This little plot of land is an ancient and very narrow land bridge that connects Africa, Mesopotamia and Anatolia (a.k.a. Asia Minor). Its strategic location as an international trade route has made it important for empires, which fought hard to conquer it.
This land bridge was formed with the collision between two tectonic plates, which gave it its distinct geographical and topographical features. The most obvious one was the Jordan Rift Valley, the lowest valley on Earth, where the lowest river on Earth flows, the Jordan River, and where the lowest point on Earth is, the Dead Sea.
The collision between the two plates that created the Jordan River Valley, also created the two walls on its two sides - steep mountains to the east and west, forming a formidable natural barrier between the land bridge and Mesopotamia.
In Jericho, archeologists found one of the oldest human year-round settlements, dating to around 9000 BCE, right after the end of the last Ice Age, when the climate was much cooler and the Jordan River Valley was green and lush and not as hot as it is today.
A picture of the Jordan River, which the Hebrew returnees from Babylonia crossed in 538 BCE, which later became a story about Joshua crossing it, which later became highly symbolic in the New Testament as well.
Directly to the west of the Jordan River Rift Valley stand the steep Judea Mountains, which form another natural border. This region is conducive for nomading more so than to sustain large urban centers, and the many valley, gorges and creeks make this place difficult to conquer.
The Negev is a rocky, mountainous desert at the southern end of the land. As you can see, there are many dry riverbeds and craters in between the mountains. Interestingly, this desert has remained untouched by the elements for longer than any other patch of land on Earth - 1.8 million years - among other things because of the little to no rain it sees year-round. Though its northernmost areas do see some rain and become green in winter and early spring.
To the north of Judea was the Kingdom of Israel, which was greener, lusher, wealthier, with more underground springs. Israel was more successful, also thanks to its proximity to the Phoenician city-states on the coast.
The Sea of Galilee, or the Sea of Tiberias or the Kinneret, is the lowest freshwater lake on earth, on the north end of the Jordan River Rift Valley. Its low altitude makes it a hotter and more humid microclimate compared to the mountains and hills that surround it.
Between the mountains and the Mediterranean coast, lie the plains. This is fertile land, and it is where the international trading roads passed. To control the plains, you had to control either the mountains or the city-states along the coast, be they Phoenician or Philistine.