The Old Testament is as much a historical bibliography of Egypt, as it is for Israel, the stark difference being that the stories are told from the
perspective of the Hebrews and not the Egyptians. From Abraham’s time forward, the Israelites’ affiliation with the land of Egypt is like one of a
drug addict: difficult to give up. The dependence on Egypt is found in both testaments right up to the infancy of Jesus and his parents’ sojourn into
that country for save haven. We know too from reading Greek, Roman and Hebrew accounts, Egypt played prominently throught their eras which are all
inextricably linked to Israel. Perhaps the Jews just keep hearing the call to go home.
This preface to the Biblical exodus begins with commentary with Joseph (c1600BCE) the son of Jacob, who, after his having found such favour with
pharaoh, entreated his people to leave Egypt and go to Canaan to his father Jacob. Due to a famine, and at God’s behest, Jacob leads them back to
Egypt during a time of famine in Canaan, where upon arrival, pharaoh once more extends his hospitality toward the Israelites. Genesis explains that
once the famine started to ravage Egypt,
“all the Egyptians came unto Joseph…” looking for food. Through excellent machinations of commerce, he
managed to purchase all of their land for Pharaoh, and when they came back, hungry yet again, he gave them seed to sow on the land in exchange for a
one-fifth tax levy on production. Seventeen years later, Jacob died. His brothers no longer under their father's house, then approached Joseph for
fear of his retribution of their misdeeds, to which Joseph asked:
“Fear not: for am I not in the place of God?”
A Canadian archeological expedition in Egypt has uncovered the remains of a 4,200-year-old fortress near the Red Sea coast in the Sinai
Desert, a discovery that sheds some light on life at the time when the Great Pyramids were built...
Somewhere around a century or so later, we find the Bible recounting the tale of Exodus. The pharaoh of the day decided that the Israelites were;
“mightier than we,” and fearing the Israelites would take up arms against the Egyptians, he decided to enslave them and used them to build
Egyptian cities. For some reason, pharaoh decides that the Israelite males should be killed at birth, and thus begins the story of Moses. But this act
is rather bizarre, for why would one wish to remove the brawn behind the quarries and the building of the cities?
Moses is born, and somehow pharaoh’s sister manages to raise him without pharaoh ever wondering how she came about this child. Later, Moses kills an
Egyptian for hitting another Hebrew, seemingly in self defense, but incurs the wrath of the Hebrew perpetrators and flees Egypt for 40 years. Pharaoh
dies, and the plight of the Hebrews under bondage reaches Moses and God’s ears. God send Moses to save them, with the promise he will harden pharaoh’s
heart (remove his free will) and arms Moses with a serpentine staff and various plagues.
The team first learned of the site two years ago -- and returned this past summer -- while mapping archeological sites in the Sinai Desert.
Led by a brief report of ruins in the area of Ras Budran
(1) and information from local Bedouin, they went south along the Red Sea coast to the
remains of the fort.
Project director Gregory Mumford recalls shrieking: "Wow, this is massive!'' when the team first surveyed what was on the surface.
NOTE (1)- all I have found thus far on Ras Budran is that it is east of the Nile delta, along the Suez canal.
There are two instances of the Jews leaving Egypt en masse. The first is about Osarsiph and the enslaved Jews. Manetho’s story as recounted explains
that city called Avaris,
(2) a city of approximately 10 thousand acres which was constructed for the inhabitants of a very powerful easterner
who overcame Egypt. This Avaris was located on the Bubastite branch of the Nile.
This place he rebuilt and fortified with massive walls, planting there a garrison of as many as 240,000 heavy-armed men to guard his frontier.
Note (2) Avaris and the Bubastite branch of the Nile is 62 miles, ENE of Cairo.
For 113 years, the descendents of Osarsiph: kings; Beon, Apachnas, Apophis and Assis, terrorized the Egyptians, and the people who came to be known as
shepherds flourished for a very long time, until Egypt retaliated, subdued them and contained them to Avaris.
Geo-archeologist Dr. Lawrence Pavlish, who was part of the survey team in the summer of 2003, said it made a "good checkpoint'' for anyone
travelling down the Red Sea coast of the Sinai Peninsula in the ancient world.
www.ctv.ca...
It is important to note that the OT is quite liberal with imparting the names of kings and queens of nations, except when it comes to Egypt. The norm
is to keep those to names of viziers and lower authorities. Manetho’s rendition of the events of the Egyptian retaliation are:
Tethmosis, son
of Alisphragmuthosis, attempted to take the city by force and by siege with four hundred and eighty thousand men surrounding it. But he despaired of
taking the place by siege, and concluded a treaty with them, that they should leave Egypt, and go, without any harm coming to them, wherever they
wished. After the conclusion of the treaty they left with their families and chattels, not fewer than two hundred and forty thousand people, and
crossed the desert into Syria. Fearing the Assyrians, who dominated over Asia at that time, they built a city in the country which we now call
Judea.
This Tethmosis (c1480… c1390), supposedly reigned for 25.3 years, and it was in his reign Osarsiph led the Exodus.
They swore an oath that they would obey him in all things. The first laws he gave them were that they should not worship the Egyptian gods,
nor should they abstain from any of the sacred animals that the Egyptians held in the highest esteem, but could kill them, and that they should not
ally themselves to any but those that were of their conspiracy.
The Canadians
"did not have time to conduct a formal excavation and left after doing a survey of the surface remains with the belief that the
ruins dated from no earlier than 1500 BC.
After making such laws as these, and others contrary to Egyptian customs, he (Osarsiph)
ordered that the many the hands at their service to be
employed in building walls around the city and prepare for a war with king Amenophis.
He colluded with the other priests, and those that were
polluted as well, and
sent ambassadors to those shepherds expelled by Tethmosis to Jerusalem, informing them of his own affairs, and of the
state of those others that had been treated so shamefully, and desired that they would come united to his assistance in this war against Egypt.
He
also promised their return to their ancient city and land of Avaris and plentiful support for their people; that he would protect them and fight for
them if need be, and that the land would easily be subdued. The shepherds were delighted with his message, and assembled two hundred thousand men.
Shortly they arrived at Avaris.
Veliskovsky’s theory of embellished chronology may yet be proven correct.
