Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Walter Mattfeld" <mattfeld AT mail.pjsnet.com>]

Yam Suph

I note that there are several different theories as to the location of Yam
Suph as well as divergent views as to the word's etymology.

The most commonly accepted etymology is that Suph is a Hebrew rendering of
Egyptian tuwf or reed, so some prefer to translate the Hebrew Bible's Yam
Suph as "Reed Sea." Of course there is a problem here, in that Reeds do not
grow in the waters of the Red Sea. To get around that problem, some suggest
that the crossing of the sea must have been further north in an area
possessing fresh waters, where marsh reeds could thrive. So, the Bitter
lakes or Lake Timsah or some other northern site above Timsah. The problem
with these sites however, is that while their fresh waters permit reeds to
thrive (reeds can thrive near estuaries where fresh and salt waters mix as
in Lower Mesopotamia), the Hebrew Bible quite explicitly tells us that Ezion
Geber and Elath lie on Yam Suph (1Kings 9:26) which suggests it is the Red
Sea that is being envisioned for the miracle of Pharaoh's army being
overwhelmed by the waters, most likely near modern Suez, as preserved in
some late Jewish and Early Christian traditions.

Suph is rendered from Hebrew cuwph (Strong 5488). Note also Strong 5486,
cuwf, a primitive root; to snatch away, i.e. to terminate. consume, have an
end, perish; and Strong 5487 (a Chaldean word) to come to an end- consume,
fufil.

Perhaps the Hebrews came to call the Sea Yam Suph because in it Pharaoh's
host was believed to have been "snatched away and terminated" by God ? Batto
has suggested Yam Suph might mean Sea of "the end," that is, it marks the
end of the world.

I note that the Assyrians and Elamites called the Persian Gulf Tamtu
Shupalitu/Shaplitu. The Greeks understood that the "Red Sea" extended from
Egypt to Babylonia and Persia, in other words the Persian gulf was also part
of the Red Sea. Might there be a relationship here between Hebrew Suph and
Shup-/Shap-(litu), might all three be referring to the same body of water
extending from Egypt to Babylonia-Persia ???

All the best,

Walter

Walter Reinhold Warttig Mattfeld
Walldorf by Heidelberg
Baden-Wurttemburg
Germany