What do we mean when we say Beulah and sing about this happy place? So many songs that we know from childhood reference “Beulah Land” and its glorious beauty. Yet many people who sing these songs are unaware of the glorious depth of the meaning of Beulah Land, nor can they point to the Scripture text where this term is used. Most would answer that Beulah means “Heaven.” They are partly right in that response. But that is not all that the name conveys!

The term Beulah is drawn from the Scripture text of Isaiah 62:3–5, which were words of comfort to Jerusalem: “Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the LORD, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God. Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah: for the LORD delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married. For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee.”

The Hebrew word Beulah simply means “married.” Since the context of Isaiah 62 speaks of Jerusalem being called by a new name and the glories of the Second Coming of Christ, the imagery is often used to describe the New Jerusalem. This is why the term Beulah Land is connected with Heaven in Christian thought. John Bunyan, in his famous allegory, The Pilgrim’s Progress, describes Beulah Land as that place where Christian traversed just before entering the Celestial City.

Here are selections from four beloved hymns that speak of the wonders of Beulah Land:

Beulah Land

I’ve reached the land of corn and wine,
And all its riches freely mine;
Here shines undimmed one blissful day,
For all my night has passed away.

Chorus:
O Beulah Land, sweet Beulah Land,
As on thy highest mount I stand,
I look away across the sea,
Where mansions are prepared for me,
And view the shining glory shore,
My Heav’n, my home forevermore!

Dwelling in Beulah Land

Let the stormy breezes blow, their cry cannot alarm me,
I am safely sheltered here, protected by God’s hand;
Here the sun is always shining, Here there’s naught can harm me,
I am safe forever in Beulah Land.

Chorus:

I’m living on the mountain, underneath a cloudless sky;
I’m drinking at the fountain that never shall run dry;
O yes! I’m feasting on the manna from a bountiful supply,
For I am dwelling in Beulah Land.

Is Not This the Land of Beulah?

I am dwelling on a mountain,
Where the golden sunlight gleams
O’er a land whose wondrous beauty
Far exceeds my fondest dreams;
Where the air is pure, ethereal,
Laden with the breath of flowers,
That are blooming by the fountain,
’Neath the amaranthine bowers.

Chorus:
Is not this the land of Beulah?
Blessed, blessed land of light;
Where the flowers bloom forever,
And the sun is always bright?

Sweet Beulah Land

I’m kind of homesick for a country,
To which I’ve never been before.
No sad good-byes will there be spoken
For time won’t matter anymore.

Chorus:

Beulah Land, I’m longing for you
And someday on Thee I’ll stand,
Where my home shall be eternal
Beulah Land, sweet Beulah Land.

Whenever we sing about Beulah Land, we should remember that Heaven is pictured by marriage. And vice versa, our marriages should be a foretaste of Heaven. When unsaved family members and friends see a Christian marriage, they should be attracted by the harmony, peace, joy, beauty, and love found within Beulah.