If the bible is true, then who is the pharaoh of Exodus? Here we have the Bible versus the history of Egypt. If the story in the bible is true, then we would have its timeline aligned perfectly with the historical record of Egypt.
Attention: This entry contains blasphemous content.
We are familiar with King Tut, King Seti I, Seti II, Ramses I, Ramses II, Tuthmosis, etc etc. Altogether there were approximately 322 known pharaohs in Egypt. There were many more who were chiseled off from history, be it from vengeance or murder, we will never know.
Although the bible never specifically identifies the pharaoh of the Exodus by name, it does tell us the exact date of the Exodus.
1 Kings 6:1 states that Solomon began building the Temple in the fourth year of his reign, 480 years after the Exodus.
Most bible scholars agree that the fourth year of Solomon's reign was 967 B.C. So the date of the Exodus can be calculated: 967 + 480 = 1447 B.C.
The bible says that the Pharaoh whose daughter adopted three-month-old Moses died when Moses was nearly 80 years old, meaning that the Pharaoh of the Exodus reigned for over 80 years. Pepi II, who ruled for 90 years, is the only pharaoh who meets this requirement.
King Pepi II
But King Pepi II was born in 2278 BC and died in 2184 BC, whereas the story of Moses was dated to be around 15th to 13th century BC. Way off the mark~
Bible scholars generally agree that Ramses II is the pharaoh mentioned in the bible. He built a royal city named Pi-Ramesse, many just assume him to be the pharaoh of the Exodus. However recent excavations at the site indicate that this city was occupied much earlier by the Egyptians. There is no way Ramses The Great could be the pharaoh that drown in the red sea. If he had drown, he wouldn't have a mummy at all for his body would have been swept away into the sea.
And according to history, Pharaoh Ramses II did not begin his reign until around 1290 BC, which is much later, so he couldn't have been the Exodus pharaoh.
King Amenhotep III, who fathers King Akhenaten, was also one of the candidates, though the suggestion was soon lifted for lack of evidence.
Ramses I died during year 2 of his reign, which is consistent with the content of the bible, and his time is also consistent with Moses's appearance in history; 13th century BC.
Oh my Lord, it must've been really cold down there in the underworld..~
Is Ramses I the pharaoh we're looking for?
The answer is NO.
Already an old man when he took over the throne, Ramses I probably died of old age. The evidence? Well his grandson, Ramses II has already been born during his accession. The pharaoh in the bible who chased after the Israelites drown in the red sea, so Ramses I is NOT the pharaoh we all are looking for.
If the history is correct, then is the bible wrong?
We all know that Egyptians are smart. They have their own calendar, they are very skilled in astronomy, mathematics, language. They built the pyramids. They respect women; there were three female pharaohs in their history; Hatshepsut, Nefertiti, and Cleopatra, and woman have equal rights as man. They had everything recorded down systematically, and so there is little probability that their chronology is wrong.
Queen Hatshepsut, the first female pharaoh in history
Moreover, their chronology is supported by carbon dating. Mummies are carbon-dated to verify the date of their death, and the technology is consistently accurate.
The first five books of the bible were written by Moses; Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy.
How can one person remembers the history before him so well? He escaped Egypt for forty years, how could anyone guarantees that he remembered the date correctly? I, for one, seriously doubt that. He wrote the story of Genesis, Noah's Ark, Abraham and Issac, etc etc. It's a miracle he could remember all of them so well.
Thus it is not surprising if he'd made some mistakes especially in terms of the date and the sequence of pharaohs.
Josephus
Tuthmose III
Jewish historian Josephus, who lived during the first century, wrote the followings about King Thutmose III:
" A state of war broke out between the Egyptians and the Ethiopians. At this time Moses had grown to be a man. The two sides fought a great battle in which the Ethiopians were triumphant, and they pushed to conquer all of Egypt. The Egyptians looking for help inquired of their priests. The priests revealed to them that they should make Moses their general . . . Moses then became the commander of a great army . . . In a surprise attack against the Ethiopians, Moses led his troops to victory."
It may be that Thutmose III, being jealous, took credit for victories over the Ethiopians, even though Moses achieved them.
Tuthmose III
But if one reads Exodus 14:30 carefully it states the following: "So the LORD saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore." This passage indicates that the dead bodies of the Egyptians were deposited on the shore of the Red Sea. This would have allowed the Egyptians access to his body for burial.
Not Convincing.
His arguments are ludicrous, as they are made based on assumption. There is no evidence in the bible to prove that Moses had led an Egyptian army against the Ethiopians.
Moreover, he also included that Hatshepsut co-reigned with her husband Tuthmose II and became the pharaoh of exodus, though actually she co-reigned with him for three or four years before Tuthmose II died from a skin disease. She then took over for the next 17 years as the sole ruler of Egypt until her death, allowing her nephew Tuthmose III to ascend the throne and chisel her off the history book.
One thing is for sure: Josephus's arguments are made in agreement with the bible, and pathetically skewed to align itself with historical record.
We will never find the pharaoh mentioned in the bible. Scholars have browsed through the entire chronology of egyptian kings from the 15-13th Century BC and found no one that fits the criteria in the bible.
Then I ask: Is the Bible wrong, or is it something wrong with historical record?
I'll leave that to your imagination~
Malcolm
info:
http://www.kingtutshop.com/freeinfo/ramses.htm
http://www.biblehistory.net/newsletter/moses_pharaoh.htm
http://www.bediz.com/hatshep/story.html
http://www.britannica.com/women/article-9039510
http://allanturner.com/pharaoh.html
lolx, still say u drifted apart fr the bible? but u've so much knowledge bout bible, n it's reli wonderful that u shared. though i lost track of who is who, as there are so many names n dates etc, but u remembered it all, n that rings the bell, mayb the pharaoh does have the super memory?
ReplyDeleteis it bible right or quran is thr truth.we must not forget what quran said about pharaoh and kingdom of egypt
ReplyDeleteQuran is right ,Ramses II was found mummified in the river and with his internal organs ,in the quran it is said he went after Moses when the sea was opened in half and drown,at that last moment he accepted The one god as a true god and god made his body a mummy ,and if you have read about mummies they cant be done if you dont remove a person internal organs ..............
DeleteI think the Author shall also consider reading Islamic literature and all of his doubts will be cleared. I agree to the above poster and Ramses II is the pharoh.
DeleteRemember Bible is not in it's original form and has many much alterations by humans.
The Hebrew Bible is not in error. Copies of every single Pentateuch scroll from all over the world have been brought to Israel since its founding. Over the last 2000 years there is only a discrepancy of 9 Hebrew letters total amongst all these scrolls of the Five Books of Moses. That is amazing accuracy for a document that has traversed the globe for about 1900 years.
ReplyDeletePepi II is probably the ruler of the Oppression since according to the Book of Yashar, a historical book about the Bible, the Pharaoh of the Oppression ruled 94 years. Pepi II ruled 94 years according to all Egyptologists. So the number of years does match. The problem is the dating. Pepi II lived between 700 and 900 years before the accepted date of the Exodus. Pepi II had a son who was a dwarf named Adikam who ruled for 4 years who was the Pharaoh of the Exodus. Remember the text of the Torah says that the Pharaoh of the Oppression died, and Israel groaned and cried out because of their slavery (Exodus 2:23). Of course Pepi II was an Old Kingdom ruler who was considered to be the Bull god. The Semitic and Hamitic word for bull is Par, which is likely the source of the word Pharaoh. It would also explain when searching for a new leader when they thought that Moses had died, they constructed a god who was a calf (a young bull). Yet, again there is still that 700 to 900 year apparent discrepancy. Perhaps the Egyptologists are wrong, and that the rule of many of these monarchs overlapped.
Menkaure was the pharaoh during the exodus
ReplyDeletehttp://praiseandworshipclub.com/general-articles/93-menkaure
JESUS CHRIST SACRED HEBREW HIEROGLYPH
ReplyDeleteJoseph/Imhotep wrote GENESIS in the Egyptian that he introduced and when the Hebrews learned the language they inscribed GENESIS on the tomb walls as the Pyramid Texts. Moses plagued Egypt from 2012-2011 BC and led the people out 2011 BC. Moses took Joseph's bones, books out with him and rewrote them in Hebrew that he introduced. Hebrew is the text form of Egyptian the symbolic form. The KEYS to the Pyramid Texts are on my facebook page.
Ok, got it Sir. Yehoseph was Imhotep a great vizier of the 3rd Dynasty Pharaoh DJoseer who interpreted dreams about a 7 year famine and who lived to 110 years. This means that the Exodus was at the very end of the catastrophic collapse of the 6th Dynasty of the Old Kingdom. Yet, I must ask. What does this have to do with Jesus who lived 2000 years after the Exodus??
DeleteYour calculation of the approximate date of the Exodus event is valid. However, your statement that the Pharaoh whose daughter adopted Moses died when Moses was about 80 years old is unfounded. Nowhere in the Bible does it indicate that the Pharaoh at Moses' birth is the same king as the Pharaoh of the Exodus. Indeed, in Exodus we read that at the burning bush God told Moses that it was safe to return to Egypt because those who sought to kill him were dead. Earlier in the book we read that Moses fled Egypt because Pharaoh sought to kill him. Logical conclusion: at least two pharaoh were involved in Moses' life!
ReplyDeleteSee Book of Jasher for details of the Exodus. The pharoh of the Exodus was a 24" dwarf, 2nd child who survided the Passover and Red Sea and became the King of Ninevah, Rootentooten. His younger brother took over as Pharoah Ramesses.
ReplyDeleteYes, Pepi II's 94 year reign is mentioned in that very book. His son, the two foot dwarf who ruled after him for four years is also mentioned as the Pharaoh of the Exodus. Where did this name Rootentooten come from? (sounds like a joke). How did he become King of Assyria after failing so miserably with his own kingdom in Egypt?
DeletePepi II's full name was Pepi II Neferkare. He was the Pharaoh of the Oppression.
DeleteEgyptian chronology dates have holes which expands the timeline. Its is 300 to 500 years out of sync with the Bible's more accurate dates and genealogy. Hence, look in Egypt for patterns of evidence, not dates!
ReplyDeleteTo determine the date of the Exodus only archaeology can shed a light on the matter. The Bible mentions several sites in existence at the time of the Exodus, sites in Egypt, the Sinai, Negev, Moab, Edom, Ammon, and Canaan. Some of these sites have been excavated by archaeologists. Based on these findings I make the following proposals: The Exodus as presented in the Bible is fiction. The "route" of the Exodus as presented in the Bible is also fiction. WHY? The sites found refuse to align with the Exodus date of circa 1446 BC. Some sites existed much earlier, as early as 2300 BC, while others existed much later, as late as Iron Age I (1200 BC-1100 BC). Ai and Arad were deserted in Early Bronze Age Times, by 2300 BC. Jericho's fallen walls and burning is dated to circa 1540 BC by its excavator, Kathleen Kenyon. Heshbon, the capital of Sihon the Amorite did not exist before 1200 BC, and the site's apogee of power befitting a capital, was the 8th century BC. How to explain all these anomalies? No one knew in ancient times the age of ancient sites, until Sir Flinders Petrie and his successors developed pottery chronologies to date sites by. The biblical narrator of the Exodus account had no idea of how old any site was that appeared in his Exodus account. They all certainly existed as ruins in his day (the Exodus being written circa 562 BC in the Babylonian Exile). The biblical writer has Israel being diverted to the southern Sinai out of fear of engaging in war the Philistines. Egyptian annals reveal the Philistines did not settle in Canaan until circa 1175 BC in the reign of Pharaoh Rameses 3rd. This fact the biblical narrator did not know. ERGO the reason why no archaeological evidence exists for the Exodus in the Sinai circa 1446 BC. The Exodus would have taken the route the Bible says Israel did not take, "the way to the land of the Philistines," because there were no Philistines in place to block an entry from Egypt into Canaan until 1175 BC. Jericho is portrayed as having its walls collapsing then Joshua orders the city set on fire. Kenyon found only one layer with fallen walls and a torched city, dating it to circa 1530 BC and the Hyksos Expulsion. The problem? Cities conquered and settled in Moab by Israel under Moses, did not come into existence until after 1200 BC or Iron Age I. My conclusion: The Exodus is fusing two events separated in time by several hundred years, Jericho's fallen walls and burning circa 1530 BC and the Iron Age I settlements circa 1200-1100 BC. WHY? The Bible tells us that after conquering Moab and Canaan the Israelites disobey God and marry the peoples of the land and worship their gods. This is Iron Age I. By Iron Age II (1100 BC to 587 BC) the Israelites, due to intermarriages with the Hyksos' Canaanite descendants of Iron I are now the blood-descendants of the Hyksos in Iron II and wish to preserve their ancestral traditions. That is to say in Iron Age I the Israelites via intermarriages are in the process of becoming the Hyksos' descendants, but by Iron II they are Hyksos descendants. If I am right in this proposal, this means the Exodus as portrayed in the Bible is fiction. There never was an Exodus into the southern Sinai and Mt. Sinai, nor Ten Commandments, because there were no Philistines in place to block an Exodus from Egypt to Canaan until 1175 BC.
ReplyDelete