Josephus' chronology Rameses II, The Hyksos and the Exodus.
Source Article
This article addresses just two small but connected issues in relation to the Biblical Exodus from Egypt.
- The Hyksos - and -
- Pharaoh Rameses II.
For a detailed examination of Josephus in relation to the Exodus and other issues, Read: Josephus, Ancient History and Biblical Contradictions by R.P.BenDedek
Josephus calculates the Time frame between
the Hyksos Expulsion and Rameses II
I have written elsewhere (and in KingsCalendar Chapter 20) that when Josephus speaks of the Exodus he speaks merely of the going out from Egypt, and that this refers to the expulsion of the Hyksos from Egypt, (not the Mosaic Exodus), calculated by the King's Calendar at 1554 BCE
(See Appendix 12 : Currently Freely available on line in the Chapter Precis Section.)
In Flavius Josephus Against Apion Book 1 :15 Josephus provides a list of dates of the Egyptian Pharaohs from the time of that expulsion to the time of Rameses II. [From:The Works of Flavius Josephus Translated by William Whiston]
- When you calculate the total of reigns to Rameses (which are provided in both year and months of reigns), there expires a total of 254 years.
- If one calculates 254 years from 1554 BCE (Hyksos expulsion), one arrives at the year 1300 BCE.
- When one searches for the commencement date for Rameses II, a variety of possible dates are provided, ranging from 1328 BCE to 1290 BCE.
- Clearly, the archaeological evidence is able to be interpreted in a variety of ways, resulting in different conclusions.
- However, the much maligned Josephus determines from extant records, that Rameses II commenced +/- a few months, in 1300 BCE.
Despite the current belief that Josephus' chronological data is incomprehensible, the King's calendar demonstrates that despite his carelessness, it is possible to deconstruct and reconstruct his chronological details.
R.P.Bendedek
Email: rpbendedek@hotmail.com
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 Suzhou City Jiangsu Province China.
Academic Articles at KingsCalendar Publishing. Co.
"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.
