Amenemhet IV
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Amenemhet IV - Amenemhat IV - Maakherure
The ?adopted son of Amenemhet III, (the 6th Pharaoh of the 12th dynasty). He co-reigned with Amenemhet III for 9 years over Upper and Lower Egypt, Elephantine and Lower Nubia and then suddenly disappeared. His ancestry is not recorded in Egyptian records. (Many believe him to be the Moses of the Bible who was born {1526BC}, raised by a princess in Pharaoh's household, went into exile in Midian at the age of 40yrs {1486BC} and then returned to Egypt at the end of the 13th dynasty at the age of 80yrs to confront Neferhotep {1446BC} and lead the Israelites out of Egypt but died at the age of 120yrs before the Israelites entered the 'Promised Land' (Canaan) {1406BC}.) Sobekneferu, the daughter of Amenemhet III may have been the Princess that found him in a basket in the Nile and, being childless, raised him as her own. Amenemhet III had no sons to inherit the throne so when he died Sobekneferu, in the Absence of Amenemhet IV, became the next Pharaoh. When she died, after reigning only 4 years, the 12th dynasty ended and Egypt was destabilized and eventually over run by the Hyksos {1444BC} bringing an end to the 13th dynasty. The revised dates of his reign: 1495-1486BC (approximately).
Amenemhet IV was a pharaoh of Egypt who served as a junior co-regent under Amenemhet III during the Twelfth Dynasty. According to the Turin Canon papyrus, the full term of his reign is said to have been just over 9 years.[1] His ancestry to his precedessor is enigmatic, and there are no records of Amenemhet III having any sons. Furthermore, he mysteriously disappeared before the death of Amenemhet III, resulting in Sobekneferu (one of Amenemhet III's daughters) ascending to the throne and becoming Egypt's first female ruler.[2]
Biblical synchrony
Main Article: Archaeological Evidence for Moses and the Israelites in the 12th dynasty of Egypt
Main Article: Moses and Amenemhet IV
Some believe that Amenemhet IV should be identified as the Moses of the Biblical Exodus.[3] Sobekneferu is often listed as Amenemhet IVs sister and also his wife, and it may have been she who found Moses in the Nile River. It is known that she had no children, which may explain why Amenemhet III was willing to accept him as heir to the throne. But when Moses came of age and identified himself with the people of Israel, he was forced to flee from Egypt, leaving way for Sobekneferu to take the throne. When Sobekneferu died the dynasty died and was succeeded by the 13th dynasty. [2] The pharaohs of the 13th dynasty had very short reigns. The 13th dynasty ended with the invasion of the Hyksos not long after the Exodus of Israel.
Egypt's wealth and power reached it's peak in the 12th dynasty under Sesostris III and his son Amenemhet III but as they had no successors, the Middle Kingdom started to fall apart when they died. Moses, an Israelite baby, was adopted by the Princess Sobekneferu and groomed to be the next Pharaoh (Amenemhet IV). Amenemhet IV did in fact co-reign with Amenemhet III for a period of 9 yrs but when he had to flee to Midian at the age of 40 years, there was suddenly no successor for Amenemhet III. His daughter Sobekneferu had to take over the reigns when Amenemhet III died. She only lived for another 4 yrs and when she died, the 12th dynasty ended, Egypt fell into turmoil and became politically unstable. There was a quick succession of Pharaohs in the 13th dynasty until Neferhotep who was the Pharaoh who was ruling when Moses (Amenemhet IV) returned from exile in Midian. After a series of ten plagues that were inflicted on Egypt, Neferhotep let Moses take the Israelities into the desert. When they did not return, he pursued them with his army. The Israelites were able to cross the Red Sea at the Gulf of Aqaba but Neferhotep and his army drowned when they tried to follow.
Not only did Egypt lose its slave labour force, it lost it's monarch, it's entire army and it's transportation system. It was a massive defeat and not something that Egyptian historians would want to memorialize.
When the Israelites left Egypt, Pharaoh and his son died and all the Egyptian army drowned in the Red Sea taking all of Egypts chariots with them. Egypt was then thrown into turmoil. Thy Hyksos were able to take power and Egypts second intermediate period followed (until the Hyksos were finally defeated, ushering in the 18th dynasty).
The Israelites, therefore, had a profound influence on Egypt. Joseph (Imhotep) saved Egypt from a seven year famine and acquired all the land of Egypt, making the pharaohs wealthy and powerful. He designed the first pyramid (in the third dynasty) and was the first to build with columns and write on papyrus. Later in Israel's sojourn, the Israelites provided slave labour for various public works which included making mudbricks for the construction of the last of the great pyramids (those of the 12th dynasty). Egypt was destabilised when Moses (Amenemhet IV) went into exile as there was nobody to continue the 12th dynasty. Egypt suffered massive losses 40 years later as a result of the Exodus at the end of the 13th dynasty (1446BC) and as a result became vulnerable to invasion. The Hyksos took over and ruled Lower Egypt for the next 400 yrs (the second intermediate period). Template:Weasel words
If it is true that Joseph and Imhotep were the same person, then the first pyramid (the Step Pyramid in Saqqara) was designed by an Israelite at the begining of Israel's Sojourn in Egypt and if the last of the great pyramids (those of the 12th dynasty) were constructed with a core made from mudbricks which were made by Israelite slave labour, then the Israelites were in Egypt while all of the great pyramids were being constructed. After the Israelites departed from Egypt in the 13th dynasty, lead by Moses (Amenemhet IV), there were not enough slaves left in Egypt to construct pyramids any more. The Pyramid Age, therefore, coincides with Israel's sojourn in Egypt. The Pyramids were thus constructed over a period of around 400 years and no more large pyramids were built after Moses (Amenemhet IV) lead the Israelites out of Egypt in 1446BC.
Amenemhet IV, if he was the Moses of the Bible, would have continued to lead the Israelites for another 40 years in the Wilderness. He would have received the Law on Mt Sinai in Arabia (Jabel Lawz) not long after the Exodus of Israel through the Red Sea (1446BC) at the age of 80 years.
If Amenemhet IV was Moses, he would have spent the first 40 years of his life growing up in Pharaoh's household being groomed to be the next pharaoh by Sobekneferu. This would include 9 years co-reigning with his adoptive father Amenemhet III. He would have spent the next 40 years of his life in exile in Midian. The final 40 years of his life would have been spent in the wilderness leading the Israelites and preparing them to enter the Promised Land. If Amenemhet IV was Moses, he would have died at the age of 120 years and never got to enter the 'Promised Land' (Canaan).
References
- ↑ Amenemhat IV
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Searching for Moses by David Down. Journal of Creation 15(1):53–57. April 2001
- ↑ Ashton, John F., and Down, David. Unwrapping the Pharaohs: How Egyptian Archaeology Confirms the Biblical Timeline p.92, Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 2006.
[The Pharaohs of the oppression] [The Exodus and the Red Sea Crossing] [The Israelites had a profound influence on Egyptian History] [How long did the Israelites sojourn in Egypt?] [The true mount Sinai]
