enjoying his blessings there. However, it did not work out that way, for the Israelites became unfaithful to God.?Genesis 15:18-21; 17:8; Deuteronomy 7:12-16, 22; 28:7-14; 31:7; Joshua 21:43-45.
However, there is no Scriptural reason to limit ?e'rets at Psalm 37:11, 29 to just the land given to the Israelites.
According to A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (Gesenius, Brown, Driver, and Briggs; 1951) ?e'rets means: "1. a. earth, whole earth ([as opposed] to a part) . . . b. earth, [as opposed] to heaven, sky . . . c. earth=inhabitants of earth . . . 2. land=a. country, territory . . . b. district, region . . . 3. a. ground, surface of ground . . . b. soil, as productive." Old Testament Word Studies by William Wilson says of ?e'rets: "The earth in the largest sense, both the habitable and uninhabitable parts; with some accompanying word of limitation, it is used of some portion of the earth?s surface, a land or country." So the first and primary meaning of the Hebrew word is our planet, or globe, the earth.
Significantly, when Psalm 37:11, 29 was translated into Greek in the Septuagint, the Hebrew ?e'rets was rendered by the Greek ge, which "denotes earth as arable land or soil." Ge is the word that is used in Jesus? significant prophecy at Matthew 5:5: "Happy are the mild-tempered ones, since they will inherit the earth."
Surely Jesus, in quoting the promise of Psalm 37:11, was not speaking merely of the Promised Land. His anointed followers will become heavenly king-priests with him to share a rulership over the entire earthly globe. (Revelation 5:10) Similarly, mild-tempered ones gaining everlasting life as humans will help to restore Paradise conditions over the entire earth. (Revelation 21:4; Genesis 1:28) Thus, all of us can look to the marvelous future fulfillment of the promise: "For the good will inherit the earth, and upon it for ever will dwell."?Psalm 37:29, Fenton.
