the supposed representative of the pasture country, is one of
the richest portions of the Delta: such also it must have been
in former times, when watered by the Pelusiac branch of the
N ile ; and the position of this tract coincides much better with
the circumstances attending the Exodus than any locality
higher up the Nile.
Ancient Hieropolis, or Rameses, is nearly in the centre of
the supposed pasture country, and, making a trifling circuit, it
is about fifty miles from thence to the sea of Suez. The first
stage was Succoth, which, as the name seems to indicate, was
EStes ^ m0st likely an encampment of booths; and the second was at
Etham, on the borders of the wilderness, both places being
apparently within the limits of Goshen; for it was only when
the Israelites were about to pass the borders, that Pharaoh
hastened after the fugitives, either from Zoan or Memphis,
but probably from the former. The desert (called Shur),1
which the Hebrews had now reached, evidently commenced
on the eastern shore of the Gulf of Suez, whose waters probably
extended farther at that time than at present, in the line
now partly occupied by the bitter lakes. Etham may, therefore,
have been at the extremity of the ancient inlet, perhaps
only a few miles to the north-west of its present termination,
near Suez; so that, in following the direct line towards Palestine,
the Hebrews, after touching the sea at the place in
question, would have passed at once into the wilderness,
and pnrsnit by Pharaoh having been apprized that the three days’ journey
was about to be exceeded, rapidly followed with his chariots,
when the Hebrews turned, as commanded, and encamped
before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, over against
Ba’al Zephon; a position so enclosed that it led Pharaoh to
say, “ they are entangled in the land.”2 In turning from the
direct line, the fugitives would equally move along the western
side of the inlet, whether in its present or its supposed state; and
they must in one short march have had an almost inaccessible
mountain on their right, the sea of Suez on their left and in
B.C. 1584. their front; whilst their pursuers occupied a position in their
1 Exod., chap. XV ., v. 2 2 ; Numb., chap. X X X I I I ., v. 6, 7, 8.
! Exod., chap. X IV ., v . 3.
rear, which effectually covered the whole space between the
right side of the Red Sea and Jebel Adaggi, ‘or the Mountain towards the
of Deliverance ; thus, in fact, leaving them only the prospect i f Seadeath
or captivity.
But the moment of their deliverance was at hand,-and amidst
murmurings and hopeless despair, a strong east wind became
the immediate instrument of the Almighty.
The waters of the Red Sea form a shallow bay below'Suez, Position of the
and a narrow inlet north-westward of the town, which, as beforeseaof Suez-
observed, once extended much farther. The peculiar position
of this inlet, and the exceeding violence of the winds which
occasionally prevail, in the upper part of the Red Sea especially,
seem to bear out the explanation which has been frequently
given respecting this providential interposition.1 A violent
wind coming from the east, or rather north-east, would, owing
to the nature of these localities, have the effect of separating
the waters at the spot where a small bend takes place, just above
the town of Suez; and by continuing to drive the lower portion
of the waters outwards during the whole night, the Israelites
would have the necessary time to effect their passage between
the waters thus separated. Their escape being discovered at Escape of the
daylight, and a pursuit commenced, a sudden cessation of the dStricttonof
wind, by allowing the separated waters to rush inwards andthe Egyptians,
outwards at the same instant, would be sufficient to complete
the miracle by overwhelming the host of the Egyptians.
Independently of the argument from the position of the
inlet of Suez, there is evidence that this was the route taken,
from the names Jebel Adaggi and Wadi Faroun2 being preserved
on its western side, also those of ’Ain Marah and ’Ain
Musa, with others, on the way from its eastern shore towards
Mounts Horeb and Sinai.
With regard to the passage of the Israelites, it is very Traditional
remarkable that Diodorus relates a tradition, that on one DbdTsi«7
occasion the sea suddenly retired, and after leaving its bed dry
for a time, returned as suddenly.3
1 Compare chap. V I I I . of Supplement to Shaw’s Travels with p. 245,
vol. I ., of Bruce’s Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile. Dublin, 1791.
s Map of the Bed Sea, by Captain R. Moresby, Indian Navy.
‘ Lib. I I I ., cap. xx.
H 2