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The Exodus: The Journey Finally Begins!
Compiled by Flying Kiwi ©
Exodus 12 v 37 And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand on foot that were men, beside children.
Exodus 13 v 20: And they took their journey from Succoth, and encamped in Etham, in the edge of the wilderness.
Exodus 13 v 21 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:
The Children of Israel make the 6 day journey in four days, three days to Etham at a rate of 60km per 24 hours, 90 kms to Nuweiba (see below).
We know from Numbers 33 v 3 that The Children of Israel left Egypt on the 15th day of the First month (Nissan), also that it is the day after the Passover, there is no scripture or way of determining which day of the week it is, any claim is only conjecture.
The next date listed is the 15th day of the Second month, obviously 28 days later but still no reference to the day in the week. This day is listed in scripture as the day they started complaining about no food.
Etham
Where is Etham? "On the edge of The Wilderness" ?
Exodus 13 v 20 "And they took their journey from Succoth, and encamped in Etham, in the edge of the wilderness." What wilderness was this? The answer is in the Exodus account:
Exodus 13 v 18 "But God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea:" This old route was also known as "The Kings Highway"
Etham was not a singular location, like a town - it was a designation of the region that wraps around the mid-northern edge of the Gulf of Aqaba. We know this because once they cross the sea, they are still in an area called Etham:
Numbers 33 v 8 And they departed from before Pihahiroth, and passed through the midst of the sea into the wilderness, and went three days' journey in the wilderness of Etham, and pitched in Marah.
Side note: One point that is extremely interesting, is that in the last verses of in Exodus 13 verses 21 and 22 the words "day" and "night" are mentioned 3 times.
This could refer to the two place names in the previous verse, Exodus 13 v 20 After leaving Succoth they camped at Etham on the edge of the desert. Also this lines up with Pharaoh granting Moses that he could take The Children of Israel out in the desert for 3 days to make sacrifices to their God.
On the fourth day if Moses had carried on the intended route to Mount Horeb, the Egyptians would have caught up with them while they were still in Egyptian controlled territory, as it is 65km (2 days at 30km per day) from Etham to Ezion Geber (Aqaba).
This is why I propose that from the day they left Succoth (Modern day Suez) to the crossing was 5 days. From Etham 2 days on a constant downward slope travelling in a flat dry river bed wadi (see satellite maps below).
Moses was intending to take them around the top of the Gulf of Aqaba, and down into The Land of Midian as this is where the True Mount Sinai is and also where Jethro, the father in law of Moses resided.
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Five Days from Succoth to Nuweiba?
The Six Day War
The Six Day War was fought because the Israelis sought to counter what they saw as an impending attack by the Arab nations which surrounded Israel. Moshe Dayan initiated the Six Day War. This war was fought between June 5th and June 10th 1967. The war was fought against Syria, Jordan, and Egypt. The people of Israel believed that it could only be a matter of time before those three Arab states aligned and coordinated a massive attack against Israel.
A few days before the Six Day War, Levi Eshkol bowed to public pressure and named Moshe Dyan Minister of Defence. On Monday, June 5, 1967, Israel attacked the Arabs. Moshe advanced his troops from Nuweiba to Suez City in six days. It is believed by some that the same crossing spot that Moshe used to cross the Red Sea, was the same spot that Moses and the Israelites crossed on dry ground when they were fleeing Egypt. At night the troops camped.
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Why did Moses take the road 'Way to Arabia' ?
Firstly because it was what God had instructed him to do in, Exodus 3 v 12 And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.”
Secondly, because this was an easy and established route, in which Moses had used to go to Midian, and also Moses and Aaron would have used to come back from Mount Sinai/Horeb. Was known as "The Kings Highway'.
Is Mount Sinai in Saudi Arabia?
Galatians 4:25 King James Version
25 For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children.
See the page 'Mount Sinai to Kadesh Barnea' page from the menu top left, but also in Exodus 3 v 1 Moses is tending the flock of sheep for his father in law Jethro the priest of Midian, it states that Moses took the flock to the far side of the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.
It is preposterous to imagine (as I have read on some pro traditional Sinai websites) that Moses took a flock of sheep from Midian, all the way around the gulf of Aqaba, down to the tip of the modern day Sinai Peninsula, and then made the return journey back to Jethro in Exodus 4 v 18.
Have a look at this website: Ancient Exodus
It is also illogical to imagine that Moses took his wife and sons on a donkey, from Midian (to go to Egypt) and diverted south from the top of Aqaba, down to the incorrect and traditional Mount Sinai to meet Aaron, but rather on the way from Midian Moses passes Jebel Al Lawz (Mount Sinai/Horeb) where he meets Aaron, who would have travelled from Egypt on the road 'Way to Arabia' .
Exodus 4 v 27
The Lord said to Aaron, "Go into the desert to meet Moses." So he met Moses at the Mountain of God and kissed him."
(Re Map above) To propose that Aaron (blue line) and Moses and family (red line) diverted through all of this inaccessible terrain hundreds of kilometres is ridiculous.
From the real Mount Sinai/Horeb (Jebel Al Lawz) they all go West skirting the top of Aqaba passing through Ezion Geber, and back to Egypt via the road 'Way to Arabia' (Exodus 4 v 27-29)
This is also why when God instructs Moses that he is to bring the people out of Egypt and back to The Mountain of God (Exodus 3 v 12), the most logical and practical route to take is the road they know well and have travelled on numerous times, this road will also have provided safety for their travels, Moses would know where the ideal places were to stop, the oasis at Qalet el-Nakhl, Etham and Ezion Geber, on the route back to Sinai/Horeb.
Here is another reason why Moses did NOT go miles from the land of Midian to 'graze' his flock of sheep.
From a U.S study of land use in Sinai:
The land use and development potential of Sinai IS five physio-graphic
regions can be summarized as follows:
• Southern Mountains Province--This province is very sparsely
inhabited. Agriculture is possible only in small areas near
oases. Fruits such as dates, pears, and nuts are grown along
with subsistence-level vegetable crops.
Very poor grazing range is available in this province.
The potential land use in the Southern Mountains Province will
almost totally be limited to tourism. The magnificently colored
and eroded mountains, combined with a relatively cool climate
and historic monuments, represent a strong touristic attraction.
Large agricultural efforts will be excluded because of the lack
of soil and water; urbanization will not be very viable because
of the rough relief and inaccessibility of the area.
In this report above are more reasons why the time span between leaving Succoth (Suez) and the Crossing 5 days later, could not be considerably longer as proposed by some.
Think of how quick the Israelite's would start to complain... as stated in the U.S study, the Southern province has rough relief and is inaccessible, not ideal terrain for hundreds of families to travel by foot on.
Impossible country for flocks and herds of livestock, and as you will see from this article, God had his people in mind and took them on the easiest to travel and most direct route and in the shortest possible time.
Logical Conclusions:
In the realms of Logic and Practicality, if the Exodus had gone on any other route, or taken any longer than what I have proposed there would have been mutiny and/or capture.
Biblically there is also NO record of a lengthened period of time, or a "wandering" for days, between leaving Egypt and crossing the Red Sea, quite the contrary, as it is the only place in which it states that The Children of Israel travelled day and night.
As you will read I propose they would not have travelled constantly for 24 hours as that is unsustainable and for 3 days before a longer rest at Etham, and that the route, time, distances, places, geography, terrain, slope, all fit into place, and match Gods Word.
Bear this in mind, the fact that God needed to cut the Children of Israel's opportunity to return to Egypt easily, at the same time saving them from certain capture and return to slavery.
There is no other crossing location that logically, practically and Biblically matches as closely as Nuweiba, any other place suggested for reasons of depth, slope, islands, ideal location and/or any other constructed reason fail dismally.
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Real Mount Sinai, False Mount Sinai, Horeb, Kadesh Barnea, Bible truth, Where is mount sinai, Jews, Israel, The Children of Israel, The Exodus, True location of Red Sea crossing, Red Sea crossing site, Petra is Kadesh Barnea, Split rock of Moses, Nuweiba beach, Straits of Tiran, Midian, Egypt, Bible truths, disputing evolution, disputing evolutionists, Ron Wyatt
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