Sinai
    n 1: a mountain peak in the southern Sinai Peninsula (7,500 feet
         high); it is believed to be the peak on which Moses
         received the Ten Commandments [syn: Sinai, Mount Sinai]
    2: a desert on the Sinai Peninsula in northeastern Egypt [syn:
       Sinai, Sinai Desert]
    3: a peninsula in northeastern Egypt; at north end of Red Sea
       [syn: Sinai, Sinai Peninsula]

Sinai
   of Sin (the moon god), called also Horeb, the name of the
   mountain district which was reached by the Hebrews in the third
   month after the Exodus. Here they remained encamped for about a
   whole year. Their journey from the Red Sea to this encampment,
   including all the windings of the route, was about 150 miles.
   The last twenty-two chapters of Exodus, together with the whole
   of Leviticus and Num. ch. 1-11, contain a record of all the
   transactions which occurred while they were here. From Rephidim
   (Ex. 17:8-13) the Israelites journeyed forward through the Wady
   Solaf and Wady esh-Sheikh into the plain of er-Rahah, "the
   desert of Sinai," about 2 miles long and half a mile broad, and
   encamped there "before the mountain." The part of the mountain
   range, a protruding lower bluff, known as the Ras Sasafeh
   (Sufsafeh), rises almost perpendicularly from this plain, and is
   in all probability the Sinai of history. Dean Stanley thus
   describes the scene:, "The plain itself is not broken and uneven
   and narrowly shut in, like almost all others in the range, but
   presents a long retiring sweep, within which the people could
   remove and stand afar off. The cliff, rising like a huge altar
   in front of the whole congregation, and visible against the sky
   in lonely grandeur from end to end of the whole plain, is the
   very image of the 'mount that might be touched,' and from which
   the voice of God might be heard far and wide over the plain
   below." This was the scene of the giving of the law. From the
   Ras Sufsafeh the law was proclaimed to the people encamped below
   in the plain of er-Rahah. During the lengthened period of their
   encampment here the Israelites passed through a very memorable
   experience. An immense change passed over them. They are now an
   organized nation, bound by covenant engagement to serve the Lord
   their God, their ever-present divine Leader and Protector. At
   length, in the second month of the second year of the Exodus,
   they move their camp and march forward according to a prescribed
   order. After three days they reach the "wilderness of Paran,"
   the "et-Tih", i.e., "the desert", and here they make their first
   encampment. At this time a spirit of discontent broke out
   amongst them, and the Lord manifested his displeasure by a fire
   which fell on the encampment and inflicted injury on them. Moses
   called the place Taberah (q.v.), Num. 11:1-3. The journey
   between Sinai and the southern boundary of the Promised Land
   (about 150 miles) at Kadesh was accomplished in about a year.
   (See MAP facing page 204.)
   

Sinai, a bush; enmity

Sinai, SD -- U.S. town in South Dakota
   Population (2000):    133
   Housing Units (2000): 62
   Land area (2000):     0.365390 sq. miles (0.946355 sq. km)
   Water area (2000):    0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km)
   Total area (2000):    0.365390 sq. miles (0.946355 sq. km)
   FIPS code:            58900
   Located within:       South Dakota (SD), FIPS 46
   Location:             44.245039 N, 97.043380 W
   ZIP Codes (1990):     57061
   Note: some ZIP codes may be omitted esp. for suburbs.
   Headwords:
    Sinai, SD
    Sinai