Mysteries of the Bible (1994–1998): Season 1, Episode 1 - Moses at Mt. Sinai - full transcript
I am THE LORD thy God
which had brought thee
out of the land of Egypt
Exodus 20:2
three and a half thousand years ago
the Bible tells us
one of the greatest events in history
took place on a mountaintop
in the most desolate region on earth
thou shalt have no other gods
before me
one man Moses
is said to have come face-to-face
with an all-powerful
Supreme Being
thou shalt not make unto thee
any graven image
but the historical evidence
of this incident
seems to have been blown away
by the sands of time
people in the desert be very few traces
for archaeologists to follow
any large group of hundreds
of thousands
if that number is even possible
in the Sinai
would have left a garbage
broken pottery and so forth
what was the real root of the Exodus?
something that perhaps
we're never going to know
who was Moses
what happened on Mount Sinai
this about a few
the mysteries
of the Bible
the evocative stories
told within the Bible
are eternal
silent yet eloquent evidence
of biblical times
lies scattered across
the timeless landscape
of the Sinai
not has been resurrected
through patient digging
into the past
through the discovery
of ancient objects
that frequently prove
the Bible's authenticity
but some secrets
may never be uncovered
frustrating the scholar
the archaeologist
and the historian
scat evidence remains
of one of the greatest
of all biblical stories
the enslavement of the Hebrews
in Egypt
their Redemption by Moses
and the receiving of
the Ten Commandments
there has always been the hope
that archaeologist can provide information
that the text do not contain
there will be some sort of
independent witness
to the
so-called events of the Bible
which will
verify them or which will provide
the kind of historical information
that the Bible doesn't provide
because of that
there have been for
a very long time explorations
and excavations
throughout the Sinai Peninsula
looking for traces of the exodus
most scholars do agree
on one thing
the exodus took place
during Egypt's 18th dynasty
fully 13 centuries
before Christ
when the pharaoh Ramses II
was on the throne
ramses was the last
of the great Pharaoh's of the
Egyptian New Kingdom
and was involved
in a great many monumental
building projects for which
we know the Egyptians
imported many slaves
and to find slaves from Palestine
or King and among them
would not in itself be surprising
not contend
with the enslavement
of the Hebrews
fearful of their increasing numbers
Pharaoh issues an edict
condemning
all their newly born male children
to death
it was then the Bible tells us
that a Hebrew child
was born to lowly slave parents
to spare him
from pharaoh's decree
the baby is sent adrift
in a basket
on the river nile
the basket drifts downstream
carrying the infant Moses
to his destiny
and into immortality
Pharaoh's daughter finds the child
and takes him in as her own
he would become
one of the Giants of history
and perhaps the most enduring
of all biblical figures
he would help introduce humanity
to a revolutionary new idea
the concept of monotheism
a belief in one supreme god
he would found a nation
and become central
to the three great religions
of the Western world
even though history
dominates the pages
of the Old Testament
we had no physical proof
no archaeological evidence whatever
that he even existed
if one doubts the existence of Moses
as historical figure
then you do have a problem
how do you explain then
the origins of Israelite religion
if it was not founded
by a single individual
as most great religions have been
in short if Moses hadn't existed
perhaps we would have to invent him
I no more doubt
the existence of Moses
than I do the existence of Muhammad
or the existence of Jesus
we know
that there is a considerable amount
of questionable tradition
that's been associated
with all of these figures
but to doubt
therefore that the figure existed
I think is an unnecessary cynicism
was Moses aware of his humble origins
did he ever identify
with the Hebrew slaves
toiling under the lash
to build the great cities
of Pitta and Ramses
the remarkable part
of Moses's early years is
that the Bible is completely
silent about it
Moses says nothing
as far as we know nothing
and we know nothing
of what was taught to him
and when he walks out of the palace
for the first time
that we read in the text
what would you expect him to see?
I mean when you think of Egypt
what do you think of?
pyramids and sphinx is
great vast impressive civilization
but it says
Moses walked out of the palace
and saw the sufferings
of his fellow Jews
and that means that Moses was
stirred whatever his early education
was about
was stirred
not by the visual splendor of Egypt
but by the oppressiveness
of that society
and the sufferings
of other human beings
and it came to pass
in those days
when Moses was grown
that he went out unto his brethren
and looked on their burdens
and he spied in Egyptian
smiting Hebrew
one of his brethren
and he looked this way
and that way
and when he saw there was no man
he slowed the Egyptian
and hidden in the sand
Exodus 2:11
so Moses becomes a runaway
a fugitive from his life of luxury
and privilege
he heads toward an unforeseen destiny
that of champion of the Hebrew slaves
chosen to lead his people to freedom
and nationhood
but until that time was to come
he would settle in the land of Median
a tribal territory
to the east of the Sinai desert
most scholars believe
that Moses was twenty years old
when he escaped from Egypt
and went to the land of Median
for the next six decades
he lives his simple life
on the fringe of the Sinai
one day he follows a stray lamb through
through a particularly rocky outcrop
and comes face to face
with the divine
at a place which the Bible refers to
as the mountain of God
a voice
miraculously speaks to him
from within a bush
a flame
but not consumed by the fire
God called unto him
out of the midst of the bush and said:
Moses Moses
and he said:
here am I
and He said:
drawn up nigh hither
put off thy shoes from off thy feet
for the place whereon thou standest
is holy ground
Exodus 3:5
scholars have long puzzled
over the mystery of the burning bush
during which God speaks
directly to Moses
He tells him
that He has chosen him
to lead his people
from slavery to redemption
to a promised land
flowing with milk and honey
you can try to explain the story
of Moses encountered the burning bush
in naturalistic fashion
as if it's a dry area
the bush had turned bright colors
because of the season of the year
or it was so dry it sort of
had self combustion
and all that's possible
but I think unlikely it's a sign
of the presence of God
what scholars call a theophany
and it shows Moses being
accosted by God and given a commission
so God commands Moses
to undertake a daunting
and seemingly impossible task
the freeing of his people
from Egyptian bondage
but Moses is unsure
of his suitability for the mission
he has suffered
from a speech impediment
since childhood
he now uses this
as an excuse
oh my Lord I am not eloquent
neither here to fall
nor since Thou has spoken
unto Thy servant
but I am slow of speech
and of a slow tongue
Exodus 4:10
when he was very young
the Pharaoh worried
about this child
and whether he would grow up
to be a usurper of his throne
and....
so he put Moses in
between equally equidistant
between a crown on one side
and a hot coal on the other
to see if he would crawl
one way or the other
and if he crawled towards the crown
pharaoh would destroy him
like any child
moses was drawn to the sparkles
in the crown and he began
to crawl that way
when the rabbi say
an angel pushed him
in the other direction
and he touched the coal
which burned his him
he immediately transferred his hand
to his mouth to cool it off
and burned his tongue
which is why later on in the Bible
Moses is spoken of as having
a speech impediment
so God says
let my people go
that theymay serve me
and Moses says essentially
pick somebody else
I don't talk right he says
I have a speech impediment
Pharaoh won't listen to me
he comes up
with every excuse
he can think of
to which God says not in so many words
Moses this is not an optional assignment
you have to do this
you don't have a choice
here we have Moses
a simple Shepherd
who wasn't even paying
much attention to God at the time
is called to be
the deliverer of God's people
and he can't even speak well
he's not a mighty orator
he's not a general
he's not a powerful ruler
he's not an emperor
the scriptures say
again and again and again
that it is not through the powerful
that God acts
it is precisely through the weak
that God acts
it is precisely through the unexpected
through the small
through the ill-prepared
that God's power
can be magnified and shown
bearing God's message
and accompanied by his brother Aaron
as a spokesman
Moses returns to Egypt
to confront Pharaoh
and so begins
an epic chronicle of a people
when we return
a search for clues to the conflict
between a mighty Egyptian ruler
and the humble Shepherd Moses
with his calling to let my people go
40 years
after fleeing from Egypt's
Moses has crossed the desert
and his mission from God
to redeem his people
accompanied by his brother Aaron
he confronts Pharaoh
and urges him to let
the Hebrew slaves go
to convince him
that they have been sent by a God
mightier than the gods of Egypt
they display a supernatural feat
and Moses and Aaron
went in unto Pharaoh
and they did as the Lord
had commanded
and Aaron cast down his rod
before Pharaoh
and before his servants
and it became a serpent
Exodus 7:10
not to be outdone
the Egyptian priests counteract
with a trick of their own
they to turn their staffs
into serpents
but in a strikingly symbolic act
they are quickly swallowed
by the serpent of Moses
the Bible wants to make it out
that the God of Israel
and his prophets are more powerful
than any of the magic of Egypt
and wants to make the point
that Egypt is a country steeped in magic
within magic is false religion
and the only real religion
is monotheism
so what it does is it takes
the very staff
within a certain way is
the symbol
of Egyptian magic
the staff which is really
the magic wand
places in Moses his hand
and uses it as a symbol
of God's overcoming
the Egyptian religion
and the power
that it supposedly had
and showing that ultimately
it was all fraud
fraudulent and exploitative
though it may have been
Pharaohs power over the people
is nevertheless real
he refuses to set the slaves free
and so another mystery of the Bible
is introduced into the story
the wrath of God
that brings down the first
of the ten plagues
thus saith the Lord
in this shalt thou know
that I am the Lord
behold
I will smite with the rod
that is in mine hand
upon the waters
which are in the river
and they shall be turned to blood
and the fish that is in the river shall die
and the river shall stink
and the Egyptians shall loathe
to drink of the water of the river
Exodus 7:17
number of scholars have suggested
the plagues are a result
of some natural
phenomena
for example a flooding of the Nile
an east wind called the calm scene
and so forth
that could lead to disease and a
discoloration of the Nile
and so forth
but of course the tenth plague
is the death of the firstborn
that's very difficult to explain
any kind of naturalistic way
Pharaoh does not heed the warning
time and again
he refuses to free the slaves
and time and again God rains
terror and plague
upon him and his people
water turned into blood
followed by frogs
lice
flies
cattle disease
boils
hailstones and fire
locusts then
darkness
always agreeing
to set the Hebrews free
and always renouncing his promise
Pharaoh's heart remains hardened
it is only in the tenth
and final plague
but all the firstborn of the Egyptians
are struck down in death
but Pharaoh rillettes
miraculously the Israelites are spared
this terrible tragedy
by obeying God's commandment
to paint the doorposts of their houses
with the blood of a sacrificial lamb
and the blood shall be to you
for a token upon the houses
where you are
and when I see the Blood
I will pass over you
and the plague shall not be upon you
to destroy you
when I smite the land of Egypt
Exodus 12:13
tens of thousands
of Egyptian firstborn
perished that night
including Pharaoh's own son
so finally Pharaoh agrees
to let the Hebrews go
some scholars believe
he had not been fully convinced
of God's power until then
because each of the previous
nine disasters
had occurred naturally
at some time
during Egypt's long history
could there have been
a rational explanation
for the plagues?
it is not the business
of archeology to prove that miracles
could have taken place
or did take place
we always have to remember
this theology
behind the stories
the writers are trying to make a point
God is the God over nature
and therefore
miracles can happen
we moderns may or may not believe that
but it's clear that the ancients
did believe it
for Jews throughout the world
the miracle of the plagues
the sparing of the Hebrew firstborn
Redemption from slavery
and eventual deliverance
to the promised land
has been celebrated
at the Passover meal
every year
for the past 33 centuries
unleavened bread
is eaten
for seven days
symbolizing the frugal
and hurried meal the people prepared
before their departure
from Egypt
and the children of Israel
journeyed from Rameses to Succoth
about 600,000 on foot double men
beside children
and a mixed multitude
went up also with them
and flocks and herds
and very much cattle
Exodus 12:37
the Bible tells us
that 600,000
male adult slaves
plus their families
and a throng of non Hebrew slaves
left Egypt
but that number has long been
debated by historians
the Hebrew word 4000
is the word Elif
and it is also used
in the Old Testament
the Hebrew Bible on occasion
for a tent group
or clan
and so some folks have surmised
that the word
600,000 Elif
Elif II would be
actually 600 tent groups or clans
or like companies of soldiers
since the reference is to adult males
and that would mean
then that we're dealing
with a much lower number of people
however many there were
progress would have been slow
perhaps no more than five
or six miles a day
within a week the caravan
reaches a forbidding frontier
a seemingly impassable
body of water
it would be the site
of yet another miracle
and Moses stretched out his hand
over the sea
and the Lord
caused the sea to go back
by a strong east wind all that night
and made the sea dry land
and the waters were divided
Exodus 14:21
but where'd the miraculous
parting of the waters happen
today scholars doubt
whether it took place
in any of the seas around Egypt
one thing is clear
it's not the red sea
that gigantic deep sea
that they somehow would have
would have walked across
it's the Red Sea
according to the Hebrew Bible
and the reed sea
is apparently some type
of lake or swamp
or whatever else
but again this is one of these stories
the Bible is telling us
that there is a miracle
we've got to make some decisions
as individuals
about what we want to believe
we're not going to be able to prove
these things one way or another
after the Israelites
had crossed to safety
the Bible tells us that
once again God interceded
he commanded Moses to stretch his hand
over the waters
and the waters returned and covered
the chariots and a horseman
and all the host of Pharaoh
that came into the sea after them
they remained not so
much as one of them
Exodus 14:28
a way to the promised land now lay open
when we returned
the search for clues
to the possible route taken by Moses
in his band of wayward slaves
as they venture into the wilderness
and challenge
the unknown
the Sinai
one of the most inhospitable regions
on earth
a 260 mile long triangle
of sand and searing heat
of towering granite mountains
of parched waterless plains and dunes
spread over an unyielding
limestone plateau
a formidable place
it was through this wilderness
that Moses and the people of Israel
travel to reach Canaan
the promised land
but the sands of time
have obliterated their tracks
there remains not a single trace
of their passing not a footprint
not a shard of pottery
not a scrap of evidence
where once
almost three and a half
thousand years ago
the greatest migration
in human history
took place
because of a complete lack of evidence
some have even asked
did the exodus happen at all
there have been
for very long time explorations
and excavations
throughout the Sinai Peninsula
looking for traces of the Exodus
as far as I know
up until now to this very day
none of that
flurry of archaeological
and exploratory activity
has produced anything
that is valid
or that can help in this case
any large group of
hundreds of thousands
if that number is even possible
in the Sinai would have left a garbage
broken pottery and so forth
archaeology can tell us nothing
about a large community existing there
and for that reason
most folks think there never was
a large community which existed there
it has become one of the most
perplexing mysteries of the Bible
perhaps the lack of clues
is due to one
enduring factor
the sheer immensity and emptiness
of the Sinai
I don't think the mystery of Sinai
and the Sinai stories in the Bible
will ever be satisfactorily resolved
people in the desert
leave very few traces
for archaeologists to follow
we need to remember
that these are stories
they were stories written by later
Israelites to try to explain
the reality that they knew
of their deliverance from bondage
and of their inheritance of the land
of promise
I don't think we'll ever be able
to confirm them historically
or argue logically however
but which way to the Israelites hid
for the Promised Land
the direct route the shortest one
would have been the most dangerous
following their earlier
military campaigns
into Canaan
and other northern territories
there was a line
of fortified Egyptian Garrison's
strung out all along the way
the next best course
across the central plateau
would have been the most difficult
towering mountains and lack of water
would have made it almost impassable
there was only one likely option
a long detour via the south
for they were departed from radom
and will come to the desert of Sinai
and had pitched in the wilderness
and there Israel camped
before the Mount
Exodus 19:2
three months into their trek
the caravan arrived
at one of the most important places
mentioned anywhere in the Bible
Mount Sinai
we really don't know
where that place is
there are many possibilities
a lot of speculation
but there's no way really to know
where it was
one of the most likely candidates
is Jebel Musa
Arabic for mountain of Moses
looming over the desert
the mountain is a striking contrast
to its surroundings
a church on its summit
marks the spot where Moses
is believed to have received
the Ten Commandments
whichever mouss itself
is a foreboding mountain
it's not a sand dune
but it's a rocky craggy mountain
and it's in a very difficult section
of Sinai Peninsula
and you can feel like you're
almost alone there
but if you look around
you probably are alone
during the Byzantine here
that is to say when Christianity
had become the official religion
of the Empire
a number of pilgrims begin to ask
where is Mount Sinai
where is Mount Nebo
and so forth
and Jebel Musa
the mountain of Moses
in Arabic
is the place that they were shown
nestling at the foot of the mountain
is the Monastery of st. Catherine's
constructed on the site of a church
originally built
by the Roman Emperor Constantine
nearly sixteen hundred years ago
the monastery stands
in isolated defiance
of the deserts eternal heat
and dust
craftsmen were specially brought here
from Europe to spend 20 years
sculpting its ornate Basilica
Chapel and library
in its heyday
more than 400 Greek Orthodox monks
lived and worshipped here
the monastery owes its existence
to a wild desert plant
that grows in its ancient courtyard
according to the local monks
it is the living remnant
of the original burning bush
mentioned in the Bible
there is no archaeological proof
of the authenticity of that site
it's a Byzantine site
centuries later than the events
that are supposed
to have happened there
and in fact the real problem
archaeologists have
is in connecting the biblical stories
of the itinerary of the Israelites
through the wilderness
with any places that we actually know
and have excavated
of all the sites to
be seen a Jebel Musa
perhaps none is more mysterious
nor more compelling
that this might well be Mount Sinai
then the strange completely
natural rock formation
at the foot of the mountain
it is a haunting image
evocative of a young bull
especially mystifying
when we recall that while Moses
was away on the mountain
for 40 days
receiving the Ten Commandments
Aaron and the Israelites
constructed their infamous Idol
the golden calf
down below
so perhaps this was the spot
we may never know
when we return
a look at events which change
the course of history
as Moses and the people of Israel
confront their God
and make their holy covenant with him
on a mountain called
Sinai
somewhere in the barren desert
of the Sinai
the God of Israel summons Moses
to the top of a mountain
and prepares to set His covenant
with the people
now therefore
if he will obey my voice indeed
and keep my covenant
then ye shall be a peculiar treasure
unto me
above all people
for all the earth is mine
and ye shall be unto me
a kingdom of priests
and a holy nation
these are the words
which thou shalt speak
unto the children of Israel
Exodus 19:5
if they will accept his Commandments
a binding agreement
will exist between God and Israel
they will become his chosen people
entrusted with the task
of preserving his laws
and of making them known
to the rest of the world
and so on the third day
of the third month
to the sound of heavenly trumpeting
and a cataclysm of fire
smoke and earthquake
the Covenant is sealed
the Ten Commandments
divinely written by the finger of God
are given to Moses
10 simple laws
containing some of the most profound
and revolutionary ideas
in human history
they speak of mercy
of justice and temperance
and proclaim monotheism
the existence of only one God
or ever severing the Hebrews
from the pagan religions
that were practiced up to that time
but were they unique
were they the first of a kind
there are a number
of ancient law codes
the most famous of which
is called the Code of Hammurabi
which predates the biblical law code
and which have similar laws
what they don't have
is that theoretical idea that ties
all the commandments together
the idea that
every human being is divine
irreplaceable invaluable
and therefore how you treat
every individual matters
in Hammurabi's code for example
there are different penalties
for killing somebody who's rich
and killing somebody who's poor
in the Bible a human life
is a human life
because every human face
is stamped with the image of God
but the Ten Commandments do seem to
give us an overview
of some of the main concerns
of Hebrew law
there are the concerns
for family sanctity
for example
of preserving the family structure
economically
the family was an extremely
important building block
of ancient Israelite society
your economic well-being
depended on
the integrity of the family
of passing down from
generation to generation
the economic life of your family
and therefore of your tribe
and what the Ten Commandments say
is that therefore
how human beings treat one another
is of interest to God
and that's what's different
from the Ten Commandments
and all previous laws
that is God doesn't just care
how we act towards God
God isn't just a God
who pays attention
to sacrifices and prayer
God cares if I lie to you
to another human being
and that's what makes it unique
many scholars have long puzzled
over the commandment that strictly
forbids the making of graven images
that's a very interesting mystery
about the God of the Bible
why are they never allowed
to portray this God
in any way
no pictures
no statues
no images
it's a very interesting element
of the religion of the Bible
and it serves to clearly
differentiate them
from the surrounding religions
particularly of the Canaanites
the famous Canaanite God Baal
after all was frequently
portrayed in a statue form
we have some of the statues of Baal
that have been discovered
by archaeologists
Baal was often depicted
in the form of a bull
a symbol used by pagan worshippers
throughout the middle and Near East
since ancient times
it would soon play a featured role
in the drama at Mount Sinai
and the Lord said unto Moses
go get thee down
for thy people which thou brought is
out in the land of Egypt
have corrupted themselves
they have turned aside
quickly out of the way
which I commanded them
they have made them a molten calf
and have worshipped it
and have sacrificed their unto
and said these be thy God's
Oh, Israel
which have brought thee up
out of the land of Egypt
Exodus 31:7
most people
believe that the golden calf
was a substitute for God
but it wasn't
the golden calf was
a substitute for Moses
remember that the Israelites
had just come from Egypt
where everything was visible
Egypt was a society that was
very dedicated to seeing things
pyramid, sphinxes even mummified
even the realm of the Dead
was made visible
and what is God's message
to the Israelites?
that the visible is not the realest
part of the world
the realest part of the world is
the invisible, the intangible
God is the most real thing
and God is that what you can't see
now to these people
who is used to seeing things
that's a very hard message
but as long as they had Moses there
they could see Moses was the one
who speaks to God
so even though we can't see God
at least we can see Moses
suddenly Moses disappears
up the mountain
now the Israelites aren't stupid
they know that the golden calf
didn't take them out of Egypt
right they know that
after all the golden calf didn't exist
five minutes ago
but they need a visible
symbol of God
they can't get along
without that symbol there two trained
to see things
so they build a symbol of God
in the absence of Moses
because they haven't learned yet
that the key to worshipping God
is to see the reality
of the mysterious
of the intangible
of the invisible
the cult of animal worship
and the story of the golden calf
has led some archeologists
to believe that another site
may be the true location
of Mount Sinai
just 45 miles to the northwest
of Jebel Musa lies an area
rich in copper and turquoise
known as SERABIT EL KHADEM
this was once
a flourishing mining Center
first occupied 4000 years ago
the place once echoed
to the sounds of hundreds
of laborers who toiled
in pharaoh's service
mining operations reached their peak
during the time of the exodus
a temple carved from local rock
is dedicated to half floor
the Egyptian goddess of the earth
and of minerals
here Hathor is mysteriously depicted
as a deity with the ears of a cow
elsewhere she is seen
in the complete form of the animal
some scholars believe that Hathor
is the Egyptian equivalent
of the god Baal
the most fascinating
archaeological evidence for this
can be seen inside a nearby cave
scrawled on a wall
more than three thousand years ago
is one of the most ancient scripts
in the world
a form of writing bridging
the hieroglyphics of the Egyptians
and the later alphabet of Canaan
scholars debate
whether these crude symbols
are the forerunner of all the alphabets
that developed in the Near East
but one thing they do agree on
the explicit appearance
of the words
to Baal
could this
have been the biblical Mount Sinai
where the Israelites receive
the Ten Commandments
SERABIT EL KHADEM in the Western Sinai
is a site that's often mentioned
in this discussion
we do have evidence of
Egyptian mines there
and of Canaanite slaves there
who left the graffiti on the walls
of the mines these could be
understood as the ancestors
of the later Israelites
but that says nothing about
the location of Mount Sinai
and let them make me a sanctuary
that I may dwell among them
according to all that I show thee
after the pattern of the tabernacle
and the pattern
of all the instruments thereof
even so shall you make it
Exodus 25:8
having received the Ten Commandments
the people are now instructed by God
to build an ark
to contain the holy tablets
the ark itself
would be housed in a tabernacle
in the center of the encampment
all twelve of the tribes of Israel
would pitch their tents around it
in the middle you have the Ark
which symbolizes God's presence
around it you have arranged
the priests and Levites
and then finally
the entire people of Israel
so the notion of the things
symbolically is that the people
of Israel live
in a kind of permanent connection
with the holiness of God
but the fact is from everything we know
about ancient religion
and from the description of the tabernacle
as a tenth shrine
and from the use of the word tent
to describe the temple later on it seems
that the earliest Jewish temple
must really have been built
during the period of the desert wandering
so somehow or another
they must have taken
whatever they had put together
the most beautiful house
for God
in the desert that they were capable
of putting together
eventually the ark
would reach the Promised Land
and become the focal point
of Solomon's Great Temple
in Jerusalem
it would remain
there for the next eight hundred years
but here in the desert
the fate of the Hebrew slaves
had been sealed
for having made
and worshipped a golden calf
none of those present at Mount Sinai
will ever live to see the land
that flows with milk and honey
for another four decades
they will be condemned
to wander through the wilderness
when we return
the mysterious final days
of Moses as the Israelites
reach the threshold
of the Promised Land
for 40 years
Moses and the Israelites
have wandered through the wilderness
it has been a trek unparalleled
in human history
what was once a throng of slaves
has now been galvanized
into a tightly wrought nation
of 12 tribes
unexplained mysteries have
highlighted the years in the wilderness
God has guided the pilgrims
through a cloud by day
and a pillar of fire by night
but it has been a difficult passage
time and again Moses
has quelled rebellion within the ranks
of the people
who had been impatient
and demanding
wherefore have you made us
to come up out of Egypt
to bring us to this evil place
it is no place of seed or
of figs or of vines
or of pomegranates
neither is there any water
to drink
Numbers 20:5
and the Lord spake unto Moses saying
take the rod and gather thou
the assembly together
thou an heir and thy brother
and speak key under the rock
before their eyes
and it shall give forth his water
and thou shalt bring forth to them
water out of the rock
so that shall give the congregation
and their beasts drink
Numbers 20:7
ironically it is this deed
that has condemned Moses
in a fleeting moment of anger
he strikes the rock
in defiance of God
and so has been deemed unworthy
of entering the land of Canaan
or the sin of the golden calf
those who originally left Egypt with him
have also been condemned
to the same fate
but as the older people have died out
a new generation
waits to cross the threshold
into the Promised Land
and the Lord said unto Moses
get thee up into this mount Abram
and see the land
which I have given under
the children of Israel
and when thou has seen it
thou also shall be gathered
unto thy people
as Aaron and thy brother was gathered
Numbers 27:12
what's really going on here
why can't he enter the promised land
one thing is certain
if you look at the biblical account
that it's clear
that we're dealing something
with a generation gap
one generation disappears
that generation which experienced Egypt
and everything that Egypt symbolized
wasn't able to go into this new land
and what it is Egypt symbolized
to the Bible
it symbolized idolatry
and immorality
the Bible says well wait a minute right
those who were there in Egypt
don't go into the promised land
and Moses apparently
gets sort of bitten
by this same fate
if we want to put it that way
it's very very difficult for anyone
of my generation I think
to read that story and not think of
that tremendously moving speech
by dr. Martin Luther King
who like a modern Moses
was in a sense
the leader of a great movement
that taught so many of us
so many important truths
about God and God's people
and there's a sense in which
his assassination
demands an explanation
it demands for us that we face God
and said how could you have taken
this Moses from us
before he was finished?
and that speech
that Martin Luther King gave
seemed to almost be an assurance
to all of us
that he knew
that the promised land was coming
and he said in that speech
I may not get there with you
but I'm convinced that we as a people
will get there
and so oddly enough
I understand Moses
much better by listening to dr. King
because I think like Moses
dr. King had an insight
into God's plan for the future as well
so Moses the servant of the Lord died
there in the land of Moab
according to the word of the Lord
and he buried him
in a valley in the land of Moab
over against Bethpeor
but no man knoweth of his Sepulcher
until this day
Deuteronomy 34:5
God was involved
in the barrel of Moses
that doesn't say that
about anybody else
in the Bible in that way
so that marks Moses is having
extraordinary powers
that God was kind of connected with him
in a way that God isn't connected
or wasn't connected with
with anyone else
when the Torah ends
and when the last verses
of Deuteronomy are read
they're not in the promised land
they're still in the desert
and the Bible is in some sense
a book without an ending
why is that I think
that part of the message
of the Bible is life is
lived in the wilderness
there is no perfect promised land
in this world the way we think
there's trial and difficulty and pain
you don't need a Bible
in the promised land after all
if everything we're perfect
you don't need a guide
but the Bible is a map
to the wilderness
it's not a guide to the promised land
and so one of the central mysteries
of the Bible is
how do we negotiate the wilderness
which is where we all live
the perennial value of the
Exodus story
is that God is against injustice
and his call of people into fellowship
and has given them a homeland
and so forth
and those are things which transcend
any one particular generation
one reasons why the stories
are always told and retold
generation three generation
so the final resting place
of one of the greatest figures
in all of human history
remains unknown
the ultimate mystery
in the extraordinary life
of the man we know
as Moses
I think the message of mountain
of vote is
instead of visiting Moses's grave
follow what he talked
that's what really matters
and we have a tendency
to worship the mountain
and ignore the teaching
and so in some ways I think
what the Bible is telling us
is the significance of mountain of Voe
is it's insignificant
what really matters are the teachings
of the person who's buried somewhere
in its caverns
and so after 40 years of wandering
and guided by a new leader Joshua
the people of Israel finally
enter Canaan the Promised Land
there to confront their destiny
and to encounter more
of the many
mysteries of the Bible
which had brought thee
out of the land of Egypt
Exodus 20:2
three and a half thousand years ago
the Bible tells us
one of the greatest events in history
took place on a mountaintop
in the most desolate region on earth
thou shalt have no other gods
before me
one man Moses
is said to have come face-to-face
with an all-powerful
Supreme Being
thou shalt not make unto thee
any graven image
but the historical evidence
of this incident
seems to have been blown away
by the sands of time
people in the desert be very few traces
for archaeologists to follow
any large group of hundreds
of thousands
if that number is even possible
in the Sinai
would have left a garbage
broken pottery and so forth
what was the real root of the Exodus?
something that perhaps
we're never going to know
who was Moses
what happened on Mount Sinai
this about a few
the mysteries
of the Bible
the evocative stories
told within the Bible
are eternal
silent yet eloquent evidence
of biblical times
lies scattered across
the timeless landscape
of the Sinai
not has been resurrected
through patient digging
into the past
through the discovery
of ancient objects
that frequently prove
the Bible's authenticity
but some secrets
may never be uncovered
frustrating the scholar
the archaeologist
and the historian
scat evidence remains
of one of the greatest
of all biblical stories
the enslavement of the Hebrews
in Egypt
their Redemption by Moses
and the receiving of
the Ten Commandments
there has always been the hope
that archaeologist can provide information
that the text do not contain
there will be some sort of
independent witness
to the
so-called events of the Bible
which will
verify them or which will provide
the kind of historical information
that the Bible doesn't provide
because of that
there have been for
a very long time explorations
and excavations
throughout the Sinai Peninsula
looking for traces of the exodus
most scholars do agree
on one thing
the exodus took place
during Egypt's 18th dynasty
fully 13 centuries
before Christ
when the pharaoh Ramses II
was on the throne
ramses was the last
of the great Pharaoh's of the
Egyptian New Kingdom
and was involved
in a great many monumental
building projects for which
we know the Egyptians
imported many slaves
and to find slaves from Palestine
or King and among them
would not in itself be surprising
not contend
with the enslavement
of the Hebrews
fearful of their increasing numbers
Pharaoh issues an edict
condemning
all their newly born male children
to death
it was then the Bible tells us
that a Hebrew child
was born to lowly slave parents
to spare him
from pharaoh's decree
the baby is sent adrift
in a basket
on the river nile
the basket drifts downstream
carrying the infant Moses
to his destiny
and into immortality
Pharaoh's daughter finds the child
and takes him in as her own
he would become
one of the Giants of history
and perhaps the most enduring
of all biblical figures
he would help introduce humanity
to a revolutionary new idea
the concept of monotheism
a belief in one supreme god
he would found a nation
and become central
to the three great religions
of the Western world
even though history
dominates the pages
of the Old Testament
we had no physical proof
no archaeological evidence whatever
that he even existed
if one doubts the existence of Moses
as historical figure
then you do have a problem
how do you explain then
the origins of Israelite religion
if it was not founded
by a single individual
as most great religions have been
in short if Moses hadn't existed
perhaps we would have to invent him
I no more doubt
the existence of Moses
than I do the existence of Muhammad
or the existence of Jesus
we know
that there is a considerable amount
of questionable tradition
that's been associated
with all of these figures
but to doubt
therefore that the figure existed
I think is an unnecessary cynicism
was Moses aware of his humble origins
did he ever identify
with the Hebrew slaves
toiling under the lash
to build the great cities
of Pitta and Ramses
the remarkable part
of Moses's early years is
that the Bible is completely
silent about it
Moses says nothing
as far as we know nothing
and we know nothing
of what was taught to him
and when he walks out of the palace
for the first time
that we read in the text
what would you expect him to see?
I mean when you think of Egypt
what do you think of?
pyramids and sphinx is
great vast impressive civilization
but it says
Moses walked out of the palace
and saw the sufferings
of his fellow Jews
and that means that Moses was
stirred whatever his early education
was about
was stirred
not by the visual splendor of Egypt
but by the oppressiveness
of that society
and the sufferings
of other human beings
and it came to pass
in those days
when Moses was grown
that he went out unto his brethren
and looked on their burdens
and he spied in Egyptian
smiting Hebrew
one of his brethren
and he looked this way
and that way
and when he saw there was no man
he slowed the Egyptian
and hidden in the sand
Exodus 2:11
so Moses becomes a runaway
a fugitive from his life of luxury
and privilege
he heads toward an unforeseen destiny
that of champion of the Hebrew slaves
chosen to lead his people to freedom
and nationhood
but until that time was to come
he would settle in the land of Median
a tribal territory
to the east of the Sinai desert
most scholars believe
that Moses was twenty years old
when he escaped from Egypt
and went to the land of Median
for the next six decades
he lives his simple life
on the fringe of the Sinai
one day he follows a stray lamb through
through a particularly rocky outcrop
and comes face to face
with the divine
at a place which the Bible refers to
as the mountain of God
a voice
miraculously speaks to him
from within a bush
a flame
but not consumed by the fire
God called unto him
out of the midst of the bush and said:
Moses Moses
and he said:
here am I
and He said:
drawn up nigh hither
put off thy shoes from off thy feet
for the place whereon thou standest
is holy ground
Exodus 3:5
scholars have long puzzled
over the mystery of the burning bush
during which God speaks
directly to Moses
He tells him
that He has chosen him
to lead his people
from slavery to redemption
to a promised land
flowing with milk and honey
you can try to explain the story
of Moses encountered the burning bush
in naturalistic fashion
as if it's a dry area
the bush had turned bright colors
because of the season of the year
or it was so dry it sort of
had self combustion
and all that's possible
but I think unlikely it's a sign
of the presence of God
what scholars call a theophany
and it shows Moses being
accosted by God and given a commission
so God commands Moses
to undertake a daunting
and seemingly impossible task
the freeing of his people
from Egyptian bondage
but Moses is unsure
of his suitability for the mission
he has suffered
from a speech impediment
since childhood
he now uses this
as an excuse
oh my Lord I am not eloquent
neither here to fall
nor since Thou has spoken
unto Thy servant
but I am slow of speech
and of a slow tongue
Exodus 4:10
when he was very young
the Pharaoh worried
about this child
and whether he would grow up
to be a usurper of his throne
and....
so he put Moses in
between equally equidistant
between a crown on one side
and a hot coal on the other
to see if he would crawl
one way or the other
and if he crawled towards the crown
pharaoh would destroy him
like any child
moses was drawn to the sparkles
in the crown and he began
to crawl that way
when the rabbi say
an angel pushed him
in the other direction
and he touched the coal
which burned his him
he immediately transferred his hand
to his mouth to cool it off
and burned his tongue
which is why later on in the Bible
Moses is spoken of as having
a speech impediment
so God says
let my people go
that theymay serve me
and Moses says essentially
pick somebody else
I don't talk right he says
I have a speech impediment
Pharaoh won't listen to me
he comes up
with every excuse
he can think of
to which God says not in so many words
Moses this is not an optional assignment
you have to do this
you don't have a choice
here we have Moses
a simple Shepherd
who wasn't even paying
much attention to God at the time
is called to be
the deliverer of God's people
and he can't even speak well
he's not a mighty orator
he's not a general
he's not a powerful ruler
he's not an emperor
the scriptures say
again and again and again
that it is not through the powerful
that God acts
it is precisely through the weak
that God acts
it is precisely through the unexpected
through the small
through the ill-prepared
that God's power
can be magnified and shown
bearing God's message
and accompanied by his brother Aaron
as a spokesman
Moses returns to Egypt
to confront Pharaoh
and so begins
an epic chronicle of a people
when we return
a search for clues to the conflict
between a mighty Egyptian ruler
and the humble Shepherd Moses
with his calling to let my people go
40 years
after fleeing from Egypt's
Moses has crossed the desert
and his mission from God
to redeem his people
accompanied by his brother Aaron
he confronts Pharaoh
and urges him to let
the Hebrew slaves go
to convince him
that they have been sent by a God
mightier than the gods of Egypt
they display a supernatural feat
and Moses and Aaron
went in unto Pharaoh
and they did as the Lord
had commanded
and Aaron cast down his rod
before Pharaoh
and before his servants
and it became a serpent
Exodus 7:10
not to be outdone
the Egyptian priests counteract
with a trick of their own
they to turn their staffs
into serpents
but in a strikingly symbolic act
they are quickly swallowed
by the serpent of Moses
the Bible wants to make it out
that the God of Israel
and his prophets are more powerful
than any of the magic of Egypt
and wants to make the point
that Egypt is a country steeped in magic
within magic is false religion
and the only real religion
is monotheism
so what it does is it takes
the very staff
within a certain way is
the symbol
of Egyptian magic
the staff which is really
the magic wand
places in Moses his hand
and uses it as a symbol
of God's overcoming
the Egyptian religion
and the power
that it supposedly had
and showing that ultimately
it was all fraud
fraudulent and exploitative
though it may have been
Pharaohs power over the people
is nevertheless real
he refuses to set the slaves free
and so another mystery of the Bible
is introduced into the story
the wrath of God
that brings down the first
of the ten plagues
thus saith the Lord
in this shalt thou know
that I am the Lord
behold
I will smite with the rod
that is in mine hand
upon the waters
which are in the river
and they shall be turned to blood
and the fish that is in the river shall die
and the river shall stink
and the Egyptians shall loathe
to drink of the water of the river
Exodus 7:17
number of scholars have suggested
the plagues are a result
of some natural
phenomena
for example a flooding of the Nile
an east wind called the calm scene
and so forth
that could lead to disease and a
discoloration of the Nile
and so forth
but of course the tenth plague
is the death of the firstborn
that's very difficult to explain
any kind of naturalistic way
Pharaoh does not heed the warning
time and again
he refuses to free the slaves
and time and again God rains
terror and plague
upon him and his people
water turned into blood
followed by frogs
lice
flies
cattle disease
boils
hailstones and fire
locusts then
darkness
always agreeing
to set the Hebrews free
and always renouncing his promise
Pharaoh's heart remains hardened
it is only in the tenth
and final plague
but all the firstborn of the Egyptians
are struck down in death
but Pharaoh rillettes
miraculously the Israelites are spared
this terrible tragedy
by obeying God's commandment
to paint the doorposts of their houses
with the blood of a sacrificial lamb
and the blood shall be to you
for a token upon the houses
where you are
and when I see the Blood
I will pass over you
and the plague shall not be upon you
to destroy you
when I smite the land of Egypt
Exodus 12:13
tens of thousands
of Egyptian firstborn
perished that night
including Pharaoh's own son
so finally Pharaoh agrees
to let the Hebrews go
some scholars believe
he had not been fully convinced
of God's power until then
because each of the previous
nine disasters
had occurred naturally
at some time
during Egypt's long history
could there have been
a rational explanation
for the plagues?
it is not the business
of archeology to prove that miracles
could have taken place
or did take place
we always have to remember
this theology
behind the stories
the writers are trying to make a point
God is the God over nature
and therefore
miracles can happen
we moderns may or may not believe that
but it's clear that the ancients
did believe it
for Jews throughout the world
the miracle of the plagues
the sparing of the Hebrew firstborn
Redemption from slavery
and eventual deliverance
to the promised land
has been celebrated
at the Passover meal
every year
for the past 33 centuries
unleavened bread
is eaten
for seven days
symbolizing the frugal
and hurried meal the people prepared
before their departure
from Egypt
and the children of Israel
journeyed from Rameses to Succoth
about 600,000 on foot double men
beside children
and a mixed multitude
went up also with them
and flocks and herds
and very much cattle
Exodus 12:37
the Bible tells us
that 600,000
male adult slaves
plus their families
and a throng of non Hebrew slaves
left Egypt
but that number has long been
debated by historians
the Hebrew word 4000
is the word Elif
and it is also used
in the Old Testament
the Hebrew Bible on occasion
for a tent group
or clan
and so some folks have surmised
that the word
600,000 Elif
Elif II would be
actually 600 tent groups or clans
or like companies of soldiers
since the reference is to adult males
and that would mean
then that we're dealing
with a much lower number of people
however many there were
progress would have been slow
perhaps no more than five
or six miles a day
within a week the caravan
reaches a forbidding frontier
a seemingly impassable
body of water
it would be the site
of yet another miracle
and Moses stretched out his hand
over the sea
and the Lord
caused the sea to go back
by a strong east wind all that night
and made the sea dry land
and the waters were divided
Exodus 14:21
but where'd the miraculous
parting of the waters happen
today scholars doubt
whether it took place
in any of the seas around Egypt
one thing is clear
it's not the red sea
that gigantic deep sea
that they somehow would have
would have walked across
it's the Red Sea
according to the Hebrew Bible
and the reed sea
is apparently some type
of lake or swamp
or whatever else
but again this is one of these stories
the Bible is telling us
that there is a miracle
we've got to make some decisions
as individuals
about what we want to believe
we're not going to be able to prove
these things one way or another
after the Israelites
had crossed to safety
the Bible tells us that
once again God interceded
he commanded Moses to stretch his hand
over the waters
and the waters returned and covered
the chariots and a horseman
and all the host of Pharaoh
that came into the sea after them
they remained not so
much as one of them
Exodus 14:28
a way to the promised land now lay open
when we returned
the search for clues
to the possible route taken by Moses
in his band of wayward slaves
as they venture into the wilderness
and challenge
the unknown
the Sinai
one of the most inhospitable regions
on earth
a 260 mile long triangle
of sand and searing heat
of towering granite mountains
of parched waterless plains and dunes
spread over an unyielding
limestone plateau
a formidable place
it was through this wilderness
that Moses and the people of Israel
travel to reach Canaan
the promised land
but the sands of time
have obliterated their tracks
there remains not a single trace
of their passing not a footprint
not a shard of pottery
not a scrap of evidence
where once
almost three and a half
thousand years ago
the greatest migration
in human history
took place
because of a complete lack of evidence
some have even asked
did the exodus happen at all
there have been
for very long time explorations
and excavations
throughout the Sinai Peninsula
looking for traces of the Exodus
as far as I know
up until now to this very day
none of that
flurry of archaeological
and exploratory activity
has produced anything
that is valid
or that can help in this case
any large group of
hundreds of thousands
if that number is even possible
in the Sinai would have left a garbage
broken pottery and so forth
archaeology can tell us nothing
about a large community existing there
and for that reason
most folks think there never was
a large community which existed there
it has become one of the most
perplexing mysteries of the Bible
perhaps the lack of clues
is due to one
enduring factor
the sheer immensity and emptiness
of the Sinai
I don't think the mystery of Sinai
and the Sinai stories in the Bible
will ever be satisfactorily resolved
people in the desert
leave very few traces
for archaeologists to follow
we need to remember
that these are stories
they were stories written by later
Israelites to try to explain
the reality that they knew
of their deliverance from bondage
and of their inheritance of the land
of promise
I don't think we'll ever be able
to confirm them historically
or argue logically however
but which way to the Israelites hid
for the Promised Land
the direct route the shortest one
would have been the most dangerous
following their earlier
military campaigns
into Canaan
and other northern territories
there was a line
of fortified Egyptian Garrison's
strung out all along the way
the next best course
across the central plateau
would have been the most difficult
towering mountains and lack of water
would have made it almost impassable
there was only one likely option
a long detour via the south
for they were departed from radom
and will come to the desert of Sinai
and had pitched in the wilderness
and there Israel camped
before the Mount
Exodus 19:2
three months into their trek
the caravan arrived
at one of the most important places
mentioned anywhere in the Bible
Mount Sinai
we really don't know
where that place is
there are many possibilities
a lot of speculation
but there's no way really to know
where it was
one of the most likely candidates
is Jebel Musa
Arabic for mountain of Moses
looming over the desert
the mountain is a striking contrast
to its surroundings
a church on its summit
marks the spot where Moses
is believed to have received
the Ten Commandments
whichever mouss itself
is a foreboding mountain
it's not a sand dune
but it's a rocky craggy mountain
and it's in a very difficult section
of Sinai Peninsula
and you can feel like you're
almost alone there
but if you look around
you probably are alone
during the Byzantine here
that is to say when Christianity
had become the official religion
of the Empire
a number of pilgrims begin to ask
where is Mount Sinai
where is Mount Nebo
and so forth
and Jebel Musa
the mountain of Moses
in Arabic
is the place that they were shown
nestling at the foot of the mountain
is the Monastery of st. Catherine's
constructed on the site of a church
originally built
by the Roman Emperor Constantine
nearly sixteen hundred years ago
the monastery stands
in isolated defiance
of the deserts eternal heat
and dust
craftsmen were specially brought here
from Europe to spend 20 years
sculpting its ornate Basilica
Chapel and library
in its heyday
more than 400 Greek Orthodox monks
lived and worshipped here
the monastery owes its existence
to a wild desert plant
that grows in its ancient courtyard
according to the local monks
it is the living remnant
of the original burning bush
mentioned in the Bible
there is no archaeological proof
of the authenticity of that site
it's a Byzantine site
centuries later than the events
that are supposed
to have happened there
and in fact the real problem
archaeologists have
is in connecting the biblical stories
of the itinerary of the Israelites
through the wilderness
with any places that we actually know
and have excavated
of all the sites to
be seen a Jebel Musa
perhaps none is more mysterious
nor more compelling
that this might well be Mount Sinai
then the strange completely
natural rock formation
at the foot of the mountain
it is a haunting image
evocative of a young bull
especially mystifying
when we recall that while Moses
was away on the mountain
for 40 days
receiving the Ten Commandments
Aaron and the Israelites
constructed their infamous Idol
the golden calf
down below
so perhaps this was the spot
we may never know
when we return
a look at events which change
the course of history
as Moses and the people of Israel
confront their God
and make their holy covenant with him
on a mountain called
Sinai
somewhere in the barren desert
of the Sinai
the God of Israel summons Moses
to the top of a mountain
and prepares to set His covenant
with the people
now therefore
if he will obey my voice indeed
and keep my covenant
then ye shall be a peculiar treasure
unto me
above all people
for all the earth is mine
and ye shall be unto me
a kingdom of priests
and a holy nation
these are the words
which thou shalt speak
unto the children of Israel
Exodus 19:5
if they will accept his Commandments
a binding agreement
will exist between God and Israel
they will become his chosen people
entrusted with the task
of preserving his laws
and of making them known
to the rest of the world
and so on the third day
of the third month
to the sound of heavenly trumpeting
and a cataclysm of fire
smoke and earthquake
the Covenant is sealed
the Ten Commandments
divinely written by the finger of God
are given to Moses
10 simple laws
containing some of the most profound
and revolutionary ideas
in human history
they speak of mercy
of justice and temperance
and proclaim monotheism
the existence of only one God
or ever severing the Hebrews
from the pagan religions
that were practiced up to that time
but were they unique
were they the first of a kind
there are a number
of ancient law codes
the most famous of which
is called the Code of Hammurabi
which predates the biblical law code
and which have similar laws
what they don't have
is that theoretical idea that ties
all the commandments together
the idea that
every human being is divine
irreplaceable invaluable
and therefore how you treat
every individual matters
in Hammurabi's code for example
there are different penalties
for killing somebody who's rich
and killing somebody who's poor
in the Bible a human life
is a human life
because every human face
is stamped with the image of God
but the Ten Commandments do seem to
give us an overview
of some of the main concerns
of Hebrew law
there are the concerns
for family sanctity
for example
of preserving the family structure
economically
the family was an extremely
important building block
of ancient Israelite society
your economic well-being
depended on
the integrity of the family
of passing down from
generation to generation
the economic life of your family
and therefore of your tribe
and what the Ten Commandments say
is that therefore
how human beings treat one another
is of interest to God
and that's what's different
from the Ten Commandments
and all previous laws
that is God doesn't just care
how we act towards God
God isn't just a God
who pays attention
to sacrifices and prayer
God cares if I lie to you
to another human being
and that's what makes it unique
many scholars have long puzzled
over the commandment that strictly
forbids the making of graven images
that's a very interesting mystery
about the God of the Bible
why are they never allowed
to portray this God
in any way
no pictures
no statues
no images
it's a very interesting element
of the religion of the Bible
and it serves to clearly
differentiate them
from the surrounding religions
particularly of the Canaanites
the famous Canaanite God Baal
after all was frequently
portrayed in a statue form
we have some of the statues of Baal
that have been discovered
by archaeologists
Baal was often depicted
in the form of a bull
a symbol used by pagan worshippers
throughout the middle and Near East
since ancient times
it would soon play a featured role
in the drama at Mount Sinai
and the Lord said unto Moses
go get thee down
for thy people which thou brought is
out in the land of Egypt
have corrupted themselves
they have turned aside
quickly out of the way
which I commanded them
they have made them a molten calf
and have worshipped it
and have sacrificed their unto
and said these be thy God's
Oh, Israel
which have brought thee up
out of the land of Egypt
Exodus 31:7
most people
believe that the golden calf
was a substitute for God
but it wasn't
the golden calf was
a substitute for Moses
remember that the Israelites
had just come from Egypt
where everything was visible
Egypt was a society that was
very dedicated to seeing things
pyramid, sphinxes even mummified
even the realm of the Dead
was made visible
and what is God's message
to the Israelites?
that the visible is not the realest
part of the world
the realest part of the world is
the invisible, the intangible
God is the most real thing
and God is that what you can't see
now to these people
who is used to seeing things
that's a very hard message
but as long as they had Moses there
they could see Moses was the one
who speaks to God
so even though we can't see God
at least we can see Moses
suddenly Moses disappears
up the mountain
now the Israelites aren't stupid
they know that the golden calf
didn't take them out of Egypt
right they know that
after all the golden calf didn't exist
five minutes ago
but they need a visible
symbol of God
they can't get along
without that symbol there two trained
to see things
so they build a symbol of God
in the absence of Moses
because they haven't learned yet
that the key to worshipping God
is to see the reality
of the mysterious
of the intangible
of the invisible
the cult of animal worship
and the story of the golden calf
has led some archeologists
to believe that another site
may be the true location
of Mount Sinai
just 45 miles to the northwest
of Jebel Musa lies an area
rich in copper and turquoise
known as SERABIT EL KHADEM
this was once
a flourishing mining Center
first occupied 4000 years ago
the place once echoed
to the sounds of hundreds
of laborers who toiled
in pharaoh's service
mining operations reached their peak
during the time of the exodus
a temple carved from local rock
is dedicated to half floor
the Egyptian goddess of the earth
and of minerals
here Hathor is mysteriously depicted
as a deity with the ears of a cow
elsewhere she is seen
in the complete form of the animal
some scholars believe that Hathor
is the Egyptian equivalent
of the god Baal
the most fascinating
archaeological evidence for this
can be seen inside a nearby cave
scrawled on a wall
more than three thousand years ago
is one of the most ancient scripts
in the world
a form of writing bridging
the hieroglyphics of the Egyptians
and the later alphabet of Canaan
scholars debate
whether these crude symbols
are the forerunner of all the alphabets
that developed in the Near East
but one thing they do agree on
the explicit appearance
of the words
to Baal
could this
have been the biblical Mount Sinai
where the Israelites receive
the Ten Commandments
SERABIT EL KHADEM in the Western Sinai
is a site that's often mentioned
in this discussion
we do have evidence of
Egyptian mines there
and of Canaanite slaves there
who left the graffiti on the walls
of the mines these could be
understood as the ancestors
of the later Israelites
but that says nothing about
the location of Mount Sinai
and let them make me a sanctuary
that I may dwell among them
according to all that I show thee
after the pattern of the tabernacle
and the pattern
of all the instruments thereof
even so shall you make it
Exodus 25:8
having received the Ten Commandments
the people are now instructed by God
to build an ark
to contain the holy tablets
the ark itself
would be housed in a tabernacle
in the center of the encampment
all twelve of the tribes of Israel
would pitch their tents around it
in the middle you have the Ark
which symbolizes God's presence
around it you have arranged
the priests and Levites
and then finally
the entire people of Israel
so the notion of the things
symbolically is that the people
of Israel live
in a kind of permanent connection
with the holiness of God
but the fact is from everything we know
about ancient religion
and from the description of the tabernacle
as a tenth shrine
and from the use of the word tent
to describe the temple later on it seems
that the earliest Jewish temple
must really have been built
during the period of the desert wandering
so somehow or another
they must have taken
whatever they had put together
the most beautiful house
for God
in the desert that they were capable
of putting together
eventually the ark
would reach the Promised Land
and become the focal point
of Solomon's Great Temple
in Jerusalem
it would remain
there for the next eight hundred years
but here in the desert
the fate of the Hebrew slaves
had been sealed
for having made
and worshipped a golden calf
none of those present at Mount Sinai
will ever live to see the land
that flows with milk and honey
for another four decades
they will be condemned
to wander through the wilderness
when we return
the mysterious final days
of Moses as the Israelites
reach the threshold
of the Promised Land
for 40 years
Moses and the Israelites
have wandered through the wilderness
it has been a trek unparalleled
in human history
what was once a throng of slaves
has now been galvanized
into a tightly wrought nation
of 12 tribes
unexplained mysteries have
highlighted the years in the wilderness
God has guided the pilgrims
through a cloud by day
and a pillar of fire by night
but it has been a difficult passage
time and again Moses
has quelled rebellion within the ranks
of the people
who had been impatient
and demanding
wherefore have you made us
to come up out of Egypt
to bring us to this evil place
it is no place of seed or
of figs or of vines
or of pomegranates
neither is there any water
to drink
Numbers 20:5
and the Lord spake unto Moses saying
take the rod and gather thou
the assembly together
thou an heir and thy brother
and speak key under the rock
before their eyes
and it shall give forth his water
and thou shalt bring forth to them
water out of the rock
so that shall give the congregation
and their beasts drink
Numbers 20:7
ironically it is this deed
that has condemned Moses
in a fleeting moment of anger
he strikes the rock
in defiance of God
and so has been deemed unworthy
of entering the land of Canaan
or the sin of the golden calf
those who originally left Egypt with him
have also been condemned
to the same fate
but as the older people have died out
a new generation
waits to cross the threshold
into the Promised Land
and the Lord said unto Moses
get thee up into this mount Abram
and see the land
which I have given under
the children of Israel
and when thou has seen it
thou also shall be gathered
unto thy people
as Aaron and thy brother was gathered
Numbers 27:12
what's really going on here
why can't he enter the promised land
one thing is certain
if you look at the biblical account
that it's clear
that we're dealing something
with a generation gap
one generation disappears
that generation which experienced Egypt
and everything that Egypt symbolized
wasn't able to go into this new land
and what it is Egypt symbolized
to the Bible
it symbolized idolatry
and immorality
the Bible says well wait a minute right
those who were there in Egypt
don't go into the promised land
and Moses apparently
gets sort of bitten
by this same fate
if we want to put it that way
it's very very difficult for anyone
of my generation I think
to read that story and not think of
that tremendously moving speech
by dr. Martin Luther King
who like a modern Moses
was in a sense
the leader of a great movement
that taught so many of us
so many important truths
about God and God's people
and there's a sense in which
his assassination
demands an explanation
it demands for us that we face God
and said how could you have taken
this Moses from us
before he was finished?
and that speech
that Martin Luther King gave
seemed to almost be an assurance
to all of us
that he knew
that the promised land was coming
and he said in that speech
I may not get there with you
but I'm convinced that we as a people
will get there
and so oddly enough
I understand Moses
much better by listening to dr. King
because I think like Moses
dr. King had an insight
into God's plan for the future as well
so Moses the servant of the Lord died
there in the land of Moab
according to the word of the Lord
and he buried him
in a valley in the land of Moab
over against Bethpeor
but no man knoweth of his Sepulcher
until this day
Deuteronomy 34:5
God was involved
in the barrel of Moses
that doesn't say that
about anybody else
in the Bible in that way
so that marks Moses is having
extraordinary powers
that God was kind of connected with him
in a way that God isn't connected
or wasn't connected with
with anyone else
when the Torah ends
and when the last verses
of Deuteronomy are read
they're not in the promised land
they're still in the desert
and the Bible is in some sense
a book without an ending
why is that I think
that part of the message
of the Bible is life is
lived in the wilderness
there is no perfect promised land
in this world the way we think
there's trial and difficulty and pain
you don't need a Bible
in the promised land after all
if everything we're perfect
you don't need a guide
but the Bible is a map
to the wilderness
it's not a guide to the promised land
and so one of the central mysteries
of the Bible is
how do we negotiate the wilderness
which is where we all live
the perennial value of the
Exodus story
is that God is against injustice
and his call of people into fellowship
and has given them a homeland
and so forth
and those are things which transcend
any one particular generation
one reasons why the stories
are always told and retold
generation three generation
so the final resting place
of one of the greatest figures
in all of human history
remains unknown
the ultimate mystery
in the extraordinary life
of the man we know
as Moses
I think the message of mountain
of vote is
instead of visiting Moses's grave
follow what he talked
that's what really matters
and we have a tendency
to worship the mountain
and ignore the teaching
and so in some ways I think
what the Bible is telling us
is the significance of mountain of Voe
is it's insignificant
what really matters are the teachings
of the person who's buried somewhere
in its caverns
and so after 40 years of wandering
and guided by a new leader Joshua
the people of Israel finally
enter Canaan the Promised Land
there to confront their destiny
and to encounter more
of the many
mysteries of the Bible