Mount Sinai

“…And the mountain burned with fire unto the midst of heaven, with darkness, clouds, and thick darkness.”

…….Deuteronomy 4:11

” And the LORD spake unto you out of the midst of the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice. And he declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone.”

……Deuteronomy 4:12-13

1978

In 1978 Ron Wyatt found chariot parts in the Gulf of Aqaba just off the Egyptian shore. At that time, he knew that Mt. Sinai had to be on the opposite shore. Since the Biblical account tells how the people arrived at Mt. Sinai after they crossed the Red Sea; and since the Gulf of Aqaba, which Ron knew to be the crossing site, separates the Sinai Peninsula (Egypt) and Saudi Arabia, there was no doubt as to the location of Mt. Sinai being in Arabia. But where in Arabia?

Ron studied the Biblical account and saw on the flight maps of the area that there was a mountain range in the northwestern area of Saudi which he felt had the potential to be Mt. Sinai.

“The LORD our God spake unto us in Horeb, saying, Ye have dwelt long enough in this mount”

…….Deuteronomy 1:6

This description indicated to Ron that the people were “in” a mountain range – protected within its borders. And for that reason, Jebel el Lawz was the perfect candidate. On the map, Jebel el Lawz was the highest peak in the entire NW Saudi Arabian region; and it was in a mountain range with numerous wide wadis, or canyons, within it which would have provided enough acreage for a tremendous number of people, along with their flocks and herds, to camp “within” the area and have the protection of the mountains all around them. It was also separated from the mountainous region which paralleled the Red Sea, by a desert, or plain area – which could be the desert of Sin(ai).

If we go the Bible, the location of Mt. Sinai is not that difficult to ascertain. When God first spoke to Moses regarding the great work of leading the people out of their Egyptian bondage, He told Moses:

” Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain.”

…….EXODUS 3:12

To find out exactly where Moses was when this conversation took place, we need to go to the beginning of chapter 3:

“Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb. And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.”

…….EXODUS 3:1-2

Moses was even told to remove his shoes, as he was standing on “holy ground” (verse 5). So, we now know that Moses was in Midian, in the “backside of the desert”, which seems to us to imply the area opposite the main portion of the desert or, the other side of the mountain which provided the border of the desert. We make this assumption simply because in order to have a “backside of the desert”, there must be something which marks a separation of the “frontside” and the “backside”.

When Ron studied the Biblical account, he noted these references – that the mountain to which Moses was to lead the people was in Midian; and that the place where Moses spoke to God in the burning bush was specifically stated to be in the “backside of the desert”. With this information, along with the discovery of the crossing site on the Gulf of Aqaba, he looked for a mountain on the eastern side of the gulf which fit this description. There was only one candidate in his opinion, and this was Jebel el Lawz.

His flight maps showed this mountain to be in an almost semi-circular range, with a vast desert area around it as well as more than enough room for the encampment of perhaps a couple of million people along with their flocks and herds. Not only that, but there was a single, large oasis located perhaps 10 to 15 miles away – an area that could have been the home of his father-in-law, Jethro – and this was the town of Al-Bad.

He saw that there was desert area around Jebel el Lawz, between Al-Bad and the highest peak in this mountain range – and that there were valleys in the mountain range which Moses could have led his flocks through, taking him to the “backside of the desert.” Ron was convinced that this mountain had to be the one.

If this mountain was indeed the true Mt. Sinai, Ron felt there had to be archaeological evidences which would prove it beyond a reasonable doubt. So he applied to the Saudi embassy for a visa to visit the area but never even received an answer from them.

After four and one half years, he decided it was going to be necessary to attempt to enter the country without a visa. He made inquiries and was told that if anyone was found in Saudi without a visa, they were simply escorted to the border and “kicked out” – if “worse came to worse”, they would be held for no more than 21 days. He weighed this information and decided it was certainly worth the risk. Little did he know what lay ahead for him and his sons, Danny and Ronny.