Biblical Mount Sinai - Biblical Description

Biblical Description

According to the biblical account of the law-giving, Sinai was enveloped in a cloud, it quaked and was filled with smoke, while lightning-flashes shot forth, and the roar of thunder mingled with the blasts of a trumpet; the account later adds that fire was seen burning at the summit of the mountain. Several scholars have indicated that it seems to suggest that Sinai was a volcano, although there is no mention of ash although not all volcanos generate ash; other scholars have suggested that the description fits a storm, especially as the Song of Deborah seems to allude to rain having occurred at the time, although volcanic activity can cause storms.

In the biblical account, the fire and clouds are a direct consequence of the arrival of God upon the mountain. The biblical description of God's descent seems to be in conflict with the statement shortly after that God spoke to the Israelites from heaven. While textual scholars argue that these passages are from different sources, the Mekhilta argues that God had lowered the heavens and spread them over Sinai, and the Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer argues that a hole was torn in the heavens, and Sinai was torn away from the earth and the summit pushed through the hole. 'The heavens' could be a metaphor for clouds and the 'lake of fire' could be a metaphor for the lava-filled crater.

According to the biblical story, Moses departed to the mountain and stayed there for 40 days and nights in order to receive the Ten Commandments, and he did so twice because he broke the first set of the tablets of stone after returning from the mountain for the first time. He returned with a 'glowing' face.