From Egypt to the Promised Land

Camps

Mountains

Battles

Egypt to Sinai

Sinai to Kadesh

The refusal and Hormah

Wilderness years

Round Edom to the Jordan

Into the land

Rameses (Exodus 12:31–42; Numbers 33:3–5)

After the tenth plague Pharaoh lets Israel go. They set out from Rameses “on the morrow after the passover”.

Out of Egypt

And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand on foot that were men, besides children.

• A mixed multitude went with them, with flocks and herds (Exodus 12:38).
• Israel had lived in Egypt four hundred and thirty years (12:40–41).
• They left on the fifteenth day of the first month and “went out with a high hand in the sight of all the Egyptians” (Numbers 33:3).

Where was Rameses? The pin is at Qantir in the eastern Nile Delta, OpenBible.info's leading identification. Tell el-Dab'a, about 2 km away, is the other main candidate.

When? c. 1446 BC. Solomon began the temple in his fourth year (966 BC), “in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt” (1 Kings 6:1).

Succoth (Exodus 12:37; 13:17–22; Numbers 33:5–6)

The first camp. God leads them “by the way of the wilderness by the Red Sea”, in a pillar of cloud by day and of fire by night.

Succoth

God did not lead them “by the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near”, in case they saw war and turned back to Egypt (Exodus 13:17). Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, as Joseph had asked (13:19; Genesis 50:25).

And Jehovah went before them by day in a pillar of cloud, to lead them the way, and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; that they might go by day and by night:

Next they camped at Etham, “in the edge of the wilderness” (13:20; Numbers 33:6). Etham's site is unknown, so it has no pin.

Where was Succoth? The pin is at Tell el-Maskhuta in the Wadi Tumilat, OpenBible.info's leading but tentative identification.

Marah (Exodus 15:22–26; Numbers 33:8)

Three days without water. At Marah the water is bitter, until the LORD shows Moses a tree to cast into it.

Marah

“They went three days in the wilderness, and found no water” (Exodus 15:22). Exodus calls it the wilderness of Shur; Numbers 33:8 calls it the wilderness of Etham.

The people murmured, “What shall we drink?” (15:24). Moses cried to the LORD, who showed him a tree; he cast it into the waters, “and the waters were made sweet” (15:25). The LORD made a statute there and said, “I am Jehovah that healeth thee” (15:26).

Where was Marah? The pin is at Ain Hawarah, OpenBible.info's leading candidate. Others suggest Bir Mara or Uyun Musa ("the springs of Moses"), nearer the crossing.

Elim (Exodus 15:27; Numbers 33:9–10)

An oasis with “twelve springs of water, and threescore and ten palm-trees”.

Elim

And they came to Elim, where were twelve springs of water, and threescore and ten palm-trees: and they encamped there by the waters.

After Elim, Numbers 33:10 adds a camp “by the Red Sea” before the wilderness of Sin. Its place is not known.

Where was Elim? The pin is along the Wadi Gharandal, OpenBible.info's leading identification. Uyun Musa is the main alternative.

Wilderness of Sin (Exodus 16; Numbers 33:11)

A month out of Egypt the people complain of hunger. God sends quail in the evening and manna in the morning.

Bread from heaven

They came to the wilderness of Sin, “which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month” (Exodus 16:1).

Then said Jehovah unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or not.

• Quail covered the camp at evening. In the morning there was “a small round thing, small as the hoar-frost on the ground” (16:13–14).
• They asked, “What is it?” Moses said, “It is the bread which Jehovah hath given you to eat” (16:15).
• On the sixth day they gathered twice as much; on the seventh day, the sabbath, none fell (16:22–30).
• “The children of Israel did eat the manna forty years, until they came to a land inhabited” (16:35).

Where was it? The pin is at Debbet er-Ramleh, OpenBible.info's leading candidate. The coastal plain of El Marka is close behind.

Rephidim (Exodus 17; Numbers 33:12–14)

No water again. Moses strikes the rock in Horeb and water comes out. Then Amalek attacks, and Israel wins while Moses' hands are held up.

Rephidim

Numbers 33:12–14 names two camps on the way, Dophkah and Alush. Dophkah is tentatively placed at Serabit el-Khadim, an Egyptian turquoise-mining site; Alush is unknown. Neither has a pin.

At Rephidim “there was no water for the people to drink” (Exodus 17:1). The LORD said:

Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.

Moses named the place Massah and Meribah, because the people asked, “Is Jehovah among us, or not?” (17:7).

Amalek. Joshua led the fight. It came to pass, “when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed” (17:11). Aaron and Hur held up his hands until sunset, and Moses built an altar named Jehovah-nissi (17:12–15).

Where was Rephidim? The pin is along the Wadi Rufaiyil near Jebel Musa, OpenBible.info's leading candidate; the Wadi Feiran is the main alternative. Its place depends on where Sinai was.

Mount Sinai (Exodus 18 – 40; Numbers 10:11–12)

“In the third month” Israel camps before the mount. God gives the law and makes his covenant, and the tabernacle is built. They stay almost a year.

Mount Sinai

Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles’ wings, and brought you unto myself.

• Jethro met Moses “at the mount of God” (Exodus 18:5).
• The LORD came down on the mount in fire and smoke and spoke the Ten Commandments (19:16 – 20:17).
• While Moses was on the mountain, Aaron made a golden calf (32:1–6).
• The tabernacle was set up “in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month” (40:17), and the glory of the LORD filled it (40:34).
• They left on the twentieth day of the second month of the second year, when the cloud lifted (Numbers 10:11–12).

Where was Sinai? Still disputed. The pin is at Jebel Musa in the south of the peninsula, the traditional site and OpenBible.info's leading candidate. Other proposals include Ras es-Safsafeh on the same massif, Jebel Serbal, Jebel Sin Bishar, Jebel Helal and Har Karkom further north, and sites in north-west Arabia such as Jabal al-Lawz. Paul speaks of “mount Sinai in Arabia” (Galatians 4:25), though Arabia then could include the Sinai peninsula. Scripture also calls it Horeb.

Kibroth-hattaavah (Numbers 10:33 – 11:35; 33:16)

The people complain, and fire burns the edge of the camp at Taberah. Then they crave meat. Quail come, and a plague follows.

Taberah and Kibroth-hattaavah

They set out from Sinai with the ark going before them “three days’ journey” (Numbers 10:33).

• At Taberah “the fire of Jehovah burnt among them” until Moses prayed (11:1–3). Taberah is not in the Numbers 33 list and its site is unknown, so it has no pin.
• The mixed multitude “lusted exceedingly”, and Israel wept for meat (11:4).
• A wind “brought quails from the sea” (11:31). While the meat was still between their teeth, the LORD struck the people with a very great plague (11:33).

The place was named Kibroth-hattaavah, “because there they buried the people that lusted” (11:34).

Where was it? The pin is at Erweis el-Ebeirig, OpenBible.info's leading but tentative candidate.

Hazeroth (Numbers 11:35 – 12:16; 33:17)

Miriam and Aaron speak against Moses. Miriam is struck with leprosy and shut out of the camp for seven days.

Hazeroth

Miriam and Aaron asked, “Hath Jehovah indeed spoken only with Moses? hath he not spoken also with us?” (Numbers 12:2).

The LORD answered that with Moses he would “speak mouth to mouth, even manifestly, and not in dark speeches” (12:8). Miriam became leprous. Moses cried, “Heal her, O God, I beseech thee” (12:13), and “the people journeyed not till Miriam was brought in again” (12:15).

Where was it? The pin is at Ain el-Khadra, OpenBible.info's leading candidate.

Kadesh (Numbers 12:16 – 13:3, 26; Deuteronomy 1:2, 19)

Israel reaches Kadesh in the wilderness of Paran, “eleven days’ journey from Horeb”. Moses sends twelve men to spy out Canaan.

Kadesh

“We journeyed from Horeb, and went through all that great and terrible wilderness” (Deuteronomy 1:19).

Send thou men, that they may spy out the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel: of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, every one a prince among them.

Kadesh (also called Kadesh-barnea) is placed in the wilderness of Paran (Numbers 13:26) and in the wilderness of Zin (20:1; 33:36).

Numbers 33 lists Rithmah after Hazeroth (33:18) and does not name Kadesh until 33:36. Some take Rithmah to be the first camp in the Kadesh area; the text does not say.

Where was Kadesh? The pin is at Ain el-Qudeirat, a strong spring and OpenBible.info's clear favorite. Ain Qadis, which keeps the name, is about 9 km to the south-east.

Hebron (Joshua 10:36–37; 14:6–15)

Joshua takes Hebron in the southern campaign. It is later given to Caleb, one of the two faithful spies.

Hebron

The spies had come here forty-five years before, and cut the grapes of Eshcol nearby (Numbers 13:22–23). Joshua took it in the southern campaign (Joshua 10:36–37), and Caleb received it for his inheritance (14:13–14).

The place. Hebron is Tel Rumeida, a secure identification.

Hormah (Numbers 14:39–45; Deuteronomy 1:41–46)

Too late, the people try to go up without the LORD. The Amalekites and Canaanites beat them back “even unto Hormah”.

Defeat at Hormah

Moses warned them, “Go not up, for Jehovah is not among you” (Numbers 14:42). The ark and Moses stayed in the camp (14:44).

The Amorites chased them “as bees do” (Deuteronomy 1:44), and Israel “abode in Kadesh many days” (1:46).

After Aaron's death, Israel defeated the king of Arad and called the place Hormah (Numbers 21:1–3). The kings of Hormah and Arad are in Joshua's list of defeated kings (Joshua 12:14).

Where was Hormah? The pin is at Tel Masos, OpenBible.info's leading candidate. Tel Halif, Tel Malhata and Tel Ira are also proposed.

Ezion-geber (Numbers 33:18–35; Deuteronomy 2:1–7)

Numbers 33 lists eighteen camps after Hazeroth, ending at Ezion-geber near the head of the gulf. The text does not say which of the thirty-eight years each belongs to.

The wilderness years

“We compassed mount Seir many days” (Deuteronomy 2:1).

Numbers 33:18–35 lists the camps: Rithmah, Rimmon-perez, Libnah, Rissah, Kehelathah, mount Shepher, Haradah, Makheloth, Tahath, Terah, Mithkah, Hashmonah, Moseroth, Bene-jaakan, Hor-haggidgad, Jotbathah, Abronah and Ezion-geber.

Most of these sites are unknown, and the list does not say which camps belong to which years, so the map does not pin them. OpenBible.info's leading candidates put Jotbathah, “a land of brooks of water” (Deuteronomy 10:7), at Taba, and Abronah at Elath (Aqaba), both near the head of the gulf.

“These forty years Jehovah thy God hath been with thee; thou hast lacked nothing” (Deuteronomy 2:7). “Thy raiment waxed not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years” (8:4).

Where was Ezion-geber? Near the head of the Gulf of Aqaba, “beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red Sea” (1 Kings 9:26). The pin is at Jezirat Faraun, a small island off the Sinai shore and OpenBible.info's leading candidate. Tell el-Kheleifeh, on the shore between modern Eilat and Aqaba, is the other main candidate. The island is small, so Israel's camp (Numbers 33:35) would have been on the shore opposite it.

Mount Hor (Numbers 20:22–29; 33:37–39)

On Mount Hor, “by the border of the land of Edom”, Aaron dies at 123. His priestly garments pass to his son Eleazar.

Aaron's death

And Moses stripped Aaron of his garments, and put them upon Eleazar his son; and Aaron died there on the top of the mount: and Moses and Eleazar came down from the mount.

It was “in the fortieth year … in the fifth month, on the first day of the month” (Numbers 33:38). Israel mourned him thirty days (20:29). Deuteronomy 10:6 says Aaron died at Moserah, a camp that has not been located.

Where was Mount Hor? Disputed. The pin is at Har Zin, about 65 km east-north-east of Kadesh, OpenBible.info's leading candidate. The text favors a peak on Edom's edge, not inside it. Israel set out from Kadesh, “a city in the uttermost of thy border” (Numbers 20:16), after Edom had refused them passage, and came to Mount Hor “in the edge of the land of Edom” (33:37). The traditional site is Jebel Nebi Harun near Petra, where a shrine to Aaron stands. It lies deep in Edom's mountains, so most scholars now look nearer Kadesh.

Punon (Numbers 21:4–9; 33:41–43)

Going the long way round Edom, the people speak against God and Moses. Fiery serpents bite them, and Moses makes a serpent of brass on a standard.

The serpent of brass

“They journeyed from mount Hor by the way to the Red Sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way” (Numbers 21:4).

And Moses made a serpent of brass, and set it upon the standard: and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he looked unto the serpent of brass, he lived.

Jesus spoke of this serpent in John 3:14.

Where did this happen? The text does not say. Numbers 33 lists the camps after Mount Hor as Zalmonah, Punon and Oboth. The pin is at Punon (Khirbet Faynan), an ancient copper-mining site in the Arabah. Some link the brass serpent with it, but that is a guess. Zalmonah and Oboth are uncertain.

Which way round? Deuteronomy 2:8 says they passed Edom “from the way of the Arabah from Elath” and from Ezion-geber. Numbers 21:10–20 names a partly different set of stops (Oboth, Iye-abarim, the valley of Zered, Beer, Mattanah, Nahaliel, Bamoth). The map follows the Numbers 33 list.

Iye-abarim (Numbers 21:11–12; 33:44; Deuteronomy 2:8–15)

A camp “in the border of Moab”. The LORD tells Israel not to fight Moab. They cross the brook Zered, thirty-eight years after leaving Kadesh-barnea.

Past Moab

Vex not Moab, neither contend with them in battle; for I will not give thee of his land for a possession; because I have given Ar unto the children of Lot for a possession.

Now rise up, and get you over the brook Zered. And we went over the brook Zered.

By then “all the generation of the men of war were consumed from the midst of the camp” (Deuteronomy 2:14).

Where was it? The pin is at Medeineh on the desert edge of Moab, OpenBible.info's leading but tentative candidate.

Dibon-gad (Numbers 21:13; 33:45–46; Deuteronomy 2:24)

Across the Arnon, the border between Moab and the Amorites. God says, “Rise ye up, take your journey, and pass over the valley of the Arnon”.

Over the Arnon

“The Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites” (Numbers 21:13).

Dibon-gad, just north of the Arnon, is the next camp in Numbers 33:45; then comes Almon-diblathaim (33:46), whose site is uncertain. The name Dibon-gad probably reflects that the tribe of Gad built Dibon (32:34).

The site is Tall Dhiban, a secure identification, where the Moabite Stone was found in 1868.

Jahaz (Numbers 21:21–24; Deuteronomy 2:26–36)

Sihon king of the Amorites refuses Israel passage and comes out to fight at Jahaz. Israel defeats him and takes his land “from the Arnon unto the Jabbok”.

Sihon king of Heshbon

Israel asked, “Let me pass through thy land” (Numbers 21:22), promising to keep to the king's highway.

But Sihon king of Heshbon would not let us pass by him; for Jehovah thy God hardened his spirit, and made his heart obstinate, that he might deliver him into thy hand, as at this day.

“There was not a city too high for us” (Deuteronomy 2:36).

Where was Jahaz? The pin is at Khirbet el-Medeiyineh, OpenBible.info's leading but tentative candidate. Several nearby sites are also proposed.

Heshbon (Numbers 21:25–32; 32:33)

Israel takes Heshbon, Sihon's city, and settles in the cities of the Amorites.

Heshbon

And Israel took all these cities: and Israel dwelt in all the cities of the Amorites, in Heshbon, and in all the towns thereof.

Sihon had taken this land from an earlier king of Moab (Numbers 21:26). Moses also sent men to spy out Jazer, and Israel took it (21:32).

The land east of the Jordan was later given to Gad, Reuben and half the tribe of Manasseh (32:33; Joshua 12:6).

Where was Heshbon? The pin is at Tell Hesban, OpenBible.info's leading candidate; Tall Jalul is also proposed.

Edrei (Numbers 21:33–35; Deuteronomy 3:1–11)

Og king of Bashan, the last of the Rephaim, comes out to battle at Edrei. Israel defeats him and takes sixty fortified cities.

Og king of Bashan

And Jehovah said unto Moses, Fear him not: for I have delivered him into thy hand, and all his people, and his land; and thou shalt do to him as thou didst unto Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon.

Israel took “threescore cities, all the region of Argob, the kingdom of Og in Bashan” (Deuteronomy 3:4). Og's iron bedstead was nine cubits long (3:11).

With Sihon and Og defeated, Israel held the land east of the Jordan “from the valley of the Arnon unto mount Hermon” (3:8).

Where was Edrei? At modern Daraa in southern Syria, OpenBible.info's strong favorite.

Shittim (plains of Moab) (Numbers 22:1; 33:47–49)

Israel camps “in the plains of Moab beyond the Jordan at Jericho”, from Beth-jeshimoth to Abel-shittim. They stay here until the crossing.

The plains of Moab

Numbers 33:47–48 brings Israel through “the mountains of Abarim, before Nebo” down to the plains by the Jordan.

Balak king of Moab was afraid of Israel and sent for Balaam to curse them (Numbers 22 – 24).

Where was Shittim? The pin is at Tall el-Hammam, OpenBible.info's leading candidate for Shittim (Abel-shittim). Tall Kafrayn is the main alternative.

Bamoth-baal (Numbers 22:41 – 24:25)

Balak takes Balaam to three high places to curse Israel. Each time Balaam blesses them instead.

Balaam

Balak brought him first to “the high places of Baal” (Numbers 22:41), then to “the top of Pisgah” (23:14), and then to “the top of Peor” (23:28). Balak said, “Thou hast altogether blessed them these three times” (24:10).

I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not nigh: There shall come forth a star out of Jacob, And a sceptre shall rise out of Israel, And shall smite through the corners of Moab, And break down all the sons of tumult.

Where? “The high places of Baal” is what the name Bamoth-baal means (compare Joshua 13:17). The pin is at Khirbet el-Quweiqiyeh, OpenBible.info's leading candidate for Bamoth. Pisgah and Peor were probably on the same heights.

Mount Nebo (Deuteronomy 32:48–52; 34:1–8)

Moses climbs Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah. The LORD shows him the whole land. Moses dies there, aged 120, and is buried in Moab.

Moses sees the land

And Moses went up from the plains of Moab unto mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, that is over against Jericho. And Jehovah showed him all the land of Gilead, unto Dan,

And Jehovah said unto him, This is the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, saying, I will give it unto thy seed: I have caused thee to see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not go over thither.

“No man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day” (Deuteronomy 34:6). Moses was a hundred and twenty years old; “his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated” (34:7).

Where? The pin is at Jabal al-Naba, OpenBible.info's leading candidate for Mount Nebo. Ras Siyagha, about 2 km to the west where the Memorial of Moses stands, is a close second candidate for Nebo and is also taken as the top of Pisgah.

Gilgal (Joshua 1 – 5)

The priests carry the ark into the flooded Jordan. The water stops upstream at Adam, and Israel crosses on dry ground. They camp at Gilgal and set up twelve stones.

Crossing the Jordan

“Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan” (Joshua 1:2). Joshua sent two spies from Shittim to Jericho, where Rahab hid them (Joshua 2).

that the waters which came down from above stood, and rose up in one heap, a great way off, at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan; and those that went down toward the sea of the Arabah, even the Salt Sea, were wholly cut off: and the people passed over right against Jericho.

They camped at Gilgal “on the tenth day of the first month” (4:19) and set up twelve stones from the river (4:20). There the men were circumcised and they kept the passover, and “the manna ceased on the morrow” (5:12).

Where? The pin is at Khirbet el-Mefjir, north-east of Jericho, OpenBible.info's leading candidate; the site is not certain. Adam is Tell ed-Damiyeh, about 25 km to the north, marked on the map at close zoom.

Jericho (Joshua 6)

Israel marches round Jericho once a day for six days, and seven times on the seventh. At the trumpet blast and the shout, the wall falls down flat.

Jericho

So the people shouted, and the priests blew the trumpets; and it came to pass, when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, that the people shouted with a great shout, and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city.

Rahab and her household were spared (Joshua 6:22–25). “By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they had been compassed about for seven days” (Hebrews 11:30).

The site is Tell es-Sultan, a secure identification. Jericho fell c. 1406 BC, as Israel entered Canaan forty years after the exodus.

Ai (Joshua 7 – 8:29)

Achan's hidden theft brings defeat at Ai. Once Achan is judged, Joshua takes the city by an ambush.

Ai

The first attack failed, and “the hearts of the people melted, and became as water” (Joshua 7:5). Achan had kept part of the spoil of Jericho; he was stoned in the valley of Achor (7:1, 24–26).

And Jehovah said unto Joshua, Stretch out the javelin that is in thy hand toward Ai; for I will give it into thy hand. And Joshua stretched out the javelin that was in his hand toward the city.

“So Joshua burnt Ai, and made it a heap for ever” (8:28).

Where was Ai? Disputed. The pin is at et-Tell, OpenBible.info's leading candidate. Digs at et-Tell found little or no town from the periods usually proposed for Joshua, so some prefer Khirbet el-Maqatir, about 1 km to the west.

Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim (Joshua 8:30–35; Deuteronomy 11:29; 27:12–13)

Joshua builds an altar on Mount Ebal, writes a copy of the law on stones, and reads the blessing and the curse to all Israel.

The blessing and the curse

Then Joshua built an altar unto Jehovah, the God of Israel, in mount Ebal,

Half the people stood “in front of mount Gerizim, and half of them in front of mount Ebal” (Joshua 8:33), as Moses had commanded (Deuteronomy 11:29; 27:12–13).

“There was not a word of all that Moses commanded, which Joshua read not before all the assembly of Israel” (8:35).

The two mountains face each other across the valley at Shechem. The pin marks Mount Ebal; Mount Gerizim is about 4 km to the south.

Gibeon (Joshua 10:1–15)

Five Amorite kings attack Gibeon. Joshua marches all night from Gilgal and routs them. Hailstones fall, and the sun stands still.

The day the sun stood still

The kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish and Eglon besieged Gibeon because it had made peace with Israel (Joshua 10:1–5).

“Joshua therefore came upon them suddenly; for he went up from Gilgal all the night” (10:9).

Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; And thou, Moon, in the valley of Aijalon.

“There was no day like that before it or after it … for Jehovah fought for Israel” (10:14).

The site is el-Jib, a secure identification.

Makkedah (Joshua 10:10–28)

The enemy flees down the pass of Beth-horon toward Azekah and Makkedah. The five kings hide in a cave at Makkedah and are put to death.

The five kings

Israel chased them “by the way of the ascent of Beth-horon, and smote them to Azekah, and unto Makkedah” (Joshua 10:10). The line on the map follows that route.

And Joshua said unto them, Fear not, nor be dismayed; be strong and of good courage: for thus shall Jehovah do to all your enemies against whom ye fight.

Joshua took Makkedah that day (10:28).

Where? The pin is at Khirbet el-Qom, OpenBible.info's leading but tentative candidate.

Libnah (Joshua 10:29–30)

“Joshua passed from Makkedah, and all Israel with him, unto Libnah”, and the LORD gave it into Israel's hand.

Libnah

Libnah's king is in the list of defeated kings (Joshua 12:15).

Where? The pin is at Tell Bornat, OpenBible.info's leading but tentative candidate. Several other mounds in the lowland are also proposed.

Lachish (Joshua 10:31–33)

Lachish falls on the second day. Horam king of Gezer comes to help it and is defeated.

Lachish

“Jehovah delivered Lachish into the hand of Israel; and he took it on the second day” (Joshua 10:32).

The site is Tell ed-Duweir (Tel Lachish), a secure identification.

Eglon (Joshua 10:34–35)

Joshua takes Eglon in a single day.

Eglon

“They took it on that day, and smote it with the edge of the sword” (Joshua 10:35).

Where? The pin is at Tell Eton, OpenBible.info's leading candidate. Tel Hesi is the main alternative.

Debir (Joshua 10:38–39; 15:15–17)

Joshua turns back to Debir and takes it with its king.

Debir

“As he had done to Hebron, so he did to Debir, and to the king thereof” (Joshua 10:39).

Debir was once called Kiriath-sepher. Joshua 15:15–17 tells how Othniel later took it for Caleb.

Where? The pin is at Khirbet Rabud, OpenBible.info's leading candidate. Tell Beit Mirsim was the older identification.

Waters of Merom (Joshua 11:1–9)

Jabin king of Hazor gathers the kings of the north, with horses and chariots “very many”. Joshua falls on them suddenly by the waters of Merom.

The northern kings

They came as “much people, even as the sand that is upon the sea-shore in multitude” (Joshua 11:4).

And Jehovah said unto Joshua, Be not afraid because of them; for to-morrow at this time will I deliver them up all slain before Israel: thou shalt hock their horses, and burn their chariots with fire.

Israel chased them “unto great Sidon” (11:8).

Where? Uncertain. OpenBible.info's candidates are all weak; the pin is at its top one, the spring of En Meron near Mount Meron. Others look to springs near the town of Merom further north, and an older view put the battle at Lake Huleh.

Hazor (Joshua 11:10–23; 12)

Of the northern cities that stood on their mounds, Joshua burns only Hazor, “the head of all those kingdoms”. The long war ends, “and the land had rest from war”.

Hazor

And they smote all the souls that were therein with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying them; there was none left that breathed: and he burnt Hazor with fire.

“Joshua made war a long time with all those kings” (Joshua 11:18). Joshua 12 lists the kings defeated: Sihon and Og east of the Jordan, and thirty-one kings west of it, including Jericho, Ai and Hazor.

The site is Tel Hazor, a secure identification and one of the largest mounds in the land.

Shiloh (Joshua 18:1–10; 21:43–45)

The tent of meeting is set up at Shiloh. Joshua casts lots before the LORD and divides the rest of the land among the seven remaining tribes.

Shiloh

“The whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled themselves together at Shiloh, and set up the tent of meeting there” (Joshua 18:1).

Joshua asked, “How long are ye slack to go in to possess the land?” (18:3). Men walked through the land and described it in seven portions, and Joshua cast lots for them at Shiloh (18:8–10).

There failed not aught of any good thing which Jehovah had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass.

Much land still remained to be possessed (13:1), and the fighting went on after Joshua's death (Judges 1). The site is Khirbet Seilun, a secure identification.

Rameses: out of Egypt

By the sea (Exodus 14:1–14; Numbers 33:7)

God tells Israel to “turn back and encamp before Pihahiroth, between Migdol and the sea”. Pharaoh's army overtakes them there.

Hemmed in by the sea

Pharaoh would say, “They are entangled in the land, the wilderness hath shut them in” (Exodus 14:3). His chariots overtook Israel “encamping by the sea, beside Pihahiroth, before Baal-zephon” (14:9).

And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of Jehovah, which he will work for you to-day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to-day, ye shall see them again no more for ever.

Jehovah will fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.

This point is a placement, not a site. Pi-hahiroth, Migdol and Baal-zephon have not been found. The point sits on the west shore of the northern Gulf of Suez only because the chart draws the crossing there (see the next step). OpenBible.info's leading candidate for Pi-hahiroth is far to the north, near Tell Defenneh, which would suit a crossing at the lakes instead.

Through the sea (Exodus 14:15 – 15:21)

Moses stretches out his hand, and Israel goes “into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground”. The waters return and cover Pharaoh's army.

The crossing of the sea

And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and Jehovah caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all the night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.

And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.

The Egyptians followed, and the sea came back upon them; “there remained not so much as one of them” (Exodus 14:28). Moses and Israel sang to the LORD, and Miriam answered them: “Sing ye to Jehovah, for he hath triumphed gloriously; The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea” (15:21).

Where did they cross? No one knows for certain. The Hebrew name of the sea, yam suph, can also be read "sea of reeds". The chart draws the crossing over the northern Gulf of Suez, OpenBible.info's top-ranked identification for this sea. Close behind are the Bitter Lakes, then Lake Timsah and the Ballah Lakes, along the line of the modern Suez Canal. Some place the crossing at the Gulf of Aqaba (at Nuweiba), a view OpenBible.info ranks low. The dashed line shows only the chart's choice.

Kadesh: the spies and the refusal (Numbers 12:16 – 14:38)

Moses sends twelve men to spy out Canaan. Ten spies say the land “eateth up the inhabitants thereof”. Only Joshua and Caleb urge the people to go up. The people refuse, and God sentences them to forty years in the wilderness.

The spies and the refusal

Moses sent the twelve “by the South” into the hill-country (Numbers 13:17). They searched the land “from the wilderness of Zin unto Rehob, to the entrance of Hamath” (13:21). Near Hebron, in the valley of Eshcol, they cut a cluster of grapes that two men carried on a staff (13:23). They came back after forty days (13:25). The map does not draw their route.

The spies agreed that the land “floweth with milk and honey” (Numbers 13:27), but ten of them said, “We are not able to go up against the people” (13:31).

Caleb said, “Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it” (13:30).

The people wept and said, “Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt” (14:4). Joshua and Caleb pleaded, “Jehovah is with us: fear them not” (14:9).

After the number of the days in which ye spied out the land, even forty days, for every day a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, even forty years, and ye shall know my alienation.

Of that generation, only Joshua and Caleb would enter the land (14:30, 38).

The wilderness years

Kadesh again: Meribah and Edom (Numbers 20:1–21; 33:36)

In the wilderness of Zin, Miriam dies. With no water, Moses strikes the rock instead of speaking to it, and he and Aaron are barred from the land. Edom refuses Israel passage.

Back at Kadesh

Israel came into the wilderness of Zin “in the first month: and the people abode in Kadesh; and Miriam died there” (Numbers 20:1). The text does not give the year; it is usually taken as the fortieth, the year Aaron died (33:38).

The LORD told Moses to speak to the rock. Instead Moses said, “Hear now, ye rebels; shall we bring you forth water out of this rock?” and struck it twice (20:10–11).

Because ye believed not in me, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.

Edom refuses. Moses asked the king of Edom to let Israel go along “the king’s highway” (20:17). Edom answered, “Thou shalt not pass through me” (20:18), and Israel turned away (20:21).

Over the Arnon: Dibon-gad

The plains of Moab

Balaam at Bamoth-baal

Shittim: Baal-peor and Moses' last words (Numbers 25 – 36; Deuteronomy 1 – 33)

Israel worships Baal-peor with the women of Moab. A new census is taken, Joshua is chosen to succeed Moses, and Moses gives his farewell words in Deuteronomy.

The last days of Moses

“Israel abode in Shittim; and the people began to play the harlot with the daughters of Moab” (Numbers 25:1), and Israel joined himself to Baal-peor (25:3).

• A new census counted the next generation. Of those counted at Sinai, none was left “save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun” (26:65).
• Moses laid his hands on Joshua and gave him a charge (27:18–23).
• Moses spoke the words of Deuteronomy “in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month” (Deuteronomy 1:3).

And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by everything that proceedeth out of the mouth of Jehovah doth man live.

(Deuteronomy 8:3)

Mount Nebo: the death of Moses

Across the Jordan to Gilgal

Gilgal: the Gibeonites (Joshua 9)

Men of Gibeon come to the camp at Gilgal in worn-out clothes, claiming to be from a far country. Israel makes a covenant with them without asking the LORD.

The Gibeonites' trick

They brought dry, mouldy bread and old, torn wine-skins (Joshua 9:4–5, 12–13).

“The men took of their provision, and asked not counsel at the mouth of Jehovah” (9:14).

Three days later Israel learned that they were neighbors. Bound by their oath, the princes let them live, and the Gibeonites became “hewers of wood and drawers of water” (9:21).

Hebron taken (Joshua 10:36–37; 14:6–15)

Joshua goes up from Eglon to Hebron and takes it. Hebron is later given to Caleb, one of the two faithful spies.

Hebron

“Joshua went up from Eglon, and all Israel with him, unto Hebron; and they fought against it” (Joshua 10:36).

Forty-five years after the spies' mission, Caleb, now eighty-five, reminded Joshua of what the LORD had said at Kadesh-barnea (14:6–10).

And Joshua blessed him; and he gave Hebron unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh for an inheritance.

Back to Gilgal (Joshua 10:40–43)

The south is taken “from Kadesh-barnea even unto Gaza”, and Joshua returns to the camp at Gilgal.

The south taken

And all these kings and their land did Joshua take at one time, because Jehovah, the God of Israel, fought for Israel.

“And Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, unto the camp to Gilgal” (Joshua 10:43).

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