Sinai, Mount (הַר סִינָי, har sinay; ὄρος Σινᾶ, oros Sina). The place of God’s theophany to the generation of the exodus, and the place where the Ten Commandments were given to the Israelites

Mount Sinai is the location where Israel received the Ten Commandments from God after the departure from Egypt and the crossing of the Red Sea. It remains a critical location in the history of Israel and a key component of their national identity.

The name Sinai refers not only to the mountain, but to the region surrounding the mountain. The name Sinai (סיני, syny) is of uncertain origin, though it likely derives from the moon god Sin who was worshiped by the desert peoples (Elwell and Beitzel, “Sinai, Sina”). There are a number of mountains in the Sinai wilderness, and Mount Sinai is also called Horeb (e.g., Exod 3:1; 33:6; Deut 1:6, 19; 4:10, 15; 5:2; 1 Kgs 8:9; 19:8; Mal 4:4). Some scholars have suggested that since the name “Horeb” is preferred by the Deuteronomist, it refers to a different mountain and tradition that was later conflated with the Sinai narratives. Sinai is the more general term—“the mountain in the wilderness of Sinai”—and Horeb the more specific, regional term (Craigie, Book of Deuteronomy, 91).