Evidence for the Israelite Sojourn in Egypt: Difference between revisions

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[[File:HiResStrawMudbrick.jpg|thumb|right|Hi Res picture of the Mudbricks in the [[Amenemhet III]] pyramid at Hawara, Egypt.  If you look carefully, you can see the straw within the bricks.]]  
[[File:HiResStrawMudbrick.jpg|thumb|right|Hi Res picture of the Mudbricks in the [[Amenemhet III]] pyramid at Hawara, Egypt.  If you look carefully, you can see the straw within the bricks.]]  


The histories of [[Israel]], [[Egypt]] and [[Mesopotamia]] are interwoven.  At various point in time, these ancient civilizations have interacted with one another as trade partners or in war.
There is tangible evidence for the Israelite sojourn in Egypt, including thousands, possibly millions of ancient graves in the Saudi desert, mention of the midwife (Shiphrah - Exodus 1:15) at the time of Moses in Papyrus Brooklyn 35.1446 dating to the time she should have lived (around 1550 B.C.) along with other Hebrew names mentioned in the papyrus, mention of the Biblical plagues and Exodus occurring in the Ipuwer Papyrus, and existence of the distinctive Israelite 4-room house in ancient Egypt. That the Exodus completed by the 15th century may also be inferred from the Soleb Inscription and Amarna Tablets.   
 
The Israelites were in Egypt for some 430 years.  They numbered only seventy when they first arrived in Egypt at the invitation of the Pharaoh whose acclaimed vizier [[Joseph and Imhotep|Joseph]] (Israel / Jacob's eleventh son) was saving Egypt from a famine that had lasted several years.  Joseph had interpreted the Pharaoh's dream and the Pharaoh had put him as second in charge of Egypt.  Joseph had built grain silos during the years of abundance that had preceded the famine and had implemented a 20% tax on the grain that was produced to fill them. When the famine came, Joseph sold the grain to the Egyptians and surrounding countries who eventually had to part with their animals and land in order to buy enough food from Joseph to survive. The Israelites were allowed to settle in the best part of the land; Goshen.  They multiplied quickly and soon became numerous. 
 
Joseph died at the age of 110 years, 80 years after he first came into the service of the Pharaohs.  He would have served several pharoahs. When Joseph died, he was given a royal Egyptian burial.
 
Many years after Joseph died, a pharaoh emerged who did not know Joseph and did not care that he had made the pharaoh's rich. He resented that Joseph's family, the Israelites, were becoming so numerous and feared that they would join their enemies.  He decided to enslave them and make them work the fields or make mud bricks.
 
By the time of the Exodus, the Israelites had come to number over 2 million.  There were 600,000 men of fighting age.  If the Pharaoh made them produce just one mud brick per person per day for half of their time in Egypt, that would be 600000x365x200years =438,000,000,000 mud bricks.  That's a lot of mud bricks.
 
If one was to look for some evidence of the Israelites in Egypt, something that we know they did or produced that would have survived the test of time (over 3500 years), it would have to be the 'grain silos' that Joseph made and 'millions of mud bricks' that the Israelites would have produced during the time of their slavery. 
 
One would also expect to find evidence for Joseph in Egyptian records given the enormity of his achievements.  One would also expect to find evidence of a mass Exodus of slaves and see what impact this had on the Egyptians.
 
As there were only some 200 pharaohs in Egypt, with similar number of viziers, one would think that it should be reasonably easy to come up with a short list of contenders for Joseph and Moses and their respective pharaohs.
 
Egyptian records, however, have not been as well preserved as one would hope.  In fact many of the most useful historical documents were deliberately destroyed e.g. the works of Manetho which were lost when the Alexandrian Library was burnt down.  Various wars, erosion and earthquakes have resulted in many of Egypts monuments being destroyed or defaced.  Some pharaohs have even tried to whitewash their predecessors' records leaving no trace of them.
 
In order to find evidence for the [[Israelites]] in [[Egypt]], one needs to look in the right place in the right time period.
 
The only lasting legacy of the Israelites mentioned in the Bible may just be 'grain silos', 'mud bricks' and the embalmed bodies of Jacob and Joseph.   
 
If the Egyptian identities of these Biblical figures were known, we may be surprised to learn what else they did that was not recorded in the Bible.
 
The truth is not always convenient or what we would have liked, but if it supports scripture, then Christians should celebrate because history and the Bible agree with one another.


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==Midwife at Time of Moses, Shiphrah==
==Midwife at Time of Moses, Shiphrah==


The midwife mentioned Biblically as having lived at the time of Moses, Shiphrah, is named in Egyptian records (Papyrus Brooklyn 35.1446) dating to 1550 B.C., the exact period of time she would have lived assuming an Exodus chronologically dated to about 1444 B.C. with Moses being around 80 years old at the time.<ref>"[https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/shiphrah-and-puah Shiphrah and Puah.]" ''Jewish Virtual Library.''<br>"[https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/objects/3369 Portion of a Historical Text.]" ''Brooklyn Museum.''</ref> A high percentage (70%) of the names mentioned in Papyrus Brooklyn 35.1446 may be Hebrew, also.<br>"[https://calvarysoton.co.uk/brooklyn-papyrus/ Brooklyn Papyrus.]" ''Cavalry Chapel Southampton.''<br>Armstrong, D. (2023, February 17). "[https://calvarysoton.co.uk/brooklyn-papyrus/ Egyptian Proof of Hebrew Slaves During Jacob’s Time.]" ''Patheos.''</ref>
The midwife mentioned Biblically as having lived at the time of Moses, Shiphrah (Exodus 1:15), is named in Egyptian records (Papyrus Brooklyn 35.1446) dating to 1550 B.C., the exact period of time she would have lived assuming an Exodus chronologically dated to about 1444 B.C. with Moses being around 80 years old at the time.<ref>"[https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/shiphrah-and-puah Shiphrah and Puah.]" ''Jewish Virtual Library.''<br>"[https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/objects/3369 Portion of a Historical Text.]" ''Brooklyn Museum.''</ref> A high percentage (70%) of the names mentioned in Papyrus Brooklyn 35.1446 may be Hebrew, also.<br>"[https://calvarysoton.co.uk/brooklyn-papyrus/ Brooklyn Papyrus.]" ''Cavalry Chapel Southampton.''<br>Armstrong, D. (2023, February 17). "[https://calvarysoton.co.uk/brooklyn-papyrus/ Egyptian Proof of Hebrew Slaves During Jacob’s Time.]" ''Patheos.''</ref>


==Soleb and Amarah Inscriptions==
==Ipuwer Papyrus==


The earliest mention of the Biblical God, Yahweh, has been discovered from two Egyptian descriptions, with the oldest, the Soleb Inscription, dating to 1400 B.C. In mentioning a list of lands campaigned against by Egypt, the Soleb Inscription refers to the "land of the Shasu of Yahweh" so it is clear Israel had become a nation by that time. This provides strong evidence that the Israelite Exodus had completed by 1400 B.C.<ref name=soleb>Aling, Charles, & Billington, Clyde (2010, March 8). [http://www.biblearchaeology.org/post/2010/03/08/The-Name-Yahweh-in-Egyptian-Hieroglyphic-Texts.aspx The Name Yahweh in Egyptian Hieroglyphic Texts.] ''Associates for Biblical Research.''<br>Argubright, John (2013). [http://books.google.com/books?id=TRZbAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA108 Bible Believer's Archaeology, Volume 3: Behold the Man!] p. 108. ''BibleHistory.net.'' ISBN: 978-09792148-2-0.</ref>
The Ipuwer Papyrus provides evidence of the Biblical plagues. The ancient Egyptian document records events similar to the plagues of the Exodus.<ref>Becher, Mordechai. [http://ohr.edu/838 The Ten Plagues - Live From Egypt.] ''Ohr Somayach.''</ref>


==Ipuwer Papyrus==
==Soleb and Amarah Inscriptions==


The Ipuwer Papyrus provides evidence of the Biblical plagues. The ancient Egyptian document records events similar to the plagues of the Exodus.<ref>Becher, Mordechai. [http://ohr.edu/838 The Ten Plagues - Live From Egypt.] ''Ohr Somayach.''</ref>  
The earliest mention of the Biblical God, Yahweh, has been discovered from two Egyptian descriptions, with the oldest, the Soleb Inscription, dating to 1400 B.C. In mentioning a list of lands campaigned against by Egypt, the Soleb Inscription refers to the "land of the Shasu of Yahweh" so it is clear Israel had become a nation by that time. This provides strong evidence that the Israelite Exodus had completed by 1400 B.C.<ref name=soleb>Aling, Charles, & Billington, Clyde (2010, March 8). [http://www.biblearchaeology.org/post/2010/03/08/The-Name-Yahweh-in-Egyptian-Hieroglyphic-Texts.aspx The Name Yahweh in Egyptian Hieroglyphic Texts.] ''Associates for Biblical Research.''<br>Argubright, John (2013). [http://books.google.com/books?id=TRZbAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA108 Bible Believer's Archaeology, Volume 3: Behold the Man!] p. 108. ''BibleHistory.net.'' ISBN: 978-09792148-2-0.</ref>  


==Israelite Houses Found in Egypt==
==Israelite Houses Found in Egypt==
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The Egyptian dates derived from the traditional Egyptian chronology are no longer valid. The dates of Egyptian dynasties, therefore, need to be revised in the light of this modern understanding of the Egyptian dynasties. We need some other means of identifying biblical characters in secular history without relying heavily on dates that become quite unreliable, the further back we go. The Biblical accounts however, remain the standard by which the Egyptian chronologies are measured.
The Egyptian dates derived from the traditional Egyptian chronology are no longer valid. The dates of Egyptian dynasties, therefore, need to be revised in the light of this modern understanding of the Egyptian dynasties. We need some other means of identifying biblical characters in secular history without relying heavily on dates that become quite unreliable, the further back we go. The Biblical accounts however, remain the standard by which the Egyptian chronologies are measured.
The histories of [[Israel]], [[Egypt]] and [[Mesopotamia]] are interwoven.  At various point in time, these ancient civilizations have interacted with one another as trade partners or in war.
The Israelites were in Egypt for some 430 years.  They numbered only seventy when they first arrived in Egypt at the invitation of the Pharaoh whose acclaimed vizier [[Joseph and Imhotep|Joseph]] (Israel / Jacob's eleventh son) was saving Egypt from a famine that had lasted several years.  Joseph had interpreted the Pharaoh's dream and the Pharaoh had put him as second in charge of Egypt.  Joseph had built grain silos during the years of abundance that had preceded the famine and had implemented a 20% tax on the grain that was produced to fill them. When the famine came, Joseph sold the grain to the Egyptians and surrounding countries who eventually had to part with their animals and land in order to buy enough food from Joseph to survive.  The Israelites were allowed to settle in the best part of the land; Goshen.  They multiplied quickly and soon became numerous. 
Joseph died at the age of 110 years, 80 years after he first came into the service of the Pharaohs.  He would have served several pharoahs.  When Joseph died, he was given a royal Egyptian burial.
Many years after Joseph died, a pharaoh emerged who did not know Joseph and did not care that he had made the pharaoh's rich. He resented that Joseph's family, the Israelites, were becoming so numerous and feared that they would join their enemies.  He decided to enslave them and make them work the fields or make mud bricks.
By the time of the Exodus, the Israelites had come to number over 2 million.  There were 600,000 men of fighting age.  If the Pharaoh made them produce just one mud brick per person per day for half of their time in Egypt, that would be 600000x365x200years =438,000,000,000 mud bricks.  That's a lot of mud bricks.
If one was to look for some evidence of the Israelites in Egypt, something that we know they did or produced that would have survived the test of time (over 3500 years), it would have to be the 'grain silos' that Joseph made and 'millions of mud bricks' that the Israelites would have produced during the time of their slavery. 
One would also expect to find evidence for Joseph in Egyptian records given the enormity of his achievements.  One would also expect to find evidence of a mass Exodus of slaves and see what impact this had on the Egyptians.
As there were only some 200 pharaohs in Egypt, with similar number of viziers, one would think that it should be reasonably easy to come up with a short list of contenders for Joseph and Moses and their respective pharaohs.
Egyptian records, however, have not been as well preserved as one would hope.  In fact many of the most useful historical documents were deliberately destroyed e.g. the works of Manetho which were lost when the Alexandrian Library was burnt down.  Various wars, erosion and earthquakes have resulted in many of Egypts monuments being destroyed or defaced.  Some pharaohs have even tried to whitewash their predecessors' records leaving no trace of them.
In order to find evidence for the [[Israelites]] in [[Egypt]], one needs to look in the right place in the right time period.
The only lasting legacy of the Israelites mentioned in the Bible may just be 'grain silos', 'mud bricks' and the embalmed bodies of Jacob and Joseph. 
If the Egyptian identities of these Biblical figures were known, we may be surprised to learn what else they did that was not recorded in the Bible.
The truth is not always convenient or what we would have liked, but if it supports scripture, then Christians should celebrate because history and the Bible agree with one another.


==The destruction of Egypt's monuments==
==The destruction of Egypt's monuments==
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