Red Sea

The sea so called extends along the west coast of Arabia for about 1,400 miles, and separates Asia from Africa. It is connected with the Indian Ocean, of which it is an arm, by the Strait of Bab-el-Mandeb. At a point (Ras Mohammed) about 200 miles from its nothern extremity it is divided into two arms, that on the east called the AElanitic Gulf, now the Bahr el-`Akabah, about 100 miles long by 15 broad, and that on the west the Gulf of Suez, about 150 miles long by about 20 broad. This branch is now connected with the Mediterranean by the Suez Canal. Between these two arms lies the Sinaitic Peninsula.

The Hebrew name generally given to this sea is Yam Suph. This word suph means a woolly kind of sea-weed, which the sea casts up in great abundance on its shores. In these passages, Exodus 10:19; 13:18; 15:4, 22; 23:31; Numbers 14:25, etc., the Hebrew name is always translated "Red Sea," which was the name given to it by the Greeks. The origin of this name (Red Sea) is uncertain. Some think it is derived from the red colour of the mountains on the western shore; others from the red coral found in the sea, or the red appearance sometimes given to the water by certain zoophytes floating in it. In the New Testament (Acts 7:36; Hebrews 11:29) this name is given to the Gulf of Suez.

This sea was also called by the Hebrews Yam-mitstraim, i.e., "the Egyptian sea" (Isaiah 11:15), and simply Ha-yam, "the sea" (Exodus 14:2, 9, 16, 21, 28; Joshua 24:6, 7; Isaiah 10:26, etc.).

Red Sea, Passage of

The great historical event connected with the Red Sea is the passage of the children of Israel, and the overthrow of the Egyptians, to which there is frequent reference in Scripture (Exodus 14, 15; Numbers 33:8; Deuteronomy 11:4; Joshua 2:10; Judges 11:16; 2 Samuel 22:16; Nehemiah 9:9-11; Psalm 66:6; Isaiah 10:26; Acts 7:36, etc.).

Red Sea, Passage of

The account of the march of the Israelites through the Red Sea is given in Exodus 14:22-31. There has been great diversity of opinion as to the precise place where this occurred. The difficulty of arriving at any definite conclusion on the matter is much increased by the consideration that the head of the Gulf of Suez, which was the branch of the sea that was crossed, must have extended at the time of the Exodus probably 50 miles farther north than it does at present. Some have argued that the crossing took place opposite the Wady Tawarik, where the sea is at present some 7 miles broad. But the opinion that seems to be best supported is that which points to the neighbourhood of Suez. This position perfectly satisfies all the conditions of the stupendous miracle as recorded in the sacred narrative. (see EXODUS.)

1. (n.) Of the color of red; that part of the spectrum which is furthest from the violet part.

2. (v. t.) To put on order; to make tidy; also, to free from entanglement or embarrassment; -- generally with up; as, to red up a house.

3. (superl.) of the color of blood.

4. (n.) The color of blood, or of that part of the spectrum farthest from violet, or a tint resembling these.

5. (n.) A red pigment.

6. (n.) An abbreviation for Red Republican. See under Red, a.

7. (n.) The menses.

ENCAMPMENT BY THE RED SEA

According to the version of the wanderings of Israel given in Numbers 33, they "encamped by the Red Sea" (Numbers 33:10) after leaving Elim and before entering the Wilderness of Sin.

See WANDERINGS OF ISRAEL.

HEIFER, RED

In Numbers 19 a rite is described in which the ashes of a "red heifer" and of certain objects are mixed with running water to obtain the so-called "water for impurity." (Such is the correct translation of the American Standard Revised Version in Numbers 19:9, 13, 10, 21; Numbers 31:23. In these passages, the King James Version and the English Revised Version, through a misunderstanding of a rather difficult Hebrew term, have "water of separation"; Septuagint and the Vulgate (Jerome's Latin Bible, 390-405 A.D.) have, "water of sprinkling." the English Revised Version margin, "water of impurity," is right, but ambiguous.) This water was employed in the removal of the uncleanness of a person or thing that had been in contact with a dead body, and also in removing ritual defilement from booty taken in war.

1. Origin and Significance of the Rite:

The general origin of the rite is clear enough, as is the fact that this origin lies back of the official sacrificial system of Israel. For the removal of impurity, ritual as well as physical, water, preferably running water (Numbers 19:17; compare Leviticus 14:5; Leviticus 15:13), is the natural means, and is employed universally. But where the impurity was unusually great, mere water was not felt to be adequate, and various substances were mixed with it in order to increase its efficacy. So (among other things) blood is used in Leviticus 14:6, 7, and dust in Numbers 5:17 (see WATER OF BITTERNESS). The use, however, of ashes in Numbers 19:17 is unique in the Old Testament, although parallels from elsewhere can be adduced. So e.g. in Ovid Fasti, iv.639-40, 725, 733, in the last of these references, "The blood of a horse shall be a purification, and the ashes of calves," is remarkably close to the Old Testament. The ashes were obtained by burning the heifer completely, "her skin, and her flesh, and her blood, with her dung" (the contents of the entrails) (Numbers 19:5; compare Exodus 29:14). Here only in the Old Testament is blood burned for a ceremonial purpose, and here only is burning a pewliminary; elsewhere it is either a chief act or serves to consume the remnants of a finished sacrifice- Leviticus 4:12 and Numbers 19:3 are altogether different.

The heifer is a female. For the regular sin offering for the congregation, only the male was permitted (Leviticus 4:14), but the female was used in the purificatory ceremony of Deuteronomy 21:3 (a rite that has several points of similarity to that of Numbers 19). An individual sin offering by one of the common people, however, required a female (Leviticus 4:28), but probably only in order to give greater prominence to the more solemn sacrifices for which the male was reserved. A female is required again in the cases enumerated in Leviticus 5:1-6, most of which are ritual defilements needing purification; a female was required at the purification of a leper (in addition to two males, Leviticus 14:10), and a female, with one male, was offered when a Nazirite terminated his vows (Numbers 6:14). Some connection between purification and the sacrifice of a female may be established by this list, for even in the case of the Nazirite the idea may be removal of the state of consecration. But the reason for such a connection is anything but obvious, and the various explanations that have been offered are hardly more than guesses. The most likely is that purificatory rites originated in a very primitive stage when the female was thought to be the more sacred animal on account of its greater usefulness. Of the other requirements for the heifer she must be "red," i.e. reddish brown (Numbers 19:2). Likeness in color to blood is at first sight the most natural explanation, but likeness in color to ripe grain is almost equally plausible. It may be noted that certain Egyptian sacrifices also required red cattle as victims (Plutarch, De Isid. 31). The heifer is to be "without spot" ("faultless"), "wherein is no blemish," the ordinary requirement for sacrifices. (The Jewish exegetes misread this "perfectly red, wherein is no blemish," with extraordinary results; see below.) But an advance on sacrificial requirements is that she shall be one "upon which never came yoke." This requirement is found elsewhere only in Deuteronomy 21:3 and in 1 Samuel 6:7 (that the animals in this last case were finally sacrificed is, however, not in point). But in other religions this requirement was very common (compare Iliad x0.293; Vergil, Georg. iv.550-51; Ovid, Fasti iv.336).

2. Use of Cedar and Hyssop:

While the heifer was being burned, "cedar-wood, and hyssop, and scarlet" (i.e. scarlet wool or thread) were cast into the flames. The same combination of objects (although differently employed) is found at the cleansing of a leper (Leviticus 14:4), but their meaning is entirely unknown. The explanations offered are almost countless. It is quite clear that hyssop was especially prized in purifications (Psalm 51:7), but the use of hyssop as a sprinkler and the use of ashes of hyssop may be quite unrelated. Hyssop and cedar were supposed to have medicinal properties (see CEDAR; HYSSOP). Or the point may be the use of aromatic woods. For a mixture of cedar and other substances in water as a purificatory medium compare Fossey, Magie Assyrienne, 285. The scarlet wool offers still greater difficulties, apart from the color, but it may be noted that scarlet wool plays a part in some of the Babylonian conjurations (Assyrian Bibl., XII, 31). But, obviously, none of this leads very far and it may all be in the wrong direction. All that can be said definitely is that Leviticus 14:4 and Numbers 19:6 show that the combination of objects was deemed to have a high purificatory value.

3. Application and Sacredness of the Ashes:

The ashes, when obtained, were used in removing the greatest of impurities. Consequently, they themselves were deemed to have an extraordinarily "consecrated" character, and they were not to be handled carelessly. Their consecration extended to the rite by which they were produced, so that every person engaged in it was rendered unclean (Numbers 19:7, 8, 10), an excellent example of how in primitive religious thought the ideas of "holiness" and "uncleanness" blend. It was necessary to perform the whole ceremony "without the camp" (Numbers 19:3), and the ashes, when prepared, were also kept without the camp (Numbers 19:9), probably in order to guard against their touch defiling anyone (as well as to keep them from being defiled). When used they were mixed with running water, and the mixture was sprinkled with hyssop on the person or object to be cleansed (Numbers 19:17-19). The same water was used to purify booty (Numbers 31:23), and it may also be meant by the "water of expiation" in Numbers 8:7.

4. Of Non-Priestly and Non-Israelitish Origin:

In addition to the similarities already pointed out between Numbers 19 and Deuteronomy 21:1-9, the rites resemble each other also in the fact that, in both, laymen are the chief functionaries and that the priests have little to do (in Deuteronomy 21:1-9 they are mere passive witnesses). This suggests a non-priestly origin. The title "sin-offering" in Numbers 19:9, 17 (unless used in a unique sense) points to an original sacrificial meaning, although in Numbers 19 the heifer is carefully kept away from the altar. Again, the correspondences with rites in other religions indicate a non-Israelitish origin. Such a ceremony may well have passed among the Israelites and have become prized by them. It contained nothing objectionable and seemed to have much of deep worth, and a few slight additions-chiefly the sprinkling (Numbers 19:4; compare Leviticus 4:6, 17)-made it fit for adoption into the highest system. Some older features may have been eliminated also, but as to this, of course, there is no information. But, in any case, the ceremony is formed of separate rites that are exceedingly old and that are found in a great diversity of religions so that any elaborate symbolic interpretation of the details would seem to be without justification. The same result can be reached by comparing the countless symbolic interpretations that have been attempted in the past, for they differ hopelessly. As a matter of fact, the immense advance that has been gained in the understanding of the meaning of the Old Testament rites through the comparative study of religions has shown the futility of much that has been written on symbolism. That a Certain rite is widely practiced may merely mean that it rests on a true instinct. To be sure, the symbolism of the future will be written on broader lines and will be less pretentious in its claims, but for these very reasons it will rest on a more solid basis. At present, however, the chief task is the collection of material and its correct historical interpretation.

5. Obscurity of Later History:

The later history of the rite is altogether obscure. As no provision was made in Numbers 19 for sending the ashes to different points, the purification could have been practiced only by those living near the sanctuary. Rabbinical casuistry still further complicated. matters by providing that two black or white hairs from the same follicle would disqualify the heifer (see above), and that one on whom even a cloth had been laid could not be used. In consequence, it became virtually or altogether impossible to secure a proper animal, and the Mishnic statement that only nine had ever been found (Parah, iii.5) probably means that the rite had been obsolete long before New Testament times. Still, the existence of the tractate, Parah, and the mention in Hebrews 9:13 show that the provisions were well remembered.

See also SACRIFICE.

LITERATURE.

Baentsch (1903), Holzinger (1903), and (especially) Grey (1903) on Numbers; Kennedy in HDB; Edersheim, Temple and Ministry, chapter xviii (rabbinic traditions. Edersheim gives the best of the "typological" explanations).

Burton Scott Easton

HORSE, RED

(hippos purros): Symbolic of war, bloodshed ("slay one another," etc., Revelation 6:4; compare Zechariah 18; 6:2).

See REVELATION OF JOHN.

OCHRE, RED

o'-ker, (Isaiah 44:13, "He marketh it out with a pencil," margin "red ochre," the King James Version "line"; seredh, a word found only here, and of unknown etymology): Designates the implement used by the carpenter to mark the wood after measuring and before cutting. "Red ochre" supposes this to have been a crayon (as does "pencil"), but a scratch-awl is quite as likely. Ochre is clay colored by an iron compound.

RED HORSE

See HORSE, RED; REVELATION OF JOHN.

RED SEA

(yam-cuph (Exodus 10:19 and often), but in many passages it is simply hayam, "the sea" Septuagint with 2 or 3 exceptions renders it by he eruthra thalassa, "the Red Sea"; Latin geographers Mare Rubrum):

1. Name

2. Peculiarities

3. Old Testament References

4. Passage through the Red Sea by the Israelites

Objections

(1) Steep Banks of the Channel

(2) Walls Formed by the Water

(3) The East Winds

(4) The Miraculous Set Aside

LITERATURE

1. Name:

The Hebrew name yam-cuph has given rise to much controversy. Yam is the general word for sea, and when standing alone may refer to the Mediterranean, the Dead Sea, the Red Sea, or the Sea of Galilee. In several places it designates the river Nile or Euphrates. Cuph means a rush or seaweed such as abounds in the lower portions of the Nile and the upper portions of the Red Sea. It was in the cuph on the brink of the river that the ark of Moses was hidden (Exodus 2:3, 5). But as this word does not in itself mean red, and as that is not the color of the bulrush, authorities are much divided as to the reason for this designation. Some have supposed that it was called red from the appearance of the mountains on the western coast, others from the red color given to the water by the presence of zoophytes, or red coral, or some species of seaweed. Others still, with considerable probability, suppose that the name originated in the red or copper color of the inhabitants of the bordering Arabian peninsula. But the name yam-cuph, though applied to the whole sea, was especially used with reference to the northern part, which is alone mentioned in the Bible, and to the two gulfs (Suez and Aqabah) which border the Sinaitic Peninsula, especially the Gulf of Suez.

2. Pecularities:

The Red Sea has a length of 1,350 miles and an extreme breadth of 205 miles. It is remarkable that while it has no rivers flowing into it and the evaporation from its surface is enormous, it is not much salter than the ocean, from which it is inferred that there must be a constant influx of water from the Indian Ocean through the Straits of Bab-el-Mandeb, together with an outflow of the more saline water beneath the surface. The deepest portion measures 1,200 fathoms. Owing to the lower land levels which prevailed in recent geological times, the Gulf of Suez formerly extended across the lowland which separates it from the Bitter Lakes, a distance of 15 or 20 miles now traversed by the Suez Canal, which encountered no elevation more than 30 ft. above tide. In early historic times the Gulf ended at Ismailia at the head of Lake Timsah. North of this the land rises to a height of more than 50 ft. and for a long time furnished a road leading from Africa into Asia. At a somewhat earlier geological (middle and late Tertiary) period the depression of the land was such that this bridge was also submerged, so that the Red Sea and the Mediterranean were connected by a broad expanse of water which overflowed the whole surface of Lower Egypt.

The evidence of the more recent depression of the land surface in all Lower Egypt is unmistakable. Raised beaches containing shells and corals still living in the Red Sea are found at various levels up to more than 200 ft. above tide. One of the most interesting of these is to be seen near the summit of the "Crow's Nest," a half-mile South of the great pyramids, where, near the summit of the eminence, and approximately 200 ft. above tide, on a level with the base of the pyramids, there is a clearly defined recent sea beach composed of water-worn pebbles from 1 inches to 1 or 2 ft. in diameter, the interstices of which are filled with small shells loosely cemented together. These are identified as belonging to a variable form, Alectryonia cucullata Born, which lives at the present time in the Red Sea. On the opposite side of the river, on the Mokattam Hills South of Cairo, at an elevation of 220 ft. above tide, similar deposits are found containing numerous shells of recent date, while the rock face is penetrated by numerous borings of lithodomus mollusks (Pholades rugosa Broc.). Other evidences of the recent general depression of the land in this region come from various places on the eastern shores of the Mediterranean. According to Lartet at Ramleh, near Jaffa, a recent beach occurs more than 200 ft. above sea-level containing many shells of Pectunculus violascens Lamk, which is at the present time the most abundant mollusk on the shore of the adjoining Mediterranean. A similar beach has been described by Dr. Post at Lattakia, about 30 miles North of Beirut; while others, according to Hull, occur upon the island of Cyprus. Further evidence of this depression is also seen in the fact that the isthmus between Suez and the Bitter Lakes is covered with recent deposits of Nile mud, holding modern Red Sea shells, showing that, at no very distant date, there was an overflow of the Nile through an eastern branch into this slightly depressed level. The line of this branch of the Nile overflow was in early times used for a canal, which has recently been opened to furnish fresh water to Suez, and the depression is followed by the railroad. According to Dawson, large surfaces of the desert North of Suez, which are now above sea-level, contain buried in the sand "recent marine shells in such a state of preservation that not many centuries may have elapsed since they were in the bottom of the sea" (Egypt and Syria, 67).

3. Old Testament References:

The Red Sea is connected with the children of Israel chiefly through the crossing of it recorded in Exodus (see 4, below); but there are a few references to it in later times. Solomon is said (1 Kings 9:26) to have built a navy at "Ezion-geber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom." This is at the head of the Gulf of Aqabah, the eastern branch of the Red Sea. Here his ships were manned by Hiram king of Tyre with "shipmen that had knowledge of the sea" (1 Kings 9:27). And (1 Kings 9:28) "they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold." But Eloth was evidently lost to Israel when Edom successfully revolted in the time of Joram (2 Kings 8:20). For a short time, however, it was restored to Judah by Amaziah (2 Kings 14:22); but finally, during the reign of Ahaz, the Syrians, or more probably, according to another reading, the Edomites, recovered the place and permanently drove the Jews away. But in 1 Kings 22:48 Jehoshaphat is said to have "made ships of Tarshish to go to Ophir for gold: but they went not; for the ships were broken at Ezion-geber"; while in 2 Chronicles 20:36 Jehoshaphat is said to have joined with Ahaziah "to make ships to go to Tarshish; and they made the ships in Ezion-geber."

Unless there is some textual confusion here, "ships of Tarshish:" is simply the name of the style of the ship, like "East Indiaman," and Tarshish in Chronicles may refer to some place in the East Indies. This is the more likely, since Solomon's "navy" that went to Tarshish once every 3 years came "bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks," which could hardly have come from any other place than India.

See SHIPS AND BOATS, II, 1, (2).

4. Passage through the Red Sea by the Israelites:

Until in recent times it was discovered that the Gulf of Suez formerly extended 30 miles northward to the site of the present Ismailia and the ancient Pithom, the scene of the Biblical miracle was placed at Suez, the present head of the Gulf. But there is at Suez no extent of shoal water sufficient for the east wind mentioned in Scripture (Exodus 14:21) to have opened a passage-way sufficiently wide to have permitted the host to have crossed over in a single night. The bar leading from Suez across, which is now sometimes forded, is too insignificant to have furnished a passage-way as Robinson supposed (BR(3), I, 56-59). Besides, if the children of Israel were South of the Bitter Lakes when there was no extension of the Gulf North of its present limits, there would have been no need of a miracle to open the water, since there was abundant room for both them and Pharaoh's army to have gone around the northern end of the Gulf to reach the eastern shore, while South of Suez the water is too deep for the wind anywhere to have opened a passage-way. But with an extension of the waters of the Gulf to the Bitter Lakes and Lake Timsah, rendered probable by the facts cited in the previous paragraph, the narrative at once so perfectly accords with the physical conditions involved as to become not only easily credible, but self-evidencing.

The children of Israel were at Rameses (Exodus 12:37) in the land of Goshen, a place which has not been certainly identified, but could not have been far from the modern Zagazig at the head of the Fresh Water Canal leading from the Nile to the Bitter Lakes. One day's journey eastward along Wady Tumilat, watered by this canal brought them to Succoth, a station probably identical with Thuket, close upon the border line separating Egypt from Asia. Through the discoveries of Naville in 1883 this has been identified as Pithom, one of the store-cities built by Pharaoh during the period of Hebrew oppression (Exodus 1:11). Here Naville uncovered vast store pits for holding grain built during the reign of Rameses II and constructed according to the description given in Exodus 1: the lower portions of brick made with straw, the middle with stubble, and the top of simple clay without even stubble to hold the brick together (see Naville, "The Store-City Pithom and the Route of the Exodus," Egyptian Exploration Fund, 1885; M. G. Kyle, "A Re-examination of Naville's Works," Records of the Past, VIII, 1901, 304-7). The next day's journey brought them to Etham on the "edge of the wilderness" (Exodus 13:20 Numbers 33:6), probably in the vicinity of the modern Ismailia at the head of Lake Timsah. From this point the natural road to Palestine would have been along the caravan route on the neck of land referred to above as now about 50 ft. above sea-level. Etham was about 30 miles Southeast of Zoan or Tanis, the headquarters at that time of Pharaoh, from which he was watching the movements of the host. If they should go on the direct road to Palestine, his army could easily execute a flank movement and intercept them in the desert of Etham. But by divine command (Exodus 14:2) Moses turned southward on the west side of the extension of the Red Sea and camped "before Pihahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, before Baal-zephon" (Exodus 14:22 Numbers 33:5-7). At this change of course Pharaoh was delighted, seeing that the children of Israel were "entangled in the land" and "the wilderness" had "shut them in." Instead of issuing a flank movement upon them, Pharaoh's army now followed them in the rear and "overtook them encamping by the sea, beside Pi-hahiroth," the location of which is essential to a proper understanding of the narrative which follows.

In Exodus 14:2, Pi-hahiroth is said to be "between Migdol and the sea, before Baal-zephon." Now though Migdol originally meant "watch-tower," it is hardly supposable that this can be its meaning here, otherwise the children of Israel would have been moving directly toward a fortified place. Most probably, therefore, Migdol was the tower-like mountain peak marking the northeast corner of Jebel Geneffeh, which runs parallel with the Bitter Lakes, only a short distance from their western border. Baal-zephon may equally well be some of the mountain peaks on the border of the Wilderness of Paran opposite Cheloof, midway between the Bitter Lakes and Suez. In the clear atmosphere of the region this line of mountains is distinctly visible throughout the whole distance from Ismailia to Suez. There would seem to be no objection to this supposition, since all authorities are in disagreement concerning its location. From the significance of the name it would seem to be the seat of some form of Baal worship, naturally a mountain. Brugsch would identify it with Mr. Cassius on the northern shore of Egypt. Naville (see Murray's Illustrated Bible Dictionary, "Red Sea, Passage of") would connect it with the hill called Tussum East of Lake Timsah, where there is a shrine at the present day visited every year about July 14 by thousands of pilgrims to celebrate a religious festival; but, as this is a Mohammedan festival, there seems no reason to connect it with any sanctuary of the Canaanites. Dawson favors the general location which we have assigned to Pi-hahiroth, but would place it beside the narrow southern portion of the Bitter Lakes.

Somewhere in this vicinity would be a most natural place for the children of Israel to halt, and there is no difficulty, such as Naville supposes, to their passing between Jebel Geneffeh and the Bitter Lakes; for the mountain does not come abruptly to the lake, but leaves ample space for the passage of a caravan, while the mountain on one side and the lake on the other would protect them from a flank movement by Pharaoh and limit his army to harassing the rear of the Israelite host. Protected thus, the Israelites found a wide plain over which they could spread their camp, and if we suppose them to be as far South as Cheloof, every condition would be found to suit the narrative which follows. Moses was told by the Lord that if he would order the children of Israel to go forward, the sea would be divided and the children of Israel could cross over on dry ground. And when, in compliance with the divine command, Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, "Yahweh caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all the night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left. And the Egyptians pursued, and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen" (Exodus 14:21-30). But when the children of Israel were safely on the other side the waters returned and overwhelmed the entire host of Pharaoh. In the So of Moses which follows, describing the event, it is said that the waters were piled up by the "blast of thy (God's) nostrils" (Exodus 15:8), and again, verse 10, "Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them." Thus 3 times the wind is mentioned as the means employed by God in opening the water. The competency of the wind temporarily to remove the water from the passage connecting the Gulf of Suez with the Bitter Lakes, provided it was only a few feet deep, is amply proved by facts of recent observation. Major General Tullock of the British army (Proc. Victoria Inst., XXVIII, 267-80) reports having witnessed the driving off of the water from Lake Menzaleh by the wind to such an extent as to lower the level 6 ft., thus leaving small vessels over the shallow water stranded for a while in the muddy bottom. According to the report of the Suez Canal Company, the difference between the highest and the lowest water at Suez is 10 ft. 7 inches, all of which must be due to the effect of the wind, since the tides do not affect the Red Sea. The power of the wind to affect water levels is strikingly witnessed upon Lake Erie in the United States, where according to the report of the Deep Waterways Commission for 1896 (165, 168) it appears that strong wind from the Southwest sometimes lowers the water at Toledo, Ohio, on the western end of the lake to the extent of more than 7 ft., at the same time causing it to rise at Buffalo at the eastern end a similar amount; while a change in the wind during the passage of a single storm reverses the effect, thus sometimes producing a change of level at either end of the lake of 14 ft. in the course of a single day. It would require far less than a tornado to lower the water at Cheloof sufficiently to lay bare the shallow channel which we have supposed at that time to separate Egypt from the Sinaitic Peninsula.

See EXODUS, THE.

Objections:

Several objections to this theory, however, have been urged which should not pass without notice.

(1) Steep Banks of the Channel:

Some have said that the children of Israel would have found an insuperable obstacle to their advance in the steep banks on either side of the supposed channel. But there were no steep banks to be encountered. A gentle sag leads down on one side to the center of the depression and a correspondingly gentle rise leads up on the other.

(2) Walls Formed by the Water:

Much has also been made of the statement (Exodus 14:22) that "the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left"; but when we consider the rhetorical use of this word "wall" it presents no difficulty. In Proverbs 18:11 we are told that "The rich man's wealth is his strong city, And as a high wall in his own imagination." In Isaiah 26:1 we are told that God will appoint salvation "for walls and bulwarks." Again Nahum (3:8) says of Egypt that her "rampart was the sea (margin "the Nile"), and her wall was of the sea." The water upon either side of the opening served the purpose of a wall for protection. There was no chance for Pharaoh to intercept them by a flank movement. Nor is there need of paying further attention to the poetical expressions in the So of Moses, where among other things it is said "that the deeps were congealed in the heart of the sea," and that the "earth (instead of the water) swallowed them."

(3) The East Winds:

Again it is objected that an east wind does not come from the right direction to produce the desired result. On the other hand it is an east wind only which could have freed the channel from water. A north wind would have blown the water from the Bitter Lakes southward, and owing to the quantity of water impounded would have increased the depth of the water in the narrow passage from the southern end of Suez. An east wind, however, would have pressed the water out from the channel both ways, and from the contour of the shore lines would be the only wind that could have done so.

(4) The Miraculous Set Aside:

Again, it is objected that this explanation destroys the miraculous character of the event. But it should be noted that little is said in the narrative about the miraculous. On the other hand, it is a straightforward statement of events, leaving their miraculous character to be inferred from their nature. On the explanation we have given the transaction it is what Robinson felicitously calls a mediate miracle, that is, a miracle in which the hand of God is seen in the use of natural forces which it would be impossible for man to command. If anyone should say that this was a mere coincidence, that the east wind blew at the precise time that Moses reached the place of crossing, the answer is that such a coincidence could have been brought about only by supernatural agency. There was at that time no weather bureau to foretell the approach of a storm. There are no tides on the Red Sea with regular ebb and flow. It was by a miracle of prophecy that Moses was emboldened to get his host into position to avail themselves of the temporary opportunity at exactly the right time. As to the relation of the divine agency to the event, speculation is useless. The opening of the sea may have been a foreordained event in the course of Nature which God only foreknew, in which case the direct divine agency was limited to those influences upon the human actors that led them to place themselves where they could take advantage of the natural opportunity. Or, there is no a priori difficulty in supposing that the east wind was directly aroused for this occasion; for man himself produces disturbances among the forces of Nature that are as far-reaching in their extent as would be a storm produced by direct divine agency. But in this case the disturbance is at once seen to be beyond the powers of human agency to produce.

It remains to add an important word concerning the evidential value of this perfect adjustment of the narrative to the physical conditions involved. So perfect is this conformity of the narrative to the obscure physical conditions involved, which only recent investigations have made clear, that the account becomes self-evidencing. It is not within the power of man to invent a story so perfectly in accordance with the vast and complicated conditions involved. The argument is as strong as that for human design when a key is found to fit a Yale lock. This is not a general account which would fit into a variety of circumstances. There is only one place in all the world, and one set of conditions in all history, which would meet the requirements; and here they are all met. This is scientific demonstration. No higher proof can be found in the inductive sciences. The story is true. It has not been remodeled by the imagination, either of the original writers or of the transcribers. It is not the product of mythological fancy or of legendary accretion.

LITERATURE.

Dawson, Egypt and Syria; Hull, Mt. Seir, Sinai and Western Palestine; Naville, "The Store-City Pithom and the Route of the Exodus," Egyptian Exploration Fund, 1885; Kyle, "Bricks without Straw at Pithom: A Re-examination of Naville's Works," Records of the Past, VIII, 1901, 304-7; Wright, Scientific Confirmations of Old Testament History, 83-117.

George Frederick Wright

DRAGON, RED

See REVELATION OF JOHN.

RED

See COLORS, (10).

RED DRAGON

See REVELATION OF JOHN.

RED HEIFER

See HEIFER, RED.

SEA, RED

See RED SEA.

2063. eruthros -- red
... 2062, 2063. eruthros. 2064 . red. Part of Speech: Adjective Transliteration:
eruthros Phonetic Spelling: (er-oo-thros') Short Definition: red Definition: red ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2063.htm - 6k

4449. purrazo -- to be fiery red
... to be fiery red. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: purrazo Phonetic Spelling:
(poor-hrad'-zo) Short Definition: I am red Definition: I am red, fire-colored. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4449.htm - 6k

4450. purrhos -- fiery red
... fiery red. Part of Speech: Adjective Transliteration: purrhos Phonetic Spelling:
(poor-hros') Short Definition: red, fire-colored Definition: red, fire-colored. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4450.htm - 5k

4450a. purros -- fiery red
... purros. 4450b . fiery red. Transliteration: purros Short Definition: red. Word
Origin from pur Definition fiery red NASB Word Usage red (2). 4450, 4450a. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4450a.htm - 5k

4504. Rhouphos -- "red," Rufus, a Christian at Rome
... 4503, 4504. Rhouphos. 4505 . "red," Rufus, a ... Word Origin of Latin origin Definition
"red," Rufus, a Christian at Rome NASB Word Usage Rufus (2). Rufus. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4504.htm - 6k

2743. kauteriazo -- sear with a hot iron.
... 2743 (from 2545 , "burn") -- properly, brand (sear) with a red-hot iron;
(figuratively) , which destroys the "spiritual nerve-endings.". ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2743.htm - 7k

4210. porphurous -- purple
... Word Origin from porphura Definition purple NASB Word Usage purple (4). purple.
From porphura; purpureal, ie Bluish red -- purple. see GREEK porphura. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4210.htm - 6k

2281. thalassa -- the sea
... Short Definition: the sea, lake Definition: (a) the sea, in contrast to the land,
(b) a particular sea or lake, eg the sea of Galilee (Tiberias), the Red Sea. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2281.htm - 6k

2205. zelos -- to have warmth of feeling for or against, to be ...
... from 2204 , "to boil") -- properly, burning emotion (inner feeling boiling over,
"boiling from heat," J. Thayer); (figuratively) something very ("red-hot") as ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2205.htm - 7k

4209. porphura -- purple fish, purple dye, purple cloth
... purple. Of Latin origin; the "purple" mussel, ie (by implication) the red-blue
color itself, and finally a garment dyed with it -- purple. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/4209.htm - 7k

119. adom -- to be red
... 118, 119. adom. 120 . to be red. Transliteration: adom Phonetic Spelling:
(aw-dam') Short Definition: red. Word Origin from an unused ...
/hebrew/119.htm - 5k

122. adom -- red
... 121, 122. adom. 123 . red. Transliteration: adom Phonetic Spelling:
(aw-dome') Short Definition: red. Word Origin from the same ...
/hebrew/122.htm - 6k

8350. shasher -- red color, vermilion
... 8349, 8350. shasher. 8351 . red color, vermilion. Transliteration: shasher
Phonetic Spelling: (shaw-shar') Short Definition: red. ...
/hebrew/8350.htm - 6k

132. admoni -- red, ruddy
... 131, 132. admoni. 133 . red, ruddy. Transliteration: admoni Phonetic
Spelling: (ad-mo-nee') Short Definition: ruddy. ... red, ruddy. ...
/hebrew/132.htm - 6k

4693. Matsor -- a country Southwest of the Red Sea
... 4692, 4693. Matsor. 4694 . a country Southwest of the Red Sea. Transliteration:
Matsor Phonetic Spelling: (maw-tsore') Short Definition: Egypt. ...
/hebrew/4693.htm - 6k

713. argaman -- purple, red-purple
... 712, 713. argaman. 714 . purple, red-purple. Transliteration: argaman
Phonetic Spelling: (ar-gaw-mawn') Short Definition: purple. ...
/hebrew/713.htm - 6k

711. argevan -- purple, red-purple
... 710, 711. argevan. 712 . purple, red-purple. Transliteration: argevan
Phonetic Spelling: (arg-ev-awn') Short Definition: purple. ...
/hebrew/711.htm - 6k

2560c. chamar -- to be red
... chamar. 2561 . to be red. Transliteration: chamar Short Definition: flushed. Word
Origin a prim. root Definition to be red NASB Word Usage flushed (1). ...
/hebrew/2560c.htm - 5k

365a. Elath -- "lofty tree," a city and harbor on the Red Sea
... 365, 365a. Elath. 365b . "lofty tree," a city and harbor on the Red Sea.
Transliteration: Elath Short Definition: Elath. Word Origin ...
/hebrew/365a.htm - 5k

364. El Paran -- "terebinth of Paran," a city and harbor on the ...
... El Paran. 365 . "terebinth of Paran," a city and harbor on the Red Sea.
Transliteration: El Paran Phonetic Spelling: (ale paw-rawn') Short Definition: El- ...
/hebrew/364.htm - 6k

The Red Shoes
... BIBLE STORIES AND RELIGIOUS CLASSICS THE RED SHOES. By HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN.
There once was a little girl; a very nice pretty little girl. ...
/.../wells/bible stories and religious classics/the red shoes.htm

The Red King
... THE RED KING. The King was drinking in Malwood Hall, There came in a monk
before them all: He thrust by squire, he thrust by knight ...
//christianbookshelf.org/kingsley/andromeda and other poems/the red king.htm

The Red Lamp.
... XX. THE RED LAMP. ... The driver knew what he was about, and though anxious to go
on, did not move until the red light was changed to white. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/champness/broken bread/xx the red lamp.htm

The Red Library
... THE OVERCOMING LIFE. THE RED LIBRARY. 16MO, CLOTH, EACH NET.30 CTS. Weighed and
Wanting. Men of the Bible. Bible Characters. Select Sermons. Moody's Anecdotes. ...
//christianbookshelf.org/moody/the overcoming life/the red library.htm

The Red, Red Sky
... FOR THE CHILDREN THE RED, RED SKY. tr., Emma Frances Bevan, 1899. In ... land,.
And high in dark-blue heavens the red light burns and glows,. ...
/.../bevan/hymns of ter steegen and others second series/the red red sky.htm

Israel at the Red Sea
... Israel at the Red Sea. A Sermon ... "He rebuked the Red Sea also, and it was dried up:
so he led them through the depths, as through the wilderness.""Psalm 106:9. ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 2 1856/israel at the red sea.htm

The Same Night which Saw the Red Glare of the Burning Monastery ...
... XXXVI. The same night which saw the red glare of the burning monastery
reflected from end? The same night which saw the red glare ...
/.../corelli/the master-christian/xxxvi the same night which.htm

Types of the Red Sea, and the Water from the Rock.
... Chapter IX."Types of the Red Sea, and the Water from the Rock. How many,
therefore, are the pleas [8617] of nature, how many the ...
//christianbookshelf.org/tertullian/on baptism/chapter ix types of the red.htm

The Red Heifer a Type of Christ.
... Chapter VIII."The red heifer a type of Christ. Now what do you suppose
this to be a type of, that a command was given to Israel ...
/.../barnabas/the epistle of barnabas /chapter viii the red heifer a.htm

Through the Red Sea
... CHAPTER XLV THROUGH THE RED SEA. The voices of the storm found harmonious
tones of different pitch and swelled in glorious accord ...
//christianbookshelf.org/miller/the yoke/chapter xlv through the red.htm

Red (124 Occurrences)
... Easton's Bible Dictionary Red Sea. The sea so called extends ... by the Greeks.
The origin of this name (Red Sea) is uncertain. Some think ...
/r/red.htm - 77k

Fiery-red (1 Occurrence)
Fiery-red. Fiery, Fiery-red. Fifteen . Multi-Version Concordance
Fiery-red (1 Occurrence). Revelation 6:4 And another ...
/f/fiery-red.htm - 6k

Red-haired (1 Occurrence)
Red-haired. Redemption-price, Red-haired. Redness . Multi-Version
Concordance Red-haired (1 Occurrence). 1 Samuel 17 ...
/r/red-haired.htm - 6k

Deep-red (1 Occurrence)
Deep-red. Deepness, Deep-red. Deeps . Multi-Version Concordance
Deep-red (1 Occurrence). Isaiah 63:1 Who is this that ...
/d/deep-red.htm - 6k

Blood-red (1 Occurrence)
Blood-red. Bloodless, Blood-red. Bloodrevenge . Multi-Version
Concordance Blood-red (1 Occurrence). Isaiah 63:1 Who ...
/b/blood-red.htm - 6k

Ruby (5 Occurrences)
... Some render it "red coral;" others, "pearl" or "mother-of-pearl.". Noah Webster's
Dictionary. ... It is a red crystallized variety of corundum. ...
/r/ruby.htm - 9k

Cow (32 Occurrences)
... (BBE). Exodus 25:5 rams' skins dyed red, sea cow hides, acacia wood, (WEB NIV). ... Exodus
35:7 rams' skins dyed red, sea cow hides, acacia wood, (WEB NIV). ...
/c/cow.htm - 18k

Coral (3 Occurrences)
... 27:16), according to the Rabbins, red coral, which was in use for ornaments. ...
It is found of different colours, white, black, and red. ...
/c/coral.htm - 12k

Leather (34 Occurrences)
... (BBE). Exodus 25:5 And sheepskins coloured red, and leather, and hard wood; (BBE). ...
Exodus 35:7 And sheepskins coloured red, and leather, and hard wood, (BBE). ...
/l/leather.htm - 17k

Porpoise (14 Occurrences)
... of the tabernacle (for shoes in Ezekiel 16:10), and was probably the skin of the
dugong, Halichore dugong, Arabic tukhas, which is found in the Red Sea. ...
/p/porpoise.htm - 11k

What is the significance of a red heifer in the Bible? Is a red heifer a sign of the end times? | GotQuestions.org

What is a red letter Bible? | GotQuestions.org

Did the Israelites in the book of Exodus cross the Red Sea or the Reed Sea? | GotQuestions.org

Red: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

Bible Concordance • Bible Dictionary • Bible Encyclopedia • Topical Bible • Bible Thesuarus