SECT. III.

Of the journeyings of the Ifraelites from the Red Sea, till they came to Mount Sinai, with a Defcription of the faid Mount.

WE

I.

Of the wil

Etham.

E read Exod. xv. 22. that Mofes brought Ifrael from the Red Sea, and they went out into the wilderness dernefs of of Shur, and they went three days in the wilderness. And Num. Shur and xxxiii. 8. we read, that the children of Ifrael passed through the midst of the fea into the wilderness, and went three days journey in the wilderness of Etham. From comparing these two texts together, it is evident, that by the wilderness of Shur, and the wilderness of Etham, must be understood one and the fame wilderness. Of Shur there has been frequent occafion to make mention, in the firft Part; and it has been there observed, that by this name is denoted in Scripture all the western part of Stony Arabia. Etham is mentioned before in the firft fection of this chapter, as being the second place where the Ifraelites encamped after they set forth from Rameses. It lay not far from the Red Sea, in the edge of the wilderness, Exod. xiii. 20, to which therefore it gave name. If there was any difference between the wilderness of Shur and that of Etham, it seems to have been only this, that they differ one from the other, as a whole from its part. As Shur feems to have been the general name of all that part of Arabia Petræa that lay next to Egypt, fo by the Wilderness of Shur was probably denoted all the desert tract thereof: whereas only part of this defert tract, namely fo much as lay nearest to Etham, was peculiarly called the Wilderness of Etham. It is alfo further obfervable, that from what the Scripture faith concerning the Ifraelites paffing out of the Red Sea into the Wilderness of Shur or Etham, it must follow, that the Ifraelites did pafs the Red Sea not far from the very bottom or north end of it; forafmuch as there it was that Shur and Etham were fituated.

CHAP.

II.

2.

Thevenot tells us, that the place where the Ifraelites are fuppofed, by the inhabitants of the country, to have come out of the Red Sea, is at prefent called Corondal; and that they The place fay, over against it the fea is always tempeftuous about the where the place where Pharaoh and the Egyptians were drowned. But now-a-days indeed, the place where the Ifraelites came out of the fez, faid to come feems to have been rather more north, or nearer the bottom

Ifraelites are

out of the

Red Sea.

3.

Of Marah.

Of Elim.

of the gulf.

Having gone three days in the wilderness, and found no water, the Ifraelites came at length to a place where was water; but it was fo bitter, that they could not at first drink of it: whence the place was named Marah, which word in the Hebrew language fignifies bitterness. But upon Mofes praying unto the Lord, the Lord fhewed him a tree, or fort of wood, which when he had caft into the waters, the waters were made fweet. Exod. xv. 23-25. The son of Sirach, the author of that excellent book, called Ecclefiafticus, is plainly of opinion, that this alteration was made by the natural virtue of the wood; whence beginning chap. xxxviii. with the honour and esteem due to a phyfician, he adds v. 5. The Lord has created medicines out of the earth; and he that is wife, will not abbor them. Was not the water made fweet with wood, that the virtue thereof might be known? I am inclined to think, that this may be the place which Thevenot takes notice of, when he tells us, that in his fecond day's journey from Suez, they came to a place, where they found feveral waters, which they call Ain el Moufe, i. e. the wells of Mofes; or else they may be the wells of Elim, where the Ifraelites encamped next, of which in the next paragraph.

From Marah the Ifraelites came to Elim, where were twelve wells of water, and threefcore and ten palm-trees: and they encamped there by the waters. Exod. xv. 27. As fome commentators think, that by the tree, which was put into the waters of Marah, was denoted the cross of Chrift, which is able to sweeten the most bitter afflictions to truly pious fouls; fo they suppose that the number of the twelve wells here mentioned at Elim did allude, not only to the twelve tribes of Ifrael, but also to the twelve Apostles of Chrift; and that the feventy palm-trees

III.

did allude, not only to the feventy Elders of the Ifraelites, SECT. mentioned Exod. xxiv. and Num. xi. but alfo to the feventy Difciples of our bleffed Saviour, mentioned Luke x. But however this be, the place where the Ifraelites were now encamped feems to have been esteemed as a very pleasant and fruitful place, at least in comparison of the desert and barren parts about it. Infomuch that fome learned men are of opinion, that this is the place particularly taken notice of by Agatharchides Gnidius in his treatise concerning the Red Sea, and by Diodorus, lib. iii. and by Strabo, lib. xvi. We meet in Tacitus and Plutarch with a story, that the Jews being on a certain time ready to perish with thirst, springs of water were discovered to them by fome (tame or wild) affes. Which story, Bochart thinks, took its rife from hence that Jofephus calls this place Elim by the name of Ilim, which word in the Syrian language denotes the folds of affes, or affes colts.

5.

now-a-days

Elim

Thevenot tells us, that these twelve wells are now-a-days fhewn to travellers, in or near to a garden of the monks of The place Tor, which is a fmall place, but has a good harbour for fhewn for fhips, lying on the Red Sea. But as this writer plainly confounds the wells of Elim with the waters of Marah ; fo it feems probable, from comparing the facred Hiftory and the account of his travels, that Elim lay to the west or northweft of Tor; and that rather the encampment of the Ifraelites by the Red Sea (Num. xxxiii. 10.) was near Tor.

3

6.

campment

From Elim the Ifraelites came unto the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai. Exod. xvi. 1. But Num. Of the enxxxiii. where the facred Hiftorian does profeffedly give an by the Red account of the feveral journeys of the Ifraelites, we are in- Sea. formed ver. 10. 11. that they removed from Elim, and encamped by the Red Sea; and they removed from the Red Sea, and encamped in the wilderness of Sin. Whence it is not to be doubted, but that the encampment by the Red Sea, mentioned in this laft place, is omitted in the former of Exodus, because nothing worth taking notice of happened there, This encampment feems to have been either in the plain, wherein stands the little fea-port town, called Tor, or else in

II.

CHA P. the plain or valley near to the fea, and mentioned by Thevenot, as lying at some distance before one comes to the plain or valley of Tor.

7.

Of the wil

Sin.

As to the wilderness of Sin, which the Ifraelites came into, derness of upon their decamping this fecond time from the Red Sea, the forecited text of Exodus tells us, that it lay between Elim and Sinai. But now the Ifraelites, in their going from Elim to the wildernefs of Sin, making an encampment by the Red Sea, it hence feems probable, that either the Ifraelites were obliged to wind their course round fome mountain that came in their way, and hindered them from going directly forward, or else that some bay or creek of the Red Sea came up further into land in these parts, or both, as is expreffed in the map hereunto belonging. During the Ifraelites stay in this wilderness of Sin, it was, that God first sent them manna; which the divine Providence continued to do, for forty years, till they came to the borders of the land of Canaan. Exod. xvi. 35. Here also it was that God fent quails to eat, ver. 11-13. Thevenot fays, that the plain of Tor is called in Scripture the defert of Sin: but this feems not likely for feveral reafons; particularly because the encampment in the wilderness of Sin is exprefsly faid in Scripture to be after the encampment by the Red Sea.

8.

Encamp

ments be

Out of the wilderness of Sin the Ifraelites took their journey, and encamped at Dophkah: and they departed from Dophkah, tween the and encamped in Alush; and they removed from Alush, and enof Sin and camped at Rephidim. Num. xxxiii. 12-14. Now none of Rephidim. the ftations or encampments here mentioned, between the

wildernefs

dim.

9.

wilderness of Sin and Rephidim, are taken notice of by Mofes in the book of Exodus ; and that in all probability for the reafons already mentioned, viz. because nothing remarkable fell out in thefe ftations.

But at Rephidim there fell out feveral remarkable occurOf Rephi- rences. For the Ifraelites being come hither, and there being no water for them to drink, according to their ufual way they presently murmured against Mofes who applying himself thereupon to God by prayer, was ordered to take in in his hand the rod, wherewith he was wont to work miracles,

and

and to go and fmite the rock Horeb; upon which water SECT. should come out of the rock for the people to drink. And III. Mofes did fo in the fight of the elders of Ifrael. And he called the name of the place Maffah (i. e. temptation), and Meribah Massah (i. e. chiding or ftrife), because of the chiding of the children of Ifrael, and because they tempted the Lord, faying, Is the Lord. among us or not? Exod. xvii. 1-7. Another remarkable occurrence that fell out at Rephidim was the coming of the Amalekites, and fighting with the Ifraelites. But Joshua difcomfited Amalek and his people with the edge of the fword. And the Lord faid unto Mofes-I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven. And Mofes built an altar, and called the name of it JEHOVAH-niffi, i. e. The Lord my banner. Exod. xvii. 8-16. It has been before obferved in the firft Part, that Amalek was a descendant of Efau, namely the fon of Eliphaz the fon of Efau, and fo Efau's grandfon. I fhall only obferve here farther, that his defcendants fettled in the parts adjoining to mount Seir, where Efau dwelt, and that to the weft or north-west of it, at least at firft. What more is requifite to be said concerning them, fhall be taken notice of when we come to speak of the great defeat given them by Saul.

10.

Qf mount

Horeb and

It will be more proper here to take more peculiar notice of the occurrence first mentioned above, namely of the rock fmitten by Mofes, and from which water gushed out there- Sinai. upon. This rock is exprefsly faid in the facred text to be in Horeb. But now it is evident, from feveral places of Scripture, that mount Horeb is either an adjoining mountain to mount Sinai, or that they are only two different heads or rifings of one and the fame mountain. For what is in one paffage of Scripture related as done at Horeb, is in another paffage of Scripture related as done at mount Sinai, or at leaft in the wilderness of Sinai. And as, in the course of the journeyings of the Ifraelites, this miraculous bringing forth of water out of the rock in Horeb, is related to have been done at Rephidim, from whence the Ifraelites decamping, pitched next in the wilderness of Sinai (Exod. xix. 1, 2.), so after they were there pitched or encamped, we read Exod.

xxxiii.