Elim

Why? Because we know on what day.

Remember, they left Egypt during the Passover, and this chapter starts with the fact that chapter 16, "They took their journey from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came into the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the 15th day of the second month after their departing out of the land of Egypt." So we know, uh, the approximate timeline, how long it took them to get there.

"And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness.

The children of Israel said unto them, 'Would to God we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, and we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us forth unto this wilderness to kill us, this whole assembly, with hunger.' Then said the Lord unto Moses, 'Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather at a certain rate every day.'" Here's where it gets important.

I, I realize that this is a lot of information, but this will kind of help to set the record straight for us.

So Exodus 16: "And they took their journey from Elim, and all the congregation of Israel came unto the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the 15th day of the second month." So that gives you a timeline right there, okay? "And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness.

And the children of Israel said unto them, 'Would to God we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger.'" And I'm thinking, yeah, maybe, maybe God was really sick and tired of them, obviously, with all their darn complaining.

You know, there's nothing worse than a complainer.

Three days' march to Marah.

Elim.

Road to the Wilderness of Sin.

Israel's murmuring.

This statute is for all times the principle of God's guidance and this ordinance the right or privilege of our heavenly citizenship.

But he also ever proves us by this that the enjoyment of our right and privilege is made to depend upon a constant exercise of faith.

From Hawara or Mara a short march would bring Israel to a sweet and fertile spot now known as Wadi Garandel the Elim of Scripture where there were twelve wells of water and threescore and ten palm trees and they encamped there by the waters.

This spot was suitable for a more lengthened encampment.

it's not like they've been wandering in this specific barren wasteland for the entire 30 days.

The sources point out they just came from a place called Elim.

Right, Elim.

And from the descriptions, Elim sounds like an ancient luxury resort compared to where they end up.

It really was.

Elim is universally identified by biblical geographers with Wadi Garandal.

Okay.

Which was this idyllic paradise within the otherwise arid Sinai Peninsula.

That's the one.

We are doing a deep dive into the waters of Mara and the oasis of Elim.

We're going to look at the staggering logistics of this trial, the anatomy of human rebellion, and the supernatural remedy provided by the Ultimate Mediator.

And as we dig into this, we're going to shatter some massive modern theological errors along the way.

Right, Elam.

Which provides a physical foretaste of eternal rest while simultaneously issuing some severe warnings for how we operate the modern church.

The narrative tells us they travel a few miles south from Mara to an oasis called Elim, which most geographers identify as modern Wadi Garand el.

The contrast between Mara and Elim is beautiful.

The Bible History, Volume Two: The Exodus and the Wanderings in the Wilderness by Alfred Edersheim.

The Wilderness of Shur, the Sinaitic Peninsula, its scenery and vegetation, its capabilities of supporting a population, the wells of Moses, three days' march to Marah, Elim, road to the Wilderness of Sin, Israel's murmuring, the miraculous provision of the quails, the manna.

Exodus chapter fifteen, verse twenty-two, chapter sixteen.

With the song of triumph on the other side of the sea, the first part of the book of Exodus ends.

This statute is for all times the principle of God's guidance, and this ordinance the right or privilege of our heavenly citizenship.

But he also ever proves us by this, that the enjoyment of our right and privilege is made to depend upon a constant exercise of faith.

From Hawara, or Mara, a short march would bring Israel to a sweet and fertile spot now known as Wadi Garandel, the Elim of Scripture, where there were twelve wells of water and threescore and ten palm trees, and they encamped there by the waters.

This spot was suitable for a more lengthened encampment.