Exodus 19 – The Location of Mt. Sinai
One of the discussions that I was more than happy to cut out of my sermon was the debate regarding the location of Mt. Sinai. The reason I was so eager to see this on the Cutting Room Floor was simply because I am terrible at geography and this discussion does not interest me in the least (just being honest!).
But for the interested, I figured I’d include here at the very least a good starting point into more research if you wanted to dig further.
The traditional view (and still most popular, even among scholars) is that Mt. Sinai is located somewhere in the Sinai Peninsula, typically identified with Jebel Musa, and mountain in this Peninsula (a good map at the back of your Bible will greatly help you follow this discussion!). The Egyptians crossed the Red Sea at the Gulf of Suez, then traveled south to the mountainous region where they ended up at Sinai. If Jebel Musa is Sinai, it is nearly 7500 feet high – making quite the up and down (and up and down… and up and down…) climb for Moses in Exodus 19!
Recently, some scholars have pushed against this traditional view. Some of the most notable discussions for the opposing views appear in Hoffmeier, Ancient Israel in Sinai, 124ff, and Garrett, Exodus, 105-135 (who summarizes Hoffmeier’s views quite clearly). Garrett, for instance, notes the more recent view that the Israelites crossed the “Reed Sea” (see my discussion on Ex 13b-14) at the Gulf of Aqaba and Mt. Sinai is in Arabia, not the Sinai Peninsula. This would locate Sinai in Midianite territory, which accords with Jethro’s visit in Exodus 18. Part of this reasoning (though by no means all) is that Sinai is supposed to be an active volcano, which the Sinai Peninsula has been absent of in recorded history.
I have serious problems with the “volcano view” of Sinai – namely, it is an attempt to rationalize away the clear supernatural nature of the theophany in Exodus 19. Besides this, some elements of the description of the activity at Sinai don’t seem to fit with a normal description of an active volcano (e.g. the fire in Ex 19 is said to descend, not ascend; 19:18). So this idea that we are searching for a volcano when searching for a volcano should not be used as evidence for the location of Sinai.
To add to the complication, Paul says about Mt. Sinai in Galatians 4:25 that it is in Arabia. Modern day Arabia is located to the east of the Gulf of Aqaba, meaning that Paul’s statement might support the non-traditional view. However, “Arabia” had three meanings in Paul’s day (ISBE Bible Dictionary), and the one Paul meant could possibly have included the Sinai Peninsula with it.
These are by no means all the possible locations suggested for Sinai. There are many, many more. But in my view, there is great difficulty in seeing the Egyptians chase the Israelites up over the Gulf of Suez, down through the Sinai Peninsula (which is quite mountainous), then drown at the Gulf of Aqaba. I’m not sure I have seen a compelling-enough view that jettisons the traditional interpretation that Mt. Sinai is in the Sinai Peninsula, perhaps even at Jebel Musa itself.
Sinai or Horeb?
One more brief side discussion that I didn’t think needed to take up any time at all on a Sunday morning. At certain places, the Bible calls the mountain of God “Mt. Sinai” (e.g. Ex 19:11, etc.). At other places, it is called Horeb (e.g. Ex 3:1, Deut 1:6, etc.).
Though some scholars think that these two sites differ, or they represent different “traditions” of biblical writing, it is best to see these as two names for the same place. In fact, Exodus is very clear about this. Horeb is called “the mountain of God” in Ex 3:1. Sinai is called “the mountain of God” in 24:13 (compare with vs 16). Moses is told when he stands on Horeb that when he leaves Egypt with the Israelites, they will worship God “at this mountain” (3:12). At which mountain do they stop and worship God for over a year once leaving Egypt? Sinai.
It is clear that a straightforward reading of Exodus will lead us to understand that Horeb and Sinai are both one and the same: the mountain of God.
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