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    Noah planted the trees – No’ach

    When the Israelites left Egypt they could have gone straight to Eretz Yisra’el and would have been there in less than two weeks. Instead they needed 40 years.

    One view was that this was for the benefit of the people, who needed time to grow into a nation with leadership and discipline.

    Another view comes in the Midrash, which says God orchestrated the delay for the sake of the land. The original plan was that the people would immediately engage in tending trees and cultivating the ground. But the land was filled with old decayed trees that nobody had looked after for generations.

    These were the trees which Noah had planted and they were now in an emaciated state that would have frightened anyone off. So God took pity on the Israelites and inspired the inhabitants of the land to get to work making the country fertile and green.

    The result was that when the Israelites finally reached Eretz Yisra’el the land was inviting.

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