Product Description

Review quotes

‘To the biblical text Colin Humphreys brings old maps, the latest science and a new explanation of the whereabouts of Mount Sinai. This is a simply fascinating, and extremely readable, study of the Israelites in Egypt and on the desert way to Sinai.’ Robert Gordon, Regius Professor of Hebrew, University of Cambridge

‘Professor Humphreys uses his scientific approach to propose a strikingly novel interpretation of the Exodus story that will interest many students of the Bible. He writes in a style that combines clarity with something of the excitement of a detective story.’ Rev. Dr John Polkinghorne, Templeton Prize winner, and author of Belief in God in an Age of Science

‘Science and religion are frequently thought to be at odds. However, Colin Humphreys is a distinguished scientist who believes that painstaking research can shed light on areas often dismissed as inaccessible. Lively and clearly written for a wide audience, The Miracles of Exodus offers a radical insight into one of the Bible’s best-known episodes. This book will re-open the question of what happened when the Hebrews left Egypt for the Promised Land.’ John Ray, Professor of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of Cambridge

About the book

Did the Red Sea really part before the Israelites? Why didn’t the fire consume the Burning Bush? What was the Manna in the Wilderness? The Miracles of Exodus explores the truth about these and all the other Exodus mysteries, including the precise locations of the Red Sea Crossing and the route of the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt 3,000 years ago. This investigative tour de force explains the Ten Plagues, the true location of Mount Sinai, the ultimate crossing of the Jordan and much more. Colin Humphreys, a distinguished British scientist, uses physics, astronomy, biology and other scientific resources to show that the mysteries and miracles of the Exodus have scientific explanations. These explanations allow us to pinpoint the exact nature, time and place of these miracles, and to reconstruct, for the first time, the true route of the Exodus.

This book reveals what really happened and how the biblical account is remarkably accurate and historical when scientifically investigated. Profusely illustrated with maps, photographs and explanatory tables, this book by one of the world’s great scientists unlocks the mysteries of the ultimate Bible story in a fascinating and convincing way.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #318368 in Books
• Published on: 2004-05-27
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 362 pages

Synopsis
After seven years of meticulous research Colin Humphreys has written a fascinating and involving book on the miracles of Exodus and the Israelites' escape from Egypt. Although Humphreys uses science to explain the events of Exodus he does not believe that this makes them any less miraculous - rather, God is the force behind the science. The author answers key questions about the Exodus, such as how many Israelites were involved and how they manage to survive in the desert for 40 years. He argues that the Israelites did indeed cross over the Red Sea (and not the Reed Sea as some scholars claim) and that the real Mount Sinai is not in the Sinai Peninsula but is a volcano in Arabia. Humphreys provides convincing biblical evidence to support his views and his treatment of the subject is fresh, passionate and often amusing. Humphreys concludes: 'I am well aware that most scholars believe the book of Exodus is riddled with errors and inconsistencies. I've subjected the biblical text to a real grilling in this book, and I can only stand back in amazement at its accuracy and consistency, down to points of tiny detail...The Exodus story revealed in this book is truly astonishing, amazing a

About the Author
About the author

Colin Humphreys is a renowned Cambridge University physicist who has received considerable publicity for his ideas and research, which span many fields from computer chips to microprinting, eternal lightbulbs and computer chips in the brain. His passion for more than 20 years has been examining the Bible in the light of science, and he is expert not only in physics but chemistry, astronomy and geology. He is president of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining, Goldsmiths’ Professor of Materials Science, head of the Rolls Royce University Technology Centre at the University of Cambridge, and a past chairman of Christians in Science for the United Kingdom. He was recently honoured by the Queen with the title of Commander, Order of the British Empire, for services to science research and communication.

Humphreys is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, Fellow of the Institute of Physics and a Fellow of the Institute of Materials. He has been awarded an Honorary D.Sc. by the University of Leicester. He has been president of the Physics section of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. He has published over 400 scientific papers and given plenary lectures at major international conferences throughout the world.

Customer Reviews

Good subject, well thought out, shame about the style.
A fascinating subject, beautifully reasoned, but spoiled by frequent repetition, often within the same page. Eventually I found it so annoying I gave up.

Must be read!
Like other reviewers, I started out a little unkeen on the writing style - BUT I quickly became enthralled by the evidence pressented, the author's reasoning and fascinating conclusions! I couldn't wait to get home from work each day and read more. This book should definately be read by anyone interested in the Exodus, miracles, and biblical accuracy, and probably by everyone else too. Colin Humphreys' suggestions are surely worthy of further acedemic scrutiny.

The unusual conversational writing style does have the advantage of making the book very easily readable, and totally understandable even for someone with little biblical knowledge. The author has taken pains to set out explicitly what he is and isn't asserting. Though, as others have commented, this can be a little laborious in places, it must have been essential in order to prevent misunderstandings, maintain accuracy, and ensure bringing the reader along as the chapters progress.

Wonderful!

Fascinating Content; frustrating Style
Other reviewers have written at length about this book. Most agree that the content is fascintating, and I would personally want to give the book 5 stars on this basis. Everyone with a serious interest in Old Testament theology shoujld read it.

Very mixed opinions have been expressed about the presentation. For me, the grossly repetitious style seriously detracted from my reading experience. I felt that if a copy editor had gone through the text and put a red line through about half of it, the result might then have been truly prize winning!

Incidentally, for a book published in 2004, the quality of the pictures and the maps is extremely disappointing, but I guess the fault here is more down to a publisher keen to cut costs than to the author!

Overall, I'd give the book 4 stars. As I've implied, I'd give it few if any stars for style, but the fascinting nature of the basic content has to be the thing that counts here.