Bible Dictionary
EARTH, CORNERS OF THE
The corners or ends of the earth are biblical expressions for its farthest borders or extremities in the four directions. They describe the extent of the inhabited land, not literal corners.
Definition
The corners or ends of the earth are expressions for the borders or extremities of the land. The “four corners” refer to the four cardinal directions and are not intended to describe literal angular corners.
Biblical Usage
Biblical passages use corners, ends, or wings of the earth for its farthest boundaries. The expression may refer to the extremities of the land in every direction.
Historical Background
The underlying word first means a wing, especially as a covering for young, and then comes to mean the extremity of anything extended. The same word is used for the four borders or wings of a garment.
Historical Bible Dictionaries
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (ISBE)
<p>The "corners" or "ends" of the earth are its "wings" (kanephoth ha-'arets), i.e. its borders or extremities. The word in general means a wing, because the wing of a bird is used as a covering for its young, and from this meaning it acquires that of the extremity of anything stretched out. It is thus used in De 22:12: "Thou shalt make thee fringes upon the four borders (wings) of thy vesture, wherewith thou coverest thyself." It thus also means the coasts or boundaries of the land surface of the earth; its extremities. It is translated "corners" in Isa 11:12; "ends" in Job 37:3, 38:13. The "four corners" of the earth (Isa 11:12) or "land" (Eze 7:2) are therefore simply the extremities of the land in the four cardinal directions.</p><p>See also ASTRONOMY, sec. III, 3.</p><p>E. W. Maunder</p>