grasses or something like that, which puts you in mind of a fairly shallow body of water. reporter: somehow a swamp crossing doesn t quite measure up to hollywood s the ten commandments. the israelites passed through the sea on dry land, and the water was like a wall on their right and on their left. and the egyptians are coming on their chariots and coming in. they re trying to get through that patch. and god stopped their chariot wheels. so the sea came crashing upon them and they all drowned on the command of moses staff. reporter: 12-year-old samara schaub has been studying this story as she prepares for her bat mitzvah. and it s also the story that jews commemorate every year during the passover seder. these words have so much meaning, and this song in particular is really symbolizing our freedom because this is the song that they sing once they
it. reporter: we ve made it to the top of mount sinai. the sun has risen and we re amongst pilgrims from all over the world. and perhaps the sheer physical effort of getting up here pretty rough. adds to the spirituality. glory, glory hallelujah the view is out of this world. and it seems fitting that this is the first and only place the bible says man ever came face to face with god. no matter what your faith, what happened here, this part of the exodus story, this part of moses story has affected all of us for millennia. his truth is marching on
conquest of land in the promised land. reporter: the bible tells us that before his death on mount nebo, with guidance from god, moses chose a man named joshua to lead the israelites on the last leg of their journey. and so we have this real transition, a handing over of power from one generation to the next, where moses and his generation have been wandering it s the story of wandering for 40 years, joshua s more action-packed. this is where they come on in and they take over. fought the battle of jericho reporter: as told in the book of joshua the conquest of canaan has all the trappings of a summer blockbuster. and the walls came tumbling down sounds luke a movike a movii. it s an action-packed scene. reporter: with the ark of the covenant leading the way, joshua crossed the river jordan with his army. i m sure this is an elite fighting force. reporter: the conquest of jericho is one in which god is clearly in the role of a divine
headed east into the sinai desert, following the trail of yet another complicated biblical hero. moses, wanted for murdering an egyptian slave driver who was beating up an israelite worker. the bible says that moses traveled this way to flee the pharaoh s death sentence. so we re whizzing through this desert at top speed because of the potential danger. tension was growing in egypt as people waited for the result of their first democratic presidential election. in the political turmoil authorities were losing control of this remote, bandit-ridden region. there are bedouins around here who have been attacking vehicles as they go through this part of the sinai during this time of political confusion in egypt. our guide has put on a head scarf to try to blend in a little bit more. and he s also carrying a gun. wait. you have a gun, sir? yes. when was the last time someone was kidnapped?
do you think they if somebody feels the energy of the place, he doesn t have to be a believer in a certain kind of tradition or certain kind of belief but where he touched the stone and felt the energy i think at the end of the day, yes, he has something he took something from this holy spirit back with him. a little belief. a little belief, yes. i don t know how long it will last, but i think a little bit, yes. are people trying to be detectives? are they trying to uncover something? well, some people prefer to leave it as it is, and some people i know that still look and wants to find the ark of the covenant. i don t know if somebody will find it. and i don t know what s remain after more than 2,500 years. what was once a container for moses and a weapon for joshua and even an earthly home for god in solomon s time is now something much more than that. the idea of the ark and the search for it excites and inspires so many to explore the