Pharaoh of Exodus (original) (raw)
Who was The Pharaoh at the Exodus
2019
The pharaoh of the Israel's exodus from Egypt has long been a matter of fertile conjecture. Those who don't use the Hebrew Scriptures as their authority either place it in the reign of Ramses II or deny it altogether, and those who do hold to the numbers we have in scripture place it about 1446 BC which is at odds with the archaeological evidence we have. This paper gives evidence to support the conclusion of the 3rd century historian, Africanus, that the pharaoh of the Exodus was a contemporary of Ahmos, ( in the mid 1500's BC).
Who Was the Pharaoh of the Exodus?
An attempt to fix a date for the Exodus of the Hebrew slaves from the land of Egypt remains an intriguing quest for scholars and students of the Bible. The endeavor is frustrated significantly in that no exact date or name of any Pharaoh is given in the biblical text. Those two identities are inseparably linked, as definitively knowing one would result in knowing the other. And not knowing either one definitively has resulted in centuries of debate regarding the date of the Exodus, with sides being drawn favoring one of two commonly accepted dates. In "Rethinking the Exodus" another line of research is discussed that may help identify the Pharaoh of the Exodus, which would then settle the Date of the Exodus.
Rethinking the Pentateuch's place in Egyptian history
Two ancient historians correctly aligned Isaac, Jacob and Joseph to the 19th Egyptian Dynasty. 20th century biblical archaeologists dismissed those historians (Manetho and Bar Hebraeus) and proceeded to misinterpret the archaeological evidence and get the early history of Israel terribly wrong. Not every destroyed city in Canaan was destroyed by Joshua, whose conquest of Canaan did not occur until 1084 BC. The problem is chronology, Literal Bible chronologies placed Moses and Joshua no later than Egypt’s 19th Dynasty, which is best known for the powerful pharaoh Ramesses II (1279-1213). However, in Deuteronomy 34:7, Moses likely lived 120 seasons, not years. If the seasons were winter and summer, that’s just 60 years, consistent with the claim that “his eyes were not weak, nor his strength gone.” A systematic correction of this factor of 2 error leads to a contraction of the Pentateuch’s chronology, bringing earlier patriarchs Isaac, Jacob and Joseph into alignment with Egypt’s 19th Dynasty. Joseph then matches an Asiatic commoner named chancellor Bay, who became ruler of Egypt in the late 19th Dynasty, prior to being executed in year 5 of the 20th Dynasty pharaoh Ramesses III (1185-1154). Matching Joseph to Bay places Moses even later. This supports the 3rd century BC Egyptian historian Manetho’s account of the Exodus. Manetho listed Egypt’s kings through the 19th Dynasty, then described a (later) rivalry between Moses and a king named Amenophis. In Chronography, Bar Hebraeus called the same political rival Amonpathis. Moses'' rival, Amenophis/Amonpathis, matches a high priest named Amenhotep whose power rivaled that of his contemporary, pharaoh Ramesses IX (1125-1107). Thus, with normal lifetimes as a guide, a historical match to Joseph is found – much as the Bible describes him. Manetho described Moses first ruling Egypt for 13 years, then fleeing when king Amenophis and his son returned from exile in Ethiopia. This could only have occurred during the late 20th Dynasty, at the time of Ramesses X and Ramesses XI. Further investigation leads to the conclusion that Moses was the de facto ruler of Egypt during an era within the reign of Ramesses XI which was mysteriously called the "Repeating of Births" (i.e. a restoration of the 19th Dynasty -- when Isaac, Jacob and Joseph held great political power). Conflicting accounts of the Exodus (Hebrew vs. Egyptian) can now be evaluated in this historical context.
Moses and the Exodus: what evidence?
To be or not to be is a crucial question regarding Moses as well as the Exodus because, according to the Bible, the character related to that famous event forms the basis of the Passover which meant the Promised Land for Jews and later the Paradise for Christians. However, according to most Egyptologists, there is absolutely no evidence of Moses and the Exodus in Egyptian documents, which leads them to conclude that the whole biblical story is a myth written for gullible people. Ironically, if one considers that “truth” must be based on two pillars: an accurate chronology anchored on absolute dates (Herodotus’ principle) and reliable documents coming from critical editions (Thucydides’ principle), that implies an amazing conclusion: those who believe Egyptologists are actually the real gullible ones. According to Egyptian accounts the last king of the XVth dynasty, named Apopi, “very pretty” in Hebrew that is Moses’ birth name (Ex 2:2), reigned 40 years in Egypt from 1613 to 1573 BCE, then 40 years later he met Seqenenre Taa the last pharaoh of the XVIIth dynasty and gave him an unspecified disturbing message. The eldest son of Seqenenre Taa, Ahmose Sapaïr, who was crown prince died in a dramatic and unexplained way shortly before his father. Seqenenre Taa died in May 1533 BCE, after 11 years of reign, in dramatic and unclear circumstances. The state of his mummy proves, however, that his body received severe injuries, in agreement with Psalms 136:15, and remained abandoned for several days before being mummified. Prince Kamose, Seqenenre Taa's brother, assured interim of authority for 3 years and threatened attack the former pharaoh Apopi, new prince of Retenu (Palestine) who took the name Moses, according to Manetho (280 BCE), an Egyptian priest and historian. In the stele of the Tempest, Kamose also blames Apopi for all the disasters that come to fall upon Egypt, which caused many deaths.
Hershel Shanks and John Merrill (eds.), Ancient Israel, From Abraham to the Roman Destruction of the Temple, Revised and Expanded Edition, Washington, D.C. 2021: Biblical Archaeology Society, 2021
This chapter attempts to produce the most likely historic scenario for the famous sojourn and the exodus story. Recent advances in Egyptology, paleogeography and modern biblical exegesis bring about a novel display of the biblical story which excites mankind since several thousand years
"Chronology is the backbone of history" is usually taught in schools but what is very disturbing is the total absence of reliable chronology to fix the Exodus because the date goes from 2100 to 650 BC (Sparks: 2015, 60); such a 1500-year gap is not at all serious. Furthermore, Exodus pharaoh identifications and theories (page 61) are absurd because the pharaoh of the Exodus died suddenly in the Red Sea according to the biblical text (Ps 136:15) and it is easy to see that the state of the mummy of Seqenenre Taa (Cairo Museum, The Royal Mummies CG 61051) proves that his body received severe injuries and remained abandoned for several days before being mummified. In addition Crown Prince Ahmose Sapaïr (Musée du Louvre, Paris: statue E 15682), who was the eldest son of Seqenenre Taa (1543-1533), died shortly before his father (Ex 12:29), who himself died on May 10, 1533 BCE. According to the biblical chronology based on absolute dates, not to the scholarly chronology of Edwin R. Thiele, the pharaoh of the Exodus died on May 10, 1533 BCE (exactly the same day). Consequently Seqenenre Taa was the pharaoh of the Exodus, according to absolute chronology.
The Israelites in Egypt : an archaeological outlook on the biblical Exodus tradition
2011
for guiding me in my research and painstakingly reviewing my work. I would also like to thank Jennifer Lorge and Eliana De La Rosa for their punctilious reading of my thesis with the utmost attention to detail, correcting grammar, formatting, and providing input on content all while they were busy writing their own theses. Great appreciation also goes out to Dr. James K. Hoffmeier, for taking the time out of his busy schedule to meet with me over brunch to discuss his previous work on the subject and to assist in channeling my methodology. Gratitude is deserved to all the staff and cadre of the Eagle Battalion Army Reserve Officer Training Corps, especially Lieutenant Colonel Mark W. Johnson and Master Sergeant Scott Heise for meticulously working with me to ensure I was able to give professional and effective briefings and presentations, which has come to be useful in so many areas of my life. Most of all, I would like to thank my family, especially my mom, and Major James McKnight, Major Jay Hansen, and Colonel Lance Kittleson for keeping me on track with the remembrance of the true purpose of my studies. Also, I would like to thank my fiancée, Elizabeth Fusilier, for her constant loving prodding to ensure I got this project done in a timely manner.
The Pharaoh of the Exodus Fairy tale or real history? Outcome of the investigation
For Egyptologists as well as archaeologists, and even now Bible scholars, the answer to the question: Who to believe: Moses or Egyptologists? is obvious (Dever: 2003, 233): Rather than attempt to defend the factual historicity of the Exodus traditions, I suggest that we must understand the Exodus story precisely as a myth, specifically as a “metaphor for liberation” (...) There is ample evidence that the Exodus story was read metaphorically already in ancient times, certainly so by the early rabbis and by later rabbinical commentaries. Several scholars (Finkelstein, Dever and others) posit that the Exodus narrative may have developed from collective memories of the Hyksos expulsions of Semitic Canaanites from Egypt, possibly elaborated on to encourage resistance to the 7th century domination of Judah by Egypt. For these scholars the liberation from Egypt after the “10 plagues”, as it is written in the Book of Exodus, is quite different from the historical “war of liberation against the Hyksos”. For them, “it seems” that several campaigns against the stronghold at Avaris were needed, during at least one decade, before the Hyksos were finally dislodged and driven from Lower Egypt. Finally, Ahmose I, the first pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty of Egypt, won the war against the Hyksos. What are the Egyptian documents underlying this hypothesis: none, and what is the chronology of this mysterious war: nobody knows! Consequently, who to believe: Moses or Egyptologists? https://www.lulu.com/shop/gerard-gertoux/the-pharaoh-of-the-exodus-fairy-tale-or-real-history/paperback/product-1vjrmky7.html
The pharaohs of Genesis and Exodus, as identified by Bar Hebraeus
Traditional timelines of Genesis and Exodus are not in agreement with external history. However Bar Hebraeus placed Abraham in the late 18th Dynasty of Egypt and Manetho placed Moses in the 20th Dynasty. Bar Hebraeus coherently aligned Abraham to Assyrian dominion over Asia as reported by Josephus (Antiquities 1.9.1) and Manetho's account is consitent with a reference to Zoan contemporary to Moses (Numbers 13:22). Yet Manetho has been ‘reinterpreted’ and Bar Hebraeus apparently remains unknown to historians. That’s the topic of two short essays below. There should be no surprises for historians. My conclusion is that traditional Bible chronologies have Abraham and Moses centuries too early, while the conventional Egyptian chronology needs no revision .