Judaism
מִדְבַּר צִן
Wilderness of Zin
“An endless wilderness, and water springing from the dry ground”
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Photo: Godot13 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Scenes
Meaning
A dry canyon winds between pale limestone cliffs, and from a shaded crack in the rock a thin spring wets the moss.
Hebrew tradition holds that Israel spent forty years in the wilderness on the way from Sinai to the promised land, and the Wilderness of Zin is honored as a place where they long remained, at Kadesh. The story of Moses striking the rock so that water flowed — Meribah — is set against this dry land.
Field notes
- Location
- Negev · Wilderness of Zin · N30.8° · E34.8°
- Best time
- Early morning and dusk, when the light falls low and slanting
- Getting there
- From around Sde Boker in the Negev, into the desert canyon of Nahal Zin.
- Etiquette
- Protect the desert springs and their life, and keep to the marked paths.
Sources
- · Encyclopaedia Britannica
- · Hebrew Bible, Book of Numbers
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