Exodus 13:17-14:4
In the early days of settlement of the American west. Most wagon trains originated in St Louis, Missouri, proceeding to St. Joseph. After leaving St. Joseph, some wagon trains turned south on the Santa Fe Trail, some took the Oregon Trail, while still others proceeded almost due west to north central California. As a result, St. Louis became known as the gateway to the west.
Just as St. Louis was the gathering point for wagon trains heading west, Succoth was the primary gathering point for caravans to the Middle East and East. Situated on the west side of the valley containing the gulf of Suez, but perhaps fifty miles north, it provided easy access to the Sinai peninsula. Crossing the swampy valley which now contains the Suez canal, the Caravan trail proceeded almost due East.
About a hundred miles east of Succoth, the way of the Philistines turned northward, skirting the Mediterranean coast, and crossing the Philistine land to central Canaan. It was the easiest and most direct route and was probably the route Jacob used when he moved to Egypt. The main trail continued east ward, passing to the north of the Gulf of Aqaba, intersecting the main caravan Route from Canaan to Arabia about two hundred fifty miles east of Succoth.
“And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt: But God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea: and the children of Israel went up harnessed out of the land of Egypt.” (Exodus 13:17-18)
Fearing a revolution as the Jewish population grew, the Egyptians had refused to allow them to serve in the military or practice with weapons. More than five hundred years before there had been a few minor incidents between Isaac and the Philistines over land. When Israel left Egypt there were six hundred thousand adult men besides their families. The Philistine and other populations had grown in a similar manner, and an invasion by such a large group would undoubtedly be violently resisted. With no military experience or weapons, when confronted with such a powerful army, Israel might well return to Egypt for protection. To prevent that, God instead led them southward into the Sinai peninsula between the Gulf of Suez and the Gulf of Aqaba. The only settlements were along the coasts of the two gulfs.
“And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him: for he had straitly sworn the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you; and ye shall carry up my bones away hence with you.” (Exodus 13:19)
Just before his death, Joseph had instructed his relatives to carry his remains back to Canaan when they returned. Genesis 50:24-26 tells the story. “And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die: and God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence. So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old: and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.” Four hundred years later, Moses fulfilled that request.
“And they took their journey from Succoth, and encamped in Etham, in the edge of the wilderness. And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night: He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.” (Exodus 13:20-22)
After following the caravan route across the relatively fertile Suez valley, Israel came to Etam, on the edge of the Sinai wilderness. From that point God led them off the beaten trail southward into the wilderness, using pillar of cloud by day to guide them and by night a pillar of fire both to guide and to provide light so they could travel around the clock.
“And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they turn and encamp before Pihahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, over against Baalzephon: before it shall ye encamp by the sea. For Pharaoh will say of the children of Israel, They are entangled in the land, the wilderness hath shut them in. And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, that he shall follow after them; and I will be honoured upon Pharaoh, and upon all his host; that the Egyptians may know that I am the LORD. And they did so.” (Exodus 14:1-4)
In addition to sending the cloud to guide them, God verbally instructed Israel to proceed south eastward toward a specific point on the Gulf of Aqaba. Just across the Gulf from the ruins of Baalzephon is the Wadi Watir, a large canyon providing the only ready access to the Gulf in that area. During the New Kingdom period, Egypt would construct a fortress at the upper end of the Wadi Watir at Migdol to prevent invasion by sea.
Knowing that there was no way to escape from the Sinai for such a large group of people, Pharaoh would assume that they were lost and trapped. It would seem relatively easy to recapture and enslave them again, and God would reinforce his determination to do so in order to conclusively convince the Egyptians that God was truly God.
The mouth of the Wadi Watir is about two hundred thirty miles from Succoth, and it would have required at least six days of forced marching from very early in the morning until late at night to have made the journey. There would have been no time to allow leavening to work in the bread during the this first part of the Journey. The seven days of unleavened bread following Passover were a reminder of this forced march. Knowing Pharaoh would be coming, Israel pushed hard to escape.
Please note that while the route described is not he route shown on most Bible maps, it is supported by geological and topological details described in the scriptures, by anthropological studies of local people’s place names, legends and traditions, and by archaeological discoveries. Many maps label the Gulf of Suez as the Red Sea but name the Gulf of Aqaba separately, causing many scholars to assume only the Suez is part of the Red Sea. As a result most maps list several alternative crossings of the Suez valley, often of swampy ground that is only occasionally flooded, rather than the Sea itself. This has fueled a lot of doubt about the entire story of the Exodus. Interestingly, during the 1967 war with Egypt, Moshe Dyan led group of Israeli soldiers across the same route in the opposite direction in six days, without traveling into the night.
About a hundred miles east of Succoth, the way of the Philistines turned northward, skirting the Mediterranean coast, and crossing the Philistine land to central Canaan. It was the easiest and most direct route and was probably the route Jacob used when he moved to Egypt. The main trail continued east ward, passing to the north of the Gulf of Aqaba, intersecting the main caravan Route from Canaan to Arabia about two hundred fifty miles east of Succoth.
“And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt: But God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea: and the children of Israel went up harnessed out of the land of Egypt.” (Exodus 13:17-18)
Fearing a revolution as the Jewish population grew, the Egyptians had refused to allow them to serve in the military or practice with weapons. More than five hundred years before there had been a few minor incidents between Isaac and the Philistines over land. When Israel left Egypt there were six hundred thousand adult men besides their families. The Philistine and other populations had grown in a similar manner, and an invasion by such a large group would undoubtedly be violently resisted. With no military experience or weapons, when confronted with such a powerful army, Israel might well return to Egypt for protection. To prevent that, God instead led them southward into the Sinai peninsula between the Gulf of Suez and the Gulf of Aqaba. The only settlements were along the coasts of the two gulfs.
“And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him: for he had straitly sworn the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you; and ye shall carry up my bones away hence with you.” (Exodus 13:19)
Just before his death, Joseph had instructed his relatives to carry his remains back to Canaan when they returned. Genesis 50:24-26 tells the story. “And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die: and God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence. So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old: and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.” Four hundred years later, Moses fulfilled that request.
“And they took their journey from Succoth, and encamped in Etham, in the edge of the wilderness. And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night: He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.” (Exodus 13:20-22)
After following the caravan route across the relatively fertile Suez valley, Israel came to Etam, on the edge of the Sinai wilderness. From that point God led them off the beaten trail southward into the wilderness, using pillar of cloud by day to guide them and by night a pillar of fire both to guide and to provide light so they could travel around the clock.
“And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they turn and encamp before Pihahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, over against Baalzephon: before it shall ye encamp by the sea. For Pharaoh will say of the children of Israel, They are entangled in the land, the wilderness hath shut them in. And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, that he shall follow after them; and I will be honoured upon Pharaoh, and upon all his host; that the Egyptians may know that I am the LORD. And they did so.” (Exodus 14:1-4)
In addition to sending the cloud to guide them, God verbally instructed Israel to proceed south eastward toward a specific point on the Gulf of Aqaba. Just across the Gulf from the ruins of Baalzephon is the Wadi Watir, a large canyon providing the only ready access to the Gulf in that area. During the New Kingdom period, Egypt would construct a fortress at the upper end of the Wadi Watir at Migdol to prevent invasion by sea.
Knowing that there was no way to escape from the Sinai for such a large group of people, Pharaoh would assume that they were lost and trapped. It would seem relatively easy to recapture and enslave them again, and God would reinforce his determination to do so in order to conclusively convince the Egyptians that God was truly God.
The mouth of the Wadi Watir is about two hundred thirty miles from Succoth, and it would have required at least six days of forced marching from very early in the morning until late at night to have made the journey. There would have been no time to allow leavening to work in the bread during the this first part of the Journey. The seven days of unleavened bread following Passover were a reminder of this forced march. Knowing Pharaoh would be coming, Israel pushed hard to escape.
Please note that while the route described is not he route shown on most Bible maps, it is supported by geological and topological details described in the scriptures, by anthropological studies of local people’s place names, legends and traditions, and by archaeological discoveries. Many maps label the Gulf of Suez as the Red Sea but name the Gulf of Aqaba separately, causing many scholars to assume only the Suez is part of the Red Sea. As a result most maps list several alternative crossings of the Suez valley, often of swampy ground that is only occasionally flooded, rather than the Sea itself. This has fueled a lot of doubt about the entire story of the Exodus. Interestingly, during the 1967 war with Egypt, Moshe Dyan led group of Israeli soldiers across the same route in the opposite direction in six days, without traveling into the night.
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