Posted on 01/14/2023 6:09:05 AM PST by SunkenCiv
MISCONCEPTION: Upon leaving Egypt, the Jews crossed the Yam Suf, which is translated as the Red Sea. This translation, however, is an error. Red Sea is a corruption of the correct Old English (OE) translation, Reed (Rede) Sea. (Rede is a legitimate spelling of reed in OE.)
FACT: The notion that the Yam Suf is the modern-day Red Sea predates any English translation of the Bible by well over a thousand years. In fact, it seems that until the late eighteenth century no one questioned the translation and identification of Yam Suf with the Red Sea...
The Septuagint (second to third century BCE) translated Yam Suf into Greek as Erythra Thalassa or Red Sea–that is, neither "end" nor "reed!" ... Josephus (Antiquities 2:15:3) identifies the Yam Suf as the Red Sea as well. This translation was carried over into the Latin when the fourth-century Latin Vulgate translated Yam Suf in Exodus 13:18 as Mare Rubrum, and in other places it translates Yam Suf as Mare Erythrae, both of which mean Red Sea...
In his commentary on the Bible, known as Tafsir, Rabbi Sa'adia Gaon (d. 942 CE), who lived in Egypt and Israel as well as in Baghdad, translated Yam Suf as Bahr al Qulzum, the Arabic name used for the Red Sea till this very day. Thus, it is clear that Jews at the time of the Geonim took it for granted that the Yam Suf in the Bible refers to the modern- day Red Sea...
Let's first look at the other places where Yam Suf is mentioned in the Bible and is translated as "Red Sea." In I Kings (9:26) it states that King Solomon based his navy on the Yam Suf near Eilat.
(Excerpt) Read more at jewishaction.com ...
Funny!
if the KJV was good enough for Peter and Paul then it's good enough for me
The Strait of Tiran is very shallow at Sharm el Sheikh 28.000516,34.475211
Doesn't matter, the Israelites couldn't have gotten that far in such a short timeframe, but it isn't "very shallow", it's no less than 50 meters deep, and near Sinai it's about 250 meters deep.
At least the apostles were all in one Accord...
Very interesting. Thanks, SunkenCiv.
Some had to Dodge persecution.
My pleasure.
What's the Truth about . . . the Translation of Yam Suf?
That experts have missed the forest for the trees? Or the sea for the fish as it were?
I mean whichever the wording, it's obvious that it had been split already. Maybe all Moses had to do was to point that out, so the People could see it, and go on through finally. The gate's not locked.
ים-סוף
YAM SUF
RED SEA
Good as done. Open Sesame. God always provides the cure before the disease.
If someone wanted to get picky though, there's no "suf" here, just the sea:
Exodus 14:16 But lift thou up thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the sea, and divide it: and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea.To follow instructions to the letter, to divide the "ים":
And then go on dry ground through the midst:
JerUSAlem
~ EZ 😉
The world is full of surprises.
Same for Christmas trees, too!
Luv it. That would be great because the way of truth is way better and more entertaining than fiction.
Remember that weather gal who was sitting in the canoe, reporting about the flooding?
Then a couple of guys just strolled on through..
"Comments are turned off. Learn more"
True. That was my point. God ‘suggested’ that they leave on Nisan 14, just as he ‘suggested’ that they walk through the Reed Sea.
Thanks.
I pulled out my copy and I suspect the reason that "yam suf" is described as the "northwestern part of the Red Sea" is a matter of narrowing down the Biblical geography; as if to say, "where the famous Exodus scene took place."
I'm experienced with roots and concepts, word plays and numerics and a lot of off-the-beaten-path stuff, but normal language skills are non-existent.
Well, there are only so many hours in the day! 🙃
(I find the best prizes though!)
What direction was the Exodus?
I think you’ll both enjoy the full article.
35 re What was the direction of the Exodus. To we Jews, aka Hebrews at that time, Any direction away from slavery in Egypt is THE direction.
I believe it was National Geographic which recently showed a new theory/direction for the Hebrews to go in order to cross a shallow or divided body of water, I. E. The Plain of Reeds, based on more current archaeological discoveries in Egypt.
The scientists make a good case for this position.
The only Plain of Reeds that this wandering Jewish journalist saw was in Chau Doc Province, Chau Phu Mountain, So. Vietnam, at one of our Military advisors base and mortar pit.
My dictionary is clearly geared to someone wanting to read the Hebrew Bible, not to an immigrant or tourist in modern day Israel.
I don't know when or where I bought my copy, but what's odd/interesting is that there is no date anywhere that I could find. Printing date, copyright.. nothing.
It's the simple meaning. Timeless!
I wish more books were made with these thick, vinyl/flexi/plastic covers. I've got some other [mini] L dictionaries that are dated from the mid-80s. Indestructible.
I checked the listings on Amazon--some editions may go back as far as 1912 but none of the covers exactly matches my copy's cover. I would guess post-1945 because it says Printed in Germany and there probably wasn't much of a market for Hebrew-English dictionaries in Germany between 1933 and 1945.
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