Elim (Bible)
Encyclopedia
Elim was one of the places where the Israelite
s camped following their Exodus
from Egypt
. It is referenced in Exodus 15.27 and Numbers
33.9 as a place where "there were twelve wells of water, and seventy date palms," and that the Israelites "camped there near the water".
From the information that can be gleaned from Exodus 15.23, 16.1 and Numbers 33.9-11, Elim is described as being between Marah
and the Wilderness of Sin
, near the eastern shore of the Red Sea
. It was possibly south of the Israelites' crossing point, and west of the Sin Wilderness. Thus, Elim is generally thought to have been located in Wadi Gharandel, an oasis 100 km southeast of Suez
.
Professor Menashe Har-El of Tel Aviv University (1968) has proposed Elim to be `Ayun Musa "the springs/wells of Moses." He noted that in 1907 the geologist Thomas Barron had observed that 12 springs existed at this site along with palm trees. Professor James K. Hoffmeier disagrees on the basis that it is too close to the preceding site (seven miles/twelve kilometres) and would require the next four sites (using the Numbers itinerary) to be compressed into only 23 miles/38 kilometres.
The Book of Exodus also records that after leaving Elim, one month since leaving Egypt, the Israelites headed to Mount Sinai
through the Sin Wilderness. There is a possibility that the name 'Elim' is derived from a Semitic
root meaning 'gods', but this cannot be further substantiated (see El (god)
).
Several ministries of mercy, Christian and otherwise, have adopted the name Elim, most prominently the Elim Pentecostal Church
.
Israelite
According to the Bible the Israelites were a Hebrew-speaking people of the Ancient Near East who inhabited the Land of Canaan during the monarchic period .The word "Israelite" derives from the Biblical Hebrew ישראל...
s camped following their Exodus
The Exodus
The Exodus is the story of the departure of the Israelites from ancient Egypt described in the Hebrew Bible.Narrowly defined, the term refers only to the departure from Egypt described in the Book of Exodus; more widely, it takes in the subsequent law-givings and wanderings in the wilderness...
from Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
. It is referenced in Exodus 15.27 and Numbers
Book of Numbers
The Book of Numbers is the fourth book of the Hebrew Bible, and the fourth of five books of the Jewish Torah/Pentateuch....
33.9 as a place where "there were twelve wells of water, and seventy date palms," and that the Israelites "camped there near the water".
From the information that can be gleaned from Exodus 15.23, 16.1 and Numbers 33.9-11, Elim is described as being between Marah
Marah (Bible)
Marah is one of the locations which the Torah identifies as having been travelled through by the Israelites, during the Exodus.The liberated Israelites set out on their journey in the desert, somewhere in the Sinai Peninsula...
and the Wilderness of Sin
Wilderness of Sin
The Wilderness of Sin/Desert of Sin is a geographic area mentioned by the Bible as lying between Elim and Mount Sinai. Sin does not refer to sinfulness, but is an untranslated word that would translate as the moon; biblical scholars suspect that the name Sin here refers to the semitic moon-deity...
, near the eastern shore of the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
. It was possibly south of the Israelites' crossing point, and west of the Sin Wilderness. Thus, Elim is generally thought to have been located in Wadi Gharandel, an oasis 100 km southeast of Suez
Suez
Suez is a seaport city in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez , near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal, having the same boundaries as Suez governorate. It has three harbors, Adabya, Ain Sokhna and Port Tawfiq, and extensive port facilities...
.
Professor Menashe Har-El of Tel Aviv University (1968) has proposed Elim to be `Ayun Musa "the springs/wells of Moses." He noted that in 1907 the geologist Thomas Barron had observed that 12 springs existed at this site along with palm trees. Professor James K. Hoffmeier disagrees on the basis that it is too close to the preceding site (seven miles/twelve kilometres) and would require the next four sites (using the Numbers itinerary) to be compressed into only 23 miles/38 kilometres.
The Book of Exodus also records that after leaving Elim, one month since leaving Egypt, the Israelites headed to Mount Sinai
Biblical Mount Sinai
The Biblical Mount Sinai is the mountain at which the Book of Exodus states that the Ten Commandments were given to Moses by God...
through the Sin Wilderness. There is a possibility that the name 'Elim' is derived from a Semitic
Semitic languages
The Semitic languages are a group of related languages whose living representatives are spoken by more than 270 million people across much of the Middle East, North Africa and the Horn of Africa...
root meaning 'gods', but this cannot be further substantiated (see El (god)
El (god)
is a Northwest Semitic word meaning "deity", cognate to Akkadian and then to Hebrew : Eli and Arabic )....
).
Several ministries of mercy, Christian and otherwise, have adopted the name Elim, most prominently the Elim Pentecostal Church
Elim Pentecostal Church
The Elim Pentecostal Church is a UK-based Pentecostal Christian denomination.-History:George Jeffreys , a Welshman, founded the Elim Pentecostal Church in Monaghan, Ireland in 1915. Jeffreys was an evangelist with a Welsh Congregational church background. He was converted at age 15 during the...
.