parting of the red sea Summary and Overview

THE PARTING OF THE RED SEA The grand event associated with the Red Sea is the passage of the Israelites and the overthrow of the Egyptians. Ex 14-15. This miraculous event is frequently referred to in the Scriptures. Num 33:8; Deut 11:4; Josh 2:10; Judg 11:16; 2 Sam 22:16; Neh 9:9-11; Ps 66:6; Isa 10:26; Acts 7:36; 1 Cor 10:1-2; Heb 11:29, etc. The place of the crossing has been a matter of much controversy. It should be remarked, as preliminary to this discussion, that the head of the gulf is probably at least 50 miles farther south than it was at the time of the Exodus. If the Red Sea then included the Bitter Lakes of Suez and the Birket el-Timsah ("Lake of the Crocodile"), the crossing may have been farther north than would now appear possible. Thus the predictions of Isaiah, Isa 11:15; Isa 19:5, "The Lord shall utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian Sea," "The waters shall fail from the sea," are fulfilled. Stanley says that the place of passage has been extended by Arab tradition down the whole Gulf of Suez. See Exodus, Route of, and Red Sea.