The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1873-07-12
MOUNT SINAI.


Magazine of late dates give excellent reviews
of the work accomplished by the English
Palestine exploration in investigating and
identifying the records of Biblical events.
The article in the Edinburgh is mainly
concerned with the researches at Jerusa-
lem and around the temple, while that in
Blacktcood is chiefly devoted to the explor-
ations in the Siniaitic peninsula. The
interest IN the latter undertaking centres
around the Identification of Mt. Sinai
which seems to have been effected to the
entire satisfaction of the surveyors. 1t
was fixed in the beginning that certain dis
tinct features must be possessed by the
mountain which should answer the descrip-
ton incidentally given by the narrative in
Exodus. "Sinai must be a mountain ris-
ing abruptly from plain, because (Deut a:
~ the people came near and stood under
it; moreover, in Exodus 10: II, II, it is
said that the mount could be touched, and
that the people stood at the neither part Of
it. 1t must also be separate and distinct
hill, because bounds were set about il, as
we read in verse 12 of the above mentioned
chapter of Exodus. There must be spa
cious area before it, because the whole
congregation was assembled at it's base to
receive the law. And there must be a sup
ply of water and pasturage in the neighbor-
hood. Now there are only two hills in the
peninsula which have ever been thought to
satisfy these conditions. One of them,
Jebel Musa, is about forty-five miles due
north from the southern point of the Pc
ninsula the other, Jebel Serbal, is little
further to the north, but much more to the
west, being less than twenty miles from
the coast of the Gulf of Suez. The form
er is 1875, the latter 6735 feet high"
Jebel Serbal was found on examination,
to possess none of these conditions. But
it was otherwise with Jsbel Musa. "1'his
mountain rises precipitiously from the bot
tom of the plain of Err Roaab to the height
of about 1000 feet. 1t is distinctly visible
from every part of the plain. 1t is
mountain which can be touched, and
about which bounds can be set. In front
of it thousands of people could be assem-
bled. Near it are the requisite springs and
pasture. Its peaks have been described by
tho Dean of Westminster as standing out
in lonely grandeur against the sky like
huge altar" Writing of Er-Rahah, Mr..
Holland says: "The plain itself is upward
of two miles long, and half mile bread,
and slopes gradually down from the water
shed on the north to the foot of Ras Sufsa-
feb. About 200 yards from the actual base
of the mountain there runs across the plain
a low, semicircular mound, which forms
kind Of natural theatre; while further dis
tant, on either side of the plain, the slopes
of the enclosing mountain would afford
seats to an almost unlimited number of
spectators. The members of our expedi-
ton were as unanimous in there conviction
that the Law was given from Ras Sufsafeh
to the Israelites assembled in the plain of
Er-Rahah, as they had been unanimous in
rejecting Serial as the Mount of the giving
of the Law"
This result and the Arabic name of the
mountain--Jebel Musa, Mount Moses
curiously confirm each other.
Among other interesting spots which
have been identified are the hill on which
Abraham and Lot stood when they divided
the land lstween themselves and Dothan,
where Joseph was maltreated by his breth-
rem. The latter place is called Dotan.-
"Cisterns hewn in the rock are very numer-
GUS there: they are all bottle-shaped with
narrow necks, so that it would be difficult
for any one who had been put inside to get
out. 1t has been suggested that one of
these was the pit into which Joseph was
lowered.