What role does a mental map of the biblical world play in our Bible reading?

We have a visual map in our minds of what the area looks like or in which direction people may be traveling

It gives us geographical literacy.

Not only can we understand where that event is taking place we can see where different events in the Bible that are separated by years, decades or centuries can be related to each by the place they occurred.

Few, if any of us, share the language, cultural environment, or geographical environment of the biblical authors. So these mental maps are important to help us notice and respond to the relevant geographical clues left by them to build a stronger mental map of the land of the Bible. These maps can help us link events and stories together even though they are widely separated from one another in time and may appear hundreds of pages apart in the Bible.

It can help us link events in the Bible that might have occurred hundreds of years apart but present a theme, lesson or insight for us to better understand God.

It allows us to see in our minds the areas the authors are talking about. We can then get more from our reading and study of the Bible.

The mental map of the biblical world gives us the natural familiarity the geography of the bible. It enables us to make quick connection and understand the context of the writing. It help us to really save time when we try to integrate the geographical element to the text.

When the biblical authors wrote the passages, they are banking on their mind map of a specific location, and they are expecting their readers to have a similar mind map. So, modern readers will need to develop a similar mind map before understanding the author’s intention. The mind map can be created by our visits to the Holy land or by getting a Bible Atlas to familiarize ourselves with that location.