What is the Wilderness of Sin?

Answer

The Wilderness of Sin is a dry, sandy wasteland in the southwestern part of the Sinai Peninsula—presumed to be the location of Mount Sinai. The Israelites entered the Wilderness of Sin shortly after departing from Egypt on their journey to the Promised Land “And they journeyed from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departure from the land of Egypt.”, (Exodus 16:1).

The Wilderness of Sin is one of six wilderness areas that the Israelites passed through on their way to Canaan. These wildernesses include Shur, Etham, Sin, Sinai, Paran, and Zin. The Wilderness of Sin is sometimes mistaken for the Wilderness of Zin, a region on the northwestern side of the Sinai Peninsula. The Israelites crossed the Wilderness of Sin at the start of the exodus, reaching the Wilderness of Sin “on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had come out of Egypt” “And they journeyed from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came to the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departure from the land of Egypt.”, (Exodus 16:1). They did not enter the Wilderness of Zin until a year later.

Situated between the oasis of Elim and Mount Sinai, the Wilderness of Sin is mentioned only four times in the Bible, all in relation to the exodus from Egypt. Upon their arrival in the barren Wilderness of Sin, the entire community of Israelites immediately began to grumble and complain to Moses and Aaron about the lack of food: “If only we had died by the LORD’s hand in Egypt! There we sat around the pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death.”

Und pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death” «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, and when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger. », (Exodus 16:3).

God heard their murmurings, for it was in the Wilderness of Sin that He first provided “bread from heaven” in the form of manna. The manna appeared each morning after the dew dried as “thin flakes like frost on the ground” «And when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small as the hoar frost on the ground. », (Exodus 16:14). It was white, the color of coriander seed, and it tasted “like wafers made with honey” (verse 31). Each person was to gather just what he or she needed for that day and a double portion on the day before the Sabbath (verses 16, 22). The manna could be baked into cakes or boiled in pots (verse 23). God also sent the Israelites quail in the Wilderness of Sin (verses 12–13).

In Exodus 17:1, the people of Israel set out from the Wilderness of Sin in stages, arriving next in Rephidim, where there was no water to drink. The people complained again, and God brought water from the rock (verses 2–7). The only other mention of the Wilderness of Sin is in the book of Numbers as part of the journal Moses kept detailing the Israelite journey from Egypt to their campsite in Moab (Numbers 33:11-12).

The Wilderness of Sin is also called the Desert of Sin. The name Sin has no relation to the English word sin. It is merely the name.

The origin of the region’s name is uncertain, despite its resemblance to Sinai and its close proximity to Sinai, which hints at a potential link. It is possible that the area was named after the ancient deity Sin, the moon god venerated by nomads in the desert.