Many of the miracles of the Bible can be explained by science, according to a Cambridge University professor.
Professor Colin Humphreys claims in a new book that phenomena described in Exodus can be shown to have natural causes, which science can explain.
The book The Miracles of Exodus gives scientific explanations for a number of miracles including the burning bush that was not consumed, the 10 plagues of Egypt and the crossing of the Red Sea.
One of the other explanations offered by Professor Humphreys, Cambridge University's Goldsmith's Professor of Materials Science, is for the parting of the Red Sea.
'Blown by the wind'
He believes this happened in the Red Sea at the Gulf of Aqaba and was the result of a strong wind blowing water away from the coast.
He said: "This effect will happen with a long and narrow body of water.
"At Lake Erie in America, which is long and narrow, a strong wind will result in one end being up to 16 feet higher than the other end - simply due to the effect of it being blown by the wind.
"I've done the maths and the calculations for what would happen with a hurricane force wind of 80 mph in the Gulf of Aqaba.
'Egyptians were drowned'
"The water would be pushed out from the seashore and would create a wall of water about four or five feet tall and maybe 800 yards out to sea.
"Usually when you get a strong wind it dies down gradually but if it was to suddenly stop you could get a huge wall of water travelling at 16 feet per second which would explain how the Egyptians who were chasing the Israelites were drowned."
His book is currently available in the US from Harper Collins for the retail price of $24.95.
It will be on sale in the UK in July 2003 by Continuum publishing house.
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