Expedition Unknown (2015–…): Season 10, Episode 11 - Mysteries of Moses - full transcript

Can we find evidence of the
story of Moses and exodus?

[Man] Here, at this site,
we have the tomb of Moses.

- There's a tomb here?
- [Man] Yeah.

- Of Moses?
- Yes.

Can we see it?

Were israelites ever driven out
of Egypt from inside its borders?

It's happened.

- It did happen?
- Yes.

[Josh] All right.

It's hammer time.

Kids, ask your parents
what that means.



Little bit of a drop off.

What'd you find?
Oh, my word.

Fire!

And this is the burning bush.

Wait, you mean
the burning bush?

This is the burning bush?

[Josh yells]

Holy, Moses, hah!

Look at this place.

Let my people go.

This unapologetic demand
for justice

Echoes across the millennia
from the story of Moses.

Prophet, law giver, freedom
fighter, his resume is legendary.

He delivers the israelites
from slavery in Egypt.



Receives the 10 commandment
from God.

And leads his people
to the promised land.

But are the incidents in the book of
exodus based on historical events?

And, frankly, was Moses
a real person?

Did he speak to God?

Plague the pharaoh
and part the red sea?

Scholars have long debated
the origins of these stories,

and now archeology
may have answers.

In Egypt, a long sealed Tom

Hides tantalizing clues
about the identity of Moses.

Meanwhile, inscriptions
in an ancient mine

might lead us
to the fleeing israelites.

And I plan to climb
a remote peak,

That the faithful believe
is the true Mount Sinai.

And then there's a question
you may never have thought of:

Where exactly is Moses buried

The controversy
over his final resting place

not to mention the discover of
a strange man-made structure

In the sea of galilee,

Might change what we think
we know about his story.

So join me on a quest
of biblical proportions.

as we cross nations
and deserts

in the shadow
of the prince of Egypt

To uncover the truth behind
the mysteries of Moses.

My name is Josh gates.

Hello!

Explorer...

...Adventurer...

Amazing.

Help!

...And a guy who ends up in
some very strange situations.

Oh! [Bleep] Whoo!
That was exciting.

With a degree in archeology

And a passion
for the unexplained,

[exclaims]

I travel to the ends
of the earth,

Investigating the greatest
legends in history.

'Kay, let's punch it.

This is expedition unknown.

*EXPEDITION UNKNOWN (2015)*
Season 10 Episode 11 IMDB

Episode Title: "Mysteries of Moses"
Aired on: August 10, 2022.

In the words of scripture,

This is where the story
of Moses begins, the nile.

It's the 13th century bce,

Egypt is at the height
of its power and prosperity

In a period known
as the new kingdom.

Cities and monuments
spread out across the nile delta.

But according to the Bible,

All that prestige is built
on the backs of Hebrew slaves.

It's a powerful story but is
there any proof that it's true?

We're sailing to one of the
oldest parts of Cairo to find out.

Today, Cairo is a mostly
Muslim city.

But for centuries, the
neighborhood of coptic Cairo,

Has been the center
of christianity in Egypt,

And a melting pot for all
the abrahamic faiths.

My search for Moses begins near
the oldest Jewish synagogue in Cairo,

Ben Ezra, founded in 1115.

I'm here to meet my old friend,
egyptologist Aidan dodson.

- Josh, great to see you.
- How are you?

Not too bad.

Here we are again in Egypt.

Indeed.

I have to say, all the times
I've been to Cairo,

I've never been
to this neighborhood.

Where are we?

We're in old Cairo.

- Okay.
- And this goes back to Roman times.

And this tower behind
just here

Is past that Roman fortress.

Also here we've got the oldest
church in Cairo, which is this one here,

- So called hanging church.
- Beautiful.

Also, if you just go
down the road,

We get to the oldest mosque
in the whole of Egypt.

[Josh] Wow, this is the
meeting point of faiths here.

Very much so, yeah.

Okay, so what does this
have to do with Moses?

Well,
according to tradition...

...It was near here
that the baby Moses

Was found in a basket
in the nile.

As the story goes,

The pharaoh decided to have all
the first born Hebrew babies killed,

Because a prophecy
had said that one of them

Would lead the Hebrew slaves
out of bondage.

Right, so a chosen one.

- A chosen one.
- Uh-huh.

To save her son, Moses'
mother puts him in a basket,

And puts him in the river

And trusts him
to the river's care.

And that's really just the
prologue of the Moses story,

Because he goes on to have this,
you know, harrowing adventure.

This is like the great epic
of the old testament.

We need a Moses 101 package,
hit it.

[Booming] The
[normal] Heavily abridged

[Booming] Life of Moses!

Okay, so after being hidden
in a basket,

Moses is saved
by the pharaoh's daughter

And is raised
as a prince of Egypt,

Which feels like
a pretty solid upgrade.

Things seemed to be going we until
Moses learns of his tr Hebrew heritage.

Upon seeing an Egyptian beating
one of his enslaved brethren,

Moses kills the assailant
and buries him in the sand.

Note to self:
Do not cross Moses.

He then goes on the I am
for decades,

And is eventually confronte
by a burning bush

That, oh, also happens
to talk.

The speaking shrub
is the voice of God

And commands Moses to
free the israelites from bondage.

Moses says, "no, thanks," the
bush says, "uh, I'm God do it".

Moses is like, "okay,
yeah, fair point".

Moses then goes to the phara

And delivers the now
legendary message,

[Booming] "Let my people go

[normal] With the threat of
plagues as added incentive.

Pharaoh declines, bad move.

And God does as promised,

Unleashing a series
of 10 fierce curses

Which do not seem
at all fun for anyone.

The last plague, killing
every first born Egyptian son,

Really seals the deal.

Moses and the newly
freed people invent matzah,

And hightail it out of egyp
while the getting is good.

Moses' brother Aaron
is also in tow,

As is his sister, Miriam.

The pharaoh chases
them all to the red sea

Where Moses raises his staff

And, with a little help
from the almighty upstairs,

Parts the body of water,
allowing his people to safely cross

Before engulfing
the Egyptian army.

Next, Moses climbs a mountain
and returns after, like, 40 days

With 10 commandments inscribed
by God himself on two stone tablets.

Except, a little awkward,
his followers are like,

"oh, hi, uh, you were up in
that mountai for a very long time

So we started worshipping this
golden cow statue while you were gone."

Moses is furious!

Smashes the tablets, cools
off, gets more, things are fine.

Then, in the ultimate act
of not asking for directions

Moses and the israelites wander
around in the desert for 40 years,

Before reaching
the promised land,

Otherwise known as can a an.

Today known as Israel.

Due to some anger issues,
Moses himself is not all owe to enter,

And is buried, by God,
on a mountain.

But he does get the satisfaction
of, at leas seeing his people

Enter into the promised LAN
which is pretty good.

And scene.

Everybody got all that? Okay.

There's something very archetypal
about this as a foundation myth.

In particular,
the foundation myth of a hero.

Right.

If the story

Of an orphaned child who's really
the chosen one sounds familiar

That's because it's been adapted
again and again in popular culture,

From Oliver twist,

To Luke Skywalker,

To Harry Potter.

But in the case of Moses,

It's the origin story
of a faith.

Because this is the whole
foundation of the idea

Of there being
the israelite people,

The origin of the religion.

Everything ultimately comes
down to the whole exodus narrative.

So now I ask you
as an egyptologist...

...Did any of these events
align with history?

There are certainly elements
of the story

Which could be tied
into archeological evidence.

Okay.

But also,
there are big problems.

Particularly to do
with chronology.

First, if you sort of add up the
numbers of years in the Bible,

It suggests the whole thing
took place around 1450 bc.

- Uh-huh.
- But there is absolutely no evidence at that point

Of any large grouping
of people leaving the country.

- No huge exodus happening at that time.
- No.

100 years earlier, however,

There is clear evidence of
this sort of thing happening.

- Hmm.
- When a large number of semites left Egypt...

...And moved into can a an.

So some of the events
are historical...

...But their sequence
is jumbled.

Yeah.

It's important to recognize that this
overall narrative as we have it today,

Was being pieced together
by a group of people

1,000 years after the events
in question.

- Right.
- And they probably had in front of them

Folk tales, little bits of, what
you might call, genuine history.

Which they were trying to
produce this overarching origin story

For the people of Israel.

So right now we have more
mystery than history here.

So how do we investigate this?

Can we find evidence,
either for or against,

The story of Moses and exodus?

There are certainly some
places where you can look.

And in fact there's somewhere
quite close to here

Where we may find
a useful clue or two.

I like clues.

- Let's go and have a look.
- Come on.

To begin my hunt
for the history behind Moses

We pile into my truck and head about
20 miles sout from Cairo to saqqara.

Saqqara is home
to Egypt's oldest pyramid,

As well as an immense
necropolis, or city of the dead.

Literally thousands of Egyptian
nobles were entombed here

Near the pharaohs they serve

Now, Aidan is bringing me
to visit one of them.

- We're just coming up to it down here on the left.
- Okay.

- All right, here we are.
- All right.

- Let's do this.
- Here we go.

Okay, so,
what are we here to see?

That tomb there.

[Josh] Who was buried there

[Aidan] Okay, it's a vizier

So there's the pharaoh and
then below him are two viziers,

Who are effectively the prime
ministers of the two halves of Egypt.

And so what does he maybe have
to do with the story of Moses?

We'll have to actually go in and
have a look for me to tell you that.

- Inside?
- In there, yeah.

[Josh] Like any good teacher Aidan
isn't going to make this easy for me.

He figures it's better to sh
than to tell.

But I can't help but notice there's a
slight impediment to getting inside.

That there does not appear
to be a door there,

That appears to be a wall.

Yeah, the tomb has not been
entered for a very long time,

And the authorities brick them
up to stop tomb raiders getting in.

Okay, so what's our move?

All we need to do now
is take the wall down.

Breaking things
is my specialty, Aidan.

- Great.
- We got this.

- Come on.
- Let's go.

[Josh] Aidan has acquired exclusive
permission to open this tomb

For the first time in decade

To get ourselves,
and you, inside,

We're being assisted
by a professional work crew

From the Egyptian
antiquities authority.

- Here we go, we got some backup here.
- Absolutely, yes.

Salaam!

- Hello.
- Nice to meet you.

[Speaking arabic]

[Speaking arabic]

[Speaking arabic]

- [Speaking arabic]
- Mmm.

- Yeah?
- Yeah.

- It's okay?
- Okay.

Oh, boy. [Laughs]

- [Aidan laughs]
- [Josh] Here we go.

Follow exactly
what he's telling you.

- Otherwise you'll bring the whole mountain down.
- All right.

It's hammer time.

Kids, ask your parents
what that means.

Here we go.

[Josh] The entryway
behind these bricks

Dates back well over
3,500 years.

So, you know, no pressure.

One brick down,
few hundred to go.

[Hammer clanging]

We're getting there.

Brick by brick,
I widen the opening,

Until we get our first
whiff of the air inside.

[Whispers] Okay.

All right, we got darkness,
Aidan.

Something back there.

It doesn't smell good,
I can tell you that.

Okay, well.

Should we go in?

Let's go.

We're gonna need some lights.

Time to cross the threshold

Out of the 21st century, and into a
long-sealed tomb from the time of Moses.

One that might reveal
whether he was man or myth.

Woah.

[laughs]

This is awesome.

Look at this place!

Woah.

Look at this,
it just goes back...

- [Aidan] I know.
- ...And back.

Look at the size
of this chamber!

Egyptologist Aidan dodson
and I have just entered

The long sealed tomb of an
Egyptian vizier unlike any other.

One that may reveal something
about the story of Moses.

- Oh, and look at the roof decoration.
- Yeah.

That ceiling decoration
is gorgeous, isn't it?

[Josh] Wow! It's beautiful.

The tomb is chiseled
into the rock itself.

Posts and beams
from previous excavations he

Have been installed
to stabilize the ceiling.

[Aidan] But the best is behind
you Josh, look over there.

[Josh] Wow.

Absolutely stunning.

While Aidan knows the con ten
of the tomb

From the publications
of previous excavators,

This is his first time insid

That means we're both
getting our bearings.

- All of this is unbelievable.
- Mmm-hmm.

What're we looking for?

We're looking for the name
of the vizier.

All right, usually these guys plaster
their names all over everything

In their tombs, don't they?

They do.

The trouble is this tomb is
unfinished and also damaged.

So therefore it's less easy
to find undamaged names.

[Josh] The tomb owner's nam
will be enclosed

Within clusters of hieroglyp
along the walls.

So that's where we need
to look.

All right, well,
should we split up

In a creepy ancient tomb
and look for it?

Seems reasonable enough to me.

- Yeah, what could go wrong?
- [chuckles]

All right,
I'll look back here.

You wanna start on this side?

I will do.

- Okay, here we go.
- Right.

[Josh] Aidan's insistence that
we find the name of this vizier

Would normally be
a welcome challenge.

But I soon realize
this particular tomb

Is more like
an underground maze.

Goin' down.

Woah.

[Hushed] Wow.

This is unbelievable.

[Whispers] Look at this.

So these appear to be
human remains...

...From the last excavation
that was done here in the tomb.

And there are thousands
of bones here.

What we don't see here
are any...

...Decorations of any kind.

The walls are just raw
in this part of the tomb.

No paintings.

No inscriptions.

Nothing.

And here...

...It looks like we have...

...The actual burial shaft.

[Exclaims]

Which just goes straight down.

Our vizier...

...Would a been buried
down there.

[Exhales]

[Yells] Aidan!

I'm gonna go down
the scary shaft of death.

I'll be back.

[Breathless] Okay.

I'm down to the next level,
which is...

...A tiny wooden platform.

And then it keeps going.

Oh, man.

I literally cannot see
the bottom from here.

So, here we go.

[Pants]

This is the great length
I've ever gone

To find out someone's name.

Well there was this one girl
in college but... Never mind.

[Whispers] Okay.

Oh, my word.

Wow.

So here we are, these are
the actual burial chambers,

For not just the vizier
but his whole family

Would have been buried
down here.

What I don't see down here,

Are any inscriptions at all.

We'll keep looking
in these side chambers

But I don't think
it's down here.

The further I explore the pitch
black chambers of this tomb,

The more I start to worry I might
become a permanent resident.

Lucky for me,
Aidan has a sharp eye.

[Aidan yelling] Josh!

Yeah?

I think I may have found it.

Coming!

Comin' up!

Find something?

- You got it?
- [Aidan] Yup.

Found it.

- [Josh] Where?
- It's right in the corner here.

Right in the far corner.

The bottom
is a little seated man.

[Josh] Yes.

Above it is that

Flattened oval
and little stripe next to it.

[Josh] So this is our vizier

- [Aidan] It is.
- All right.

And his name is?

His name is aper-El.

Aper-El.

Okay.

And why is that significant?

Well, what's exciting about
that is it's not an Egyptian name.

- His name is not Egyptian?
- Not at all.

So what is it?

It's a semitic name.

[Josh] Semites in this case refer to
the people who, according to exodus,

Left Egypt and would later be
known as the hebrews or israelites.

Moses, who is said to have
been raised in the pharaoh's court,

Was their earliest
named leader.

It is therefore remarkable
that here in ancient Egypt,

At the possible time of mose we
have archeological eviden of a semite

Serving as a high-ranking
member of the pharaoh's cour

There are interesting
biblical links here too.

The "I" in the name, "aperel is
how God is referred to in the torah,

And appears in other biblical
names like Daniel and Raphael.

And aperel's resume is every
bit as intriguing as his name.

Among his many titles listed on
the walls is, "child of the palace."

Meaning he likely grew up
alongside the pharaoh, just like Moses.

Another interesting thing is that
aperel died under king akhenaten.

- Mmm-hmm. The sun king.
- Yeah. Indeed.

Who introduced what looks like
a monotheistic religion into Egypt.

Right. Akhenaten
is this renegade pharaoh

Who basically says,
"all of these Gods

That we've been worshipping
for a very long time,

We're gonna Chuck all them out,
and we're gonna worship the sun."

This monotheism didn't
last long for the Egyptians,

But it stuck for other
emerging religions.

Some people have wondered,
"could this have some kind of influence

- On the Hebrew idea of one God?"
- right.

To be clear, nobody is claiming
that thi aperel is mosel himself,

But confirmation that a high-ranking
semite who grew up in the palace

At a time when
one God was worshipped,

Makes the story of Moses and
Egypt feel much more possible.

Still, I have many more
questions about the exodus story.

So I thank Aidan
kick starting my journey,

And I hit the road to look
for more evidence.

Okay, so we've seen
that a man like Moses

Could have come to
prominence in ancient Egypt.

That part of the story
is plausible,

But what about the miracles
described in exodus?

Do they require a religious
leap of faith?

Should we dismiss
them as, uh, literary license?

Or can science explain, or help explain,
how Moses became a master of miracles?

Specifically, those plagues

With the pharaoh still
refusing to let Moses' people go,

God rains down a succession of
horrific plagues on the Egyptians

To further the negotiations

First, the nile turns to blood,
followed by infestations of frogs,

Lice, flies and the death
of livestock.

Next up, pestilence, boils, hail,
locusts and three day of darkness.

On face value, these events seem
utterly supernatural, or were they?

To find out, I make my way to an enigmatic
structure on the banks of the nile.

This chamber may look like
a temple, but in fact, it's a tool.

This is known
as the nilometer,

A massive column covered
in these precisely-cut notches

To measure the depth of the
nile and predict its behavior.

It is impossible to over stat the
importance of the nile in ancient Egypt.

The river's annual flood
brought agricultural life,

But if something went wrong
it also brought death.

Too much flooding,
and crops would be destroyed.

Too little flooding,
and nothing would grow.

The nilometer allowed
ancient Egyptians

To forecast harvests
and better stave off famine

Okay, so what does any
of this have to do with Moses?

Well, some scientists have
suggested that a disaster in the nile

Could have actually caused
some of the legendary ten plagues.

Impossible? Well, maybe not if the
nile became infested with toxic, red algae.

Also known as "red tide," it happens
when algae bloom out of control,

Staining water so
that it appears like blood.

Red tide can also kill off
some species,

While causing population
explosion of others,

Such as frogs, lice,
flies and locusts.

The insects could then sprea
disease to livestock and to people,

Manifesting as pestilence
and boils.

But what about hail
and darkness?

Well, climate scientists now
theorize that a volcanic eruption

On the Greek island
of santorini in 1500 bce,

Could have spread ash all the
way to Egypt, blocking out the sun.

Those darkening skies would certainly
have appeare to people across Egypt

As the work of divine forces

So, did the plagues
actually happen?

Well, it depends
on what you believe.

And whether caused by nature
of the wrath of God,

They remain a cautionary tale
about angering the almighty,

A horror story
in the ethic of the Bible,

As mysterious as the life
of Moses himself.

Now that I've seen proof tha a semitic
person held high position in ancient Egypt,

And the possibility that the plagues
could be inspire by real-world events,

I'm starting to feel hopefu
about the idea of a historic Moses,

But I want some hard facts.

And that brings us to one
character in the exodus story

That we should be able to easily
verify, Moses' Nemesis, the pharaoh

So, now I set off
on a new mission

To find the Egyptian king who
defied both Moses and his God.

[Josh] From my investigatio
into the mysteries of Moses

I'm on a search to identify
the pharaoh from exodus.

The Bible never mentions
him by name,

But if you've seen the ten
commandments, you know who he is.

Yep, it's yul brynner,
I mean, ramesses.

To get to know ramesses better,
I'm drivin 450 miles south of Cairo

To the ancient capital
of Luxor.

On the east bank of the
nile, the world of the living

And the ruined majesty
of Luxor and karnak,

And on the west bank,
the land of the dead,

Home to the valley
of the kings.

And this.

The tumbledown remnants of a
mortuary temple known as the ramesseum.

Inside the eerie ruins, I fi my old
friend, egyptologist bahaa gaber.

- Bahaa.
- [bahaa gaber] Josh. Hey.

[Josh] Hey!
How are you, my friend?

- [Gaber] Fine, and you?
- I'm great, thanks.

- This is spectacular.
- [gaber] Yeah, this is the ramesseum temple.

- So this is devoted to ramesses ii?
- Yes.

Okay, now, every story
needs a bad guy,

And for many years people have
said that this guy, ramesses ii,

He's the pharaoh
from the old testament.

- So, and he is a serious villain in exodus.
- [gaber] Mmm-hmm. Mmm-hmm.

[Josh] I mean, we're talk in
Darth Vader level, Thanos level,

- Moustache twirling bad guy, right?
- [gaber chuckles]

So, how is he referred
to here in Egypt?

- We call him ramesses the great.
- Ramesses the great?

- Yes.
- Not "ramesses the evil," not "ramesses the bad guy."

And not "ramesses the nasty."

- No, not "ramesses the nasty." the great.
- Exactly.

[Josh] Despite his bad pres
in biblical pop culture,

If anyone earned the title
of "great," it's ramesses ii

He ruled Egypt for 67 years
well into his 90s,

Building grand temples to
his divinity all over the country.

Here at the ramesseum
are the toppled remains

Of one of the largest
ancient statues ever found,

A seated colossus of ramesse
which once Rose more than 60 feet tall.

So why does he have
this reputation?

Why do so many people associate
the story of exodus with ramesses?

Because when people try
to figure out when exactly

Moses lived in Egypt, they
assumed it that it could happen during

- The 13th century...
- [Josh] Mmm-hmm.

...And because the king ruled Egypt
a long time, and he was so powerful,

So they assumed
that he should be the guy.

[Josh] So, if ramesses
is supposed to be the bad go

Then this brings up
an important question.

Were there Hebrew slaves here
in ancient Egypt?

Do we have archeological
evidence of mass numbers

Of semitic people
enslaved here?

- No, we didn't have any evidence for that.
- [Josh] No evidence?

No evidence.

But what about the people who
built these incredible temples?

The people who built the
pyramids? Were these built by slaves?

- No, built by workmen.
- By workmen.

- [Gaber] Exactly.
- Built by Egyptians?

By Egyptians.

[Josh] Contrary to the idea
that Egypt's

Mightiest monuments
were built by slaves,

There is ample evidence
of a skilled, local labor force

From excavations of workers burials to
ancient graffiti from the workers themselves

But there is no archeologica evidence
of a huge army of laboring slaves.

So then where do we get this
idea that there are not just slaves,

But israelites here in Egypt that are
fleeing the country? Where does it come from?

Josh, we have temple very close
from here, have these answers.

- [Josh] Really?
- Come with me.

Steps from the ramesseum, bahaa
leads me to the nearl obliterated remains

Of the funerary temple of the
king, merneptah, son of ramesses ii.

And in the corner is a stele or stone
monument, which is covered in writing

And in one spot
it says something historic.

- So here's the king right here, yes?
- [gaber] Yes.

- So, this chronicles all his military accomplishments?
- Yes.

Okay, so what's
significant here?

Josh, we have something
very important here,

- Something shocking. Here.
- Okay.

The king said that he defeated
the people of Israel.

- Israel?
- [gaber] Yes, and that's the first time

That the word Israel had been
mentioned outside of the Bible.

This is incredible.

- Okay.
- Here it mentioned that he took his army

Outside of Egypt.

They tried to attack Egypt
from the north.

- Wait, this is, like, a complete flip...
- [gaber] Yeah. Right.

...Of the script. So, instead
of them being slaves,

- They're actually powerful. They're actually someone...
- Yes.

- ...That he sees as an invading force.
- [gaber] Right.

[Josh] So, is there any
evidence, historically,

That semitic people were ever driven
out of Egypt from inside its borders?

- It's happened.
- It did happen?

Yes, but when, 300 years before
the time of the king ramesses.

- Before ramesses?
- Yes.

The hyksos people.

[Josh] Hundreds of years before
the possible time of Moses,

There are records in Egypt
from the land of can a an,

What is today in the area of
Israel and the palestinia territories.

But they weren't here
as a group of slaves, rather

They were traders
and even rulers.

One group of canaanites actually
lorded over lower Egypt for a time,

Before being defeated by another
group of semites known as the hyksos,

Who were eventually driven
out of Egypt.

You have these people that
are from the land of can a an,

And they're not slaves, they are
invaders. Is there a linkage here?

Is the story of exodus somehow
inspired by the hyksos leaving Egypt?

- And they were run out by the pharaoh.
- By a pharaoh. Yeah.

[Josh] There's a pattern
emerging here.

Events from exodus
seem to have

Compelling similarities
to recorded history,

But often at a slightly different
time, or under different circumstances.

So, could the hyksos be the
true israelites of the exodus?

To find out, and to keep
hunting for a historical Moses,

There's only one thing to do
flee the same direction they did,

Out of Egypt
and into the Sinai.

Of course, when the israelit
did it,

Moses led them
on a unique shortcut.

This is the red sea.

In the Bible, Moses is desperate
to get his people from here

All the way over the Sinai
peninsula, about 15 miles away.

Lucky for him,
he has some divine backup.

Okay, let's do this.
Can I get a staff?

Really? Okay. [Clears throat]

The host of this show
will do battle for us.

Behold the might hand
of Josh!

Part! Do the...
Do the thing!

Was worth a try.

According to the story from
exodus, as well as from Hollywood,

The israelites had their bac
to the red sea

As the pharaoh's army
was closing in.

So Moses raised his staff, and the
red sea miraculousl parted before them.

The israelites ran through
safely to the other side,

As for the pursuing Egyptian
army, the passage collapsed midway.

Which Cecil b. Demille pulled off by
pouring water over jell-o, by the way.

Pretty effective.

So is there any
scientific basis for this?

One recent theory is that we've
been reading the Bible wrong.

The Hebrew name of the body of
water Moses parted is yam suph.

Yam suph means, "the sea
of reeds," or, "the Reed sea."

Which might not refer
to this body of water at all

But's a part of the nile del
to the north.

The Bible speaks
of a strong east wind

That blew just before
the sea parted.

And it turns out that the sea of reeds,
much like parts of the red sea here,

Has a unique topography.
Hang on a second, I'll show you.

Ah! Ah, that's cold.

[Shouting] The waters
here are really shallow!

Recent computer modelling has
shown that a 60 mile an hour wind

Blowing for eight hours
in shallow marshland,

Could push back the waters
and expose a land bridge.

And if the wind died down
just after the israelites crossed,

A wall of rushing water could have
engulfed the pursuing Egyptian army.

But even if it were
scientifically possible,

What are the odds that the winds would
blow right when Moses needed them?

Or that they would blow
in the israelites' favor?

It would be a tremendous stroke of
luck or, dare I say, divine intervention.

And since God has better things to
do than perform a miracle on television,

I'm taking the long route,

North up the coast of the red
sea until I cros from Africa into Asia

And the vast deserts
of the Sinai peninsula,

26,000 square miles of sand

The Sinai is also the setting for
perhaps the most consequential moment

In the book of exodus,

Because somewhere out here,
somewhere amidst all this sand

On top of a place
known as Mount Sinai,

Moses receives
the ten commandments.

In the book of exodus, three
months after escaping Egypt,

The children of Israel
reach Mount Sinai,

And Moses is called to the summit
where God directly bestows upon him

The unbreakable laws
of his covenant,

Ten commandments carved
into stone tablets.

And believe it or not,
no fewer than six locations

Have laid claim
to be Mount Sinai,

But one above all has
emerged as the true holy site.

I pull up at the gate
of a fortified monastery

Tucked into the base
of an imposing mountain.

In arabic, it's called,
jabal musa.

In English,
this is Mount Sinai.

I'm at the base of a mountai believed
to be the location of the true Mount Sinai,

Where Moses received
the ten commandments from go

The Greek orthodox monaster
of Saint Catherine

Was built here in the mid-50 atop
one of the oldest Christian sites on earth.

Inside the courtyard, I'm warmly
welcomed by father Justin of Sinai.

Father, I feel like I've
stepped into another time here.

And the outside looks
almost like a fortress.

It was built as a fortress
to protect the monks,

To honor this holy place, but also
this is the border of the Roman empire.

Right.

But the monastery has never been abandoned
and never been destroyed in 1700 years.

Wow. What an incredible place.

And there are other connections
here to the story of Moses,

Like one
of the main characters.

[Father Justin] Everything
was built here because

This is the place
of the burning bush,

And this is the burning bush
growing behind the church

Next to the chapel
of the burning bush.

Wait, you mean
the burning bush?

Like the burning bush from the
Bible where God speaks to Moses?

While the fire is out
and the bush

May not be talking to any on
these days,

Its very existence
seems miraculous.

It is mentioned by egeria,
who came here in the year 383.

So even in 383, she mentions

In the valley there's a garden,
and in the garden there's a church

Next to the bush, and the
bush is alive to this day,

And sends out green shoots.

So this was described
in the fourth century.

- It's been described by pilgrims ever since.
- [Josh] Wow.

That is awesome. This monastery
is filled with miraculous things.

Lead on. I want to see
what else we have here.

The burning bush.

Father Justin brings me insi
the monastery's library,

A treasure trove
of priceless documents

Stretching back
through the centuries.

He's pulled a few volumes
for me to examine.

The first one is a 10th
century manuscript of...

- I'm sorry, this is a 1000-year-old book?
- Yes.

Written on parchment.

It's the text of Genesis,
exodus and leviticus,

And then it has commentary
in the margins.

Many years ago someone took the
entire account of Genesis and exodus,

And they wrote it out
in Greek verses.

This is a 16th century
manuscript of that text.

This is one of your
new books?

[Chuckles] And then it's
filled with illustrations.

And I believe this is our
guy right here, right?

Let's talk about
this illustration,

In particular this mountain
that Moses is standing on.

This is Mount Sinai or
mount horeb in the Bible,

And I know that there have
been a lot of places put forward

By the historians and
theologians over the years

As the possible real location,

But Saint Catherine's sits at the foot
of the place that is really considered...

...Where this happened.

Why is that?

What is it about this place that
gives it authenticity and credibility?

Many people ask us, "how do
you know that this is the real Sinai?"

- [Josh] Right.
- We point out that the prophet, Elijah,

Came to horeb,
the mountain of God,

And he lived 600 years
after Moses.

Right, and he knew
where it was.

So 600 years after Moses,
they knew where Sinai was.

So when the monks came here,

In the latter third,
early fourth centuries,

They also picked up
this living heritage

That this was the place where God
revealed himself in such a special way.

[Josh] It is this stunning
continuity of history here

That has led so many
to venerate this place.

And it is for that reason that people
also attempt to ascend to the summit.

I know that many people come
here to visit the monastery

And also to make the ascent
to the top of Mount Sinai.

I'd like to do that. Do you have
any advice for a first-time climber?

It's not an easy ascent.

[laughing] Okay.

When you make the ascent,
you think, "I'll never get there."

But then you finally do arrive
and it's such a joy

To see the spectacular
landscape.

I can't wait.

So here's something I'd
like to give you for the ascent.

This is a Bible that I bought
in Jerusalem in 1978,

The first time I made
a pilgrimage there.

When you read the scriptures,
they come alive,

Because you're
at the very place

And it's something that you can
treasure for the rest of your life.

This is really, really
special, thank you so much.

I will take very,
very good care of it, father.

Thank you so much for time and
for showing us this awesome place.

I really appreciate it.

And all the best
on your ascent to the peak.

Thank you, father. Cheers.

And so I'm preparing to follow in
Moses' most arduous footsteps,

To the meeting point
between God and man.

The climb is always attempte
well before the light of daw

And so the next day,
in the frigid desert darknes

I return to the foot
of the monastery.

Well, it is about 2:30 in the morning
and I'm here at the base of Mount Sinai.

You know, when we think
about Moses leading

The israelites through the desert,
we think about sweltering heat.

Right now, it's about 28 degrees
fahrenheit, it is absolutely freezing.

And between us and the summit
is about 2,500 vertical feet

And a nearly three-mile hike
in complete darkness.

Let's do it.

Man, it is cold.

And the higher you get,
the windier it gets.

Just feels like walking
into nothingness.

[Exhales] So, as we come
through this pass here,

You can hear the wind
just sailing through.

It's getting colder
and colder.

I've got my trusty
king James Bible here.

We're about halfway up the
mountain and I have to say,

It really does feel
so mysterious here.

And it is hard
not to feel the parallels

With the description
in the book of exodus.

So, much of the talk about
Sinai is about the weather here.

They say that there's thunder
and lightning on the mount

And the people
in the camp trembled.

And Mount Sinai
quaked greatly.

And then the lord came
down upon Mount Sinai

To the top of the mount
and called Moses up.

And Moses went.

And I guess, so will we.

Hundreds of pilgrims are
here with me today.

They come by the thousands
every year to connect

To the spirit of Moses and the God
he was said to have met on Sinai.

[Exhales] Come on.

You got this.

Man.

Fortunately, the mountain is
dotted with simple stone buildings,

Which serve as rest stops
for the faithful.

Inside, merchants make
fresh bread.

Pilgrims rest and get
something warm to drink.

[Speaking arabic]

[In English] A hot cup
of coffee in this bitter col

Is a bit of a religious
experience in itself.

[Exhales]

Thou shalt be caffeinated.

Oh, yes. Thank you.

The walls are lined
with photos and notes

From people who have
made the climb.

After my cup of Joe,
I hit the trail,

Leaving my own scripture
for future travelers.

[Indistinct conversation]

Coming into this
slot canyon here,

Toward the top of the peak.

Now it gets really rocky
and really vertical.

[Whispers] Okay.

[Grunts] Come one.

This may be the holiest mountain
on earth, but that doesn't make it sof

[exclaiming]

Manna from heaven,
that miraculous food

That God delivered to those
desert-wandering israelites

Every day of the week except
on Sunday, just like chick-fil-a.

But what was this life-sustaining,
heaven-sent snack?

Well, some scientists think
it may have been a lichen,

A kind of algae
that coats the desert floor.

Others believe it was this,
a congealed insect secretion

Found in the sap
of the tamarisk tree.

Today this stuff is
kind of a delicacy.

Sells for about 10 bucks
a gram, even though it looks

Like the rocks at the bottom
of your fish tank.

Okay, here goes nothing.

Tangy, gummy,
sweet aftertaste.

Not bad for congealed
insect excrement.

I mean, I wouldn't want
to eat it for 40 years.

Manna, anyone?

It's bug [bleep].

[Exhales] Come on.

[Exclaiming]

Yeah, I'm okay. [Bleep] Ow.

Ugh, my knee.

I suppose it makes sense that in visiting
Mount Sinai I'd end up on one knee.

Okay. I'm okay.

I'm okay. Okay, here we go.
Oh, man, that was close.

All right, well,
we are getting close.

We're within a quarter mile of the summit,
of course, there's one last obstacle.

Actually, there's 750 of them.

These steep, stone stairs
that go all the way to the top.

Okay, come on.

These are the steps
of penitence,

Which lead to the very top
of Mount Sinai.

Oh, God. Oh. If only I
had some sort of sign...

[man] How about we keep
walking, it's freezing.

- God?
- [man] No, camera department.

Yeah, okay. Here we go.

We are now above
most of the other peaks.

You can just see them,
their outlines, in the darkness.

Totally exposed here now to
the wind. Must be close to the top.

Sort of a bottleneck here
as we get close to the top.

It's really a hive
of activity.

There are people here from all over
the world and from every major religion.

Christians, Jews,
muslims, hindus.

And people from just about
every country in the world.

I heard every accent
and language imaginable.

All of them here to experience
the summit of this holy place.

They climb because they
believe that, like Moses,

When they reach the top, they
will be in the presence of God.

And as I reach the summit, the
same feeling begins to tug within me.

You can see while we're here,
the sky is starting to lighten.

The sun will be here soon.

Everyone is now racing to the
top, trying to catch the first light.

And there, at the summit of
Mount Sinai, I greet the dawn.

Next time,
on expedition unknown,

The conclusion of our epic quest
to unlock the mysteries of Moses.

As I follow in the prophet's
footsteps from the peak of mount sina

And search for evidence that Moses
led his people through the desert.

In the world of the old testament,
this would be an israelite,

This would be someone
from the land of can a an.

This is pretty extraordinary.

And a relic from the exodus may be
lost in the depths of the sea of galilee.

It cannot be natural,
it has to be man made.

Can you show me where it is?

The water's warm,
though, right?

No.

Okay, great.

Slight hill here.

Holy Moses! [Yells]

Fire!

It's an adventure
with only one commandment.

Thou shalt watch.

I'd say that about sums it up.