10 Reasons Why Mount Sinai Could be in Saudi Arabia

Last week, we talked about a possible site of Mount Sinai in Jordan, and the beginning of the story behind the 'discovery' of another location in Saudi Arabia.

Are you ready to see what they found?

1st: A mountain, in the location of Midian, which is in a foreign country to where Moses previously resided (not the Sinai Peninsula, because that was Egyptian-controlled territory, and therefore not foreign)

2nd: This mountain is located to several caves, known as "Jethro's caves" to the locals. Jethro was the name of Moses' father-in-law. Locals also refer to this mountain as the mountain of Moses.

3rd: Tracing Moses' path to this mountain, he would have passed Elim in Midian, a beautiful oasis with 12 wells where the Israelites stopped.

4th: Galatians 4:25 says that Mount Sinai was in Arabia, not Egyptian land.

5th: Artifacts, potsherds, and more, dating back to the time of Moses, were found there.

6th: There is also evidence from sources like Josephus and Ptolemy.

But this is what got me:

7th: This mountain, the highest mountain in Midian, has black peak, as if it has been burned. The burned part continues more than 200 feet. But it's interesting... the entire mountain isn't burned at the top... only the outside of the rocks. If you climb up, pick up a rock, and turn it over, it's a normal color on the bottom—not burned.

This is significant, because Exodus 19:18 says that Mount Sinai was completely enveloped in fire when God descended on it.

photo from here

8th: On the mountain is the cave believed to Elijah's cave

9th: Nearby is a rock that is 6-7 stories tall that has been split down the middle. Almost like... someone struck it with a rod and then water poured out.

photo from here

from Fox News.

10th: The base of where the golden calf stood is still there, right in the viewline of Mount Sinai, AND, carved onto rocks of the encampment area (which, is large enough to have held the Israelites while they lived there for an entire year) are images like... calves...and people worshipping calves... and a menorah.

This would be the oldest image of the menorah found to date, which is a symbol of Israel. Teacher Amir Tsarfati with Behold Israel says the menorah is the main symbol for Israel, even moreso than the star of David (that's a post for another day).

And this is especially significant, because the first menorah was made here, at the foot of Mount Sinai, when the Israelites first received the instructions for the Tabernacle and completed them, creating the first menorah.

Only God really knows, but that's a lot of cool evidence. What do you think?

*Story and photos of Ron Wyatt and Dr. Kim found here.

Could Mount Sinai be in Saudi Arabia?

So, there's a mountain in Jordan believed to be Mount Sinai. At the top is a monastery called St. Catherine. It's open to the public to either ride up or hike (which I understand is a serious #legday), and is an incredible experience.

However, it's not completely proven that this is the place of Mount Sinai (also known as Mount Horeb).

traditional site of Mount Sinai in Jordan

Recently, I heard about a place in Saudi Arabia, know as Jebel Al-Lawz.

Until recently, this mountain was closed to the public. It had a fence around it and was heavily guarded by the government. But this isn't true anymore! Saudi Arabia opened it up to tourists!

So, how are we aware of this place if until this month, we were unable to visit it and all photos were banned?

In 1984, Ron Wyatt was visiting Saudi Arabia, saw this place, and took pictures. Soon after, the fence went up around the mountain. He and his sons were accused of being spies and held as prisoners for 2 months, waiting for execution! During these 2 months, Dr. Wyatt helped a lot of prisoners. His guards saw this, began to talk with him, and he convinced him of his story. He was released but had to delete his pictures. He left, but not without telling his story to others.

Fast forward more than 20 years, and a man named Dr. Kim, who served the prince and king of Saudi Arabia for 15 years, was given a reward for his service. So he asked for permission to see Jebel Al-Lawz.

What he found stunned him—and he was allowed to take pictures!*

Stay tuned for more of this amazing story next week!

*story found here

Delilah: Treacherous Beauty

This week we're going to look at the final book in the A Dangerous Beauty series by Angela Hunt: Delilah: A Treacherous Beauty.

First of all, hello #coverlove. I can't stop looking at this cover, probably because it has my favorite colors.

Anywho, this book was interesting because it is a depiction of a woman we don't know that much about, something Hunt discusses in her author's note. We don't know that she was necessarily a Philistine, which raises some interesting questions for the author to explore in her depiction (she had Delilah being of Crete and Egyptian descent, living in Philistine-controlled Gaza.

Hunt's exploration of the reasons behind Delilah's betrayal of Samson is really well-written. As with all of her novels, the evidence of her research is clear throughout the novel (and there's a list of sources in the back). 

What I loved in this book was how Hunt focused on the cultural importance of family in the novel. By placing Delilah as not being from any of the local people as a contrast with Samson, who though Jewish, was set apart as a Nazarite, it drove home the importance of family as both community and identity in ancient Near Eastern culture. Ultimately, it was this conflict that drew the two of them together, the mutual feeling of isolation. It definitely gives a unique perspective on what could have happened!

You can find Delilah: Treacherous Beauty here on Amazon!

Bathsheba: Reluctant Beauty

This week, we're going to continue with Angela Hunt's A Dangerous Beauty series and talk about Bathsheba: Reluctant Beauty.

To be honest, I struggled with the beginning of this book. Since the events of the book aren't spoilers (they are in the Bible, haha), I'm not going to worry with hiding the events. I love Angela Hunt's books, especially her more contemporary settings like Unspoken, The Canopy, and The Justice. But because this is such a well-known story, Hunt took the risk of portraying the scene of David and Bathsheba in a very different way. At the end of the novel, she explains why—how traditional expositions of this story portray Bathsheba as a manipulative adulteress, and perhaps there was an unexplored angle here. I get that and respect it, but that doesn't mean that it wasn't difficult to read or that I agreed with the portrayal of what was essentially, rape. I also struggled with the early depiction of Nathan and how he dishonored his wife because of his lust for Bathsheba.

That being said, I believe she went farther into describing the culture and beliefs of this culture than many depictions of this story. It reminded me of Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes' exploration of the shame that David felt (and its reason), which I talked about here.

I still feel like the guilt portrayed here was more from Western eyes than Eastern, but it was closer to Eastern than I had read before. And perhaps my problems with the early scenes had more to do with my Western predisposition and cultural/personal bias. This book is well written, and Hunt expertly stayed true to the character development throughout.

In addition, I appreciated how she continued the story through those central scenes, so we could understand what is can be a confusing thread of scenes in the Old Testament. It was easier to see the connection between the consequences of this initial sin and how it impacted following generations.

Click here to purchase the book here on Amazon!