Some object to the poetic description of Canaan as a land 'flowing with milk and honey,' claiming it has historically been barren, desolate, and small in size. However, Palestine was historically part of the Fertile Crescent. There is plenty of farmland, especially compared with many other parts of the Middle East. As far as size is concerned, it was definitively spacious compared to the localized land of Goshen in Egypt where the Israelites were residing at the time. Furthermore, the land was clearly highly desirable and fertile enough to support the numerous Canaanite nations that the Israelites had to drive out.