Wilderness of Sin
SIN, WILDERNESS OF (Heb. מִדְבַּר־סִ֔ין, a name prob. derived from the moon god Sin). Not to be confused with the wilderness of Zin (q.v.) in the northern Negev. The wilderness of Sin lies further S on the route followed by the Hebrews from Egypt to [[Mount Sinai]] (Exod 16:1; 17:1; Num 33:11, 12). Some have suggested it is Debbet er-Ramleh, a sandy tract of desert in the interior of the Sinai Peninsula at the foot of Jebel et-Tih, in the SW of Sinai. Others believe it refers to the desert plain el-Merkha on the W coast of Sinai half-way between the head of the Red Sea and the tip of the Sinai Peninsula. Suggestions are guesses and the exact location is unknown. (See also article [[Mount Sinai]] for discussion on the routes of the Exodus, with which the problem of the location of “Sin” is associated.)