Psalms 78:12

Marvellous things did he in the sight of their fathers,.... The Targum is,"before Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and the tribes of their fathers, he did marvellous things;''but these were dead before this time; the Jews have a fancy, that these were brought to the sea, and placed upon it; and the Lord showed them what he would do for their children, and how he would redeem them; but this is to be understood of the plagues which were brought upon the Egyptians, and which are called wonders, Ex 11:10, and were so to the Egyptians themselves; and these were done by the hands of Moses and Aaron, and in their sight:in the land of Egypt; where the Israelites were in bondage, and while they were there, and on their account were these things done:in the field of Zoan; that is, in the territory of Zoan, which was an ancient city of Egypt, Nu 13:22, the metropolis of the land where Pharaoh kept his court; hence we read of the princes of Zoan, Isa 19:11, it is the same with Tanis, and so it is called here in the Septuagint and Vulgate Latin versions, and also in the Targum; it is said to have been two miles from Heliopolis, and one from Memphis; and at this day these three cities are become one, which is fifteen miles in compass, and goes by the name of Alcair.