Yesterday in an article entitled: Pharaoh Drowned in Red Sea - Bible Lies? I pointed out that Bible Skeptics are rather amateurish in their attempts to discredit the Bible. (Biblical Infallibility and Skepticism) As I pointed out in that article, it was the GrandVizier Rekhmire who was the 'Pharaoh' who let the Israelites go, and it was the Real Pharaoh Amenhotep II (returning from a rape, pillage and plunder holiday abroard) who ordered the Israelites be returned.
Another area of skepticism in relation to the history of the Israelite Exodus from Egypt, relates to the actual 'timing' of the event. Historians and Archaeologists know that the Semitic Kings of Egypt, the Hyksos (Shepherd kings), were expelled from Egypt, and many insist that the Exodus stories are myths relating to that event - a non-divine intervention in the history of Egypt.
Yet other academics insist that the Exodus, which could only have occurred at the end of or during the reigns of Thothmosis III and Rameses II (because they were the only two that lasted 40 years - the time Moses spent in Midian), occurred during Rameses' reign, since the Bible makes references to cities that came into being during his reign. (And California is still a part of Mexico).
It all makes me laugh at times, because these eggheads who kept denying that the Bible has any true historical value, will argue their heads off about when this 'never happened' event took place. Well, if it never happened what's the point arguing about which century it didn't happen in? Really!
Furthermore, many rely upon the chronologies left us by the Jewish historian Josephus, to demonstrate that the Exodus, (according to Josephus) occurred much earlier than the Biblical placement of the event; earlier even than the Hyksos Expulsion from Egypt. That argument too is a 'no-brainer', because those same people will tell you that Josephus couldn't be relied upon to count his own fingers and get the right answer.
The fact is that Josephus never actually used the word 'Exodus' or even 'Moses' when he made his chronological statement. He merely said:
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Now the temple was burnt four hundred and seventy years, six months, and ten days after it was built. It was then one thousand and sixty-two years, six months, and ten days from the departure out of Egypt Antiquities Bk 10: 8: 5
In solar years, this reference takes us to the year 1648 BCE, which by no stretch of the imagination can refer to the Mosaic Exodus. In King's Calendar artificial years however, it points to the year 1554 BCE., a century earlier than the Mosaic Exodus. Clearly, whatever Josephus had before him, it did not refer to the exodus. The reference does however fall within various dates provided by various Academics, for the expulsion of the Hyksos from Egypt. Such dates range from 1583 BCE (Marston 1935, p 83) until after the commencement of the 18th Dynasty under Ahmose (c. 1570 - 1550 BCE)
Now while Josephus may or may not have known that he was referring to the Hyksos departure from Egypt, in his work 'Against Apion' - 1:15, he provides a list of reigns of Egyptian Pharaohs from the time of that expulsion to the time of Rameses II. (Admittedly he does not use the same names that we recognise today and throws in a few female rulers to boot - definitely verboten - but check out the modern scholars; how well do their pronouncements fit together?)
When you calculate the totals for the reigns he lists between 'the departure out of Egypt' to the time of Rameses (figures provided in both year and months of reigns), there expires a total of 254 years. If you deduct 254 years from 1554 BCE (Hyksos expulsion), you arrive at the year 1300 BCE. If you search for the commencement date for Rameses II, a variety of possible dates are provided, ranging from 1328 BCE to 1290 BCE.
The much maligned Josephus determines from extant records, that Rameses II commenced +/- a few months in 1300 BCE, and could not be the Pharaoh of 'this particular' Exodus.
Furthermore, Seder Olam Rabbah records that Levi (Patriarch Joseph's brother) died 116 years prior to the Exodus, and that just after his death there arose a new King in Egypt who knew not Joseph. Now in Solar years, if we backdate 116 years from the King's Calendar date for exodus at 1449 BCE, we arrive at 1565 BCE for the death of Levi, which is within the range offered by historians for the Expulsion of the Hyksos. The King's Calendar, collating all the chronological data determines that in fact Levi died in 1556 BCE, 3 artificial or 2 solar years prior to the Hyksos expulsion (1554 BCE)
We see from the Biblical and Extra-Biblical material that there were in fact two Exodus events, the first being that of the Hyksos in 1554 BCE, and the second being the Mosaic Exodus in 1449 BCE.
When people say that the Bible is an unreliable source of information, we ought to remember that Ancient Israelite documents provide far more chronological and historical information, than is provided by other ancient civilizations. Also, the fact that Israelite history in contradistinction to other ancient histories, carefully records many shameful flaws (sins) in the character of the nation, is highly indicative of the integrity of the material contained therein. [Refer to: Starr.C.G. (1991. p.145) & Grant.M. (1984.p.37)]
R.P.Bendedek
Email: rpbendedek@hotmail.com
Want to Read More?
Academic References (Hardcopy)
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Grant.M. (1984) The History of Ancient Israel. New York. Charles Scribner's and Sons.
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Starr.C.G. (1991) A History of the Ancient World. Oxford University Press. UK.
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Marston. C. (1935) The Bible is true: The lessons of the 1925-34 excavations in Bible lands summarized and explained. Australia. Angus and Robertson
See Also: Egypt: The Future Islamofacist State
R.P.BenDedek is the pseudonym of the Author of 'The King's Calendar: The Secret of Qumran' (www.kingscalendar.com), and is a guest columnist at Magic City Morning Star News. An Australian, he currently teaches Conversational English in China.
List of KingsCalendar Academic Articles at Magic City
"The King's Calendar" is a chronological study of the historical books of the Bible (Kings and Chronicles), Josephus, Seder Olam Rabbah, and the (Essene) Damascus Document of The Dead Sea Scrolls.
