Ancient History Refined

The Birth of Moses. Moses was born in 1632 B.C. (WBT), which corresponds to the C-14 inflated date of 1725 B.C. and places his birth in about the time of the reign of Pharaoh Sekhemresewadjtawy Sobekhotep III, who reigned for three to four years between 1740-1720 B.C. Sobekhotep is believed to have been the author of the Brooklyn Papyrus that contains a list of slaves that were to be sold to an estate in Thebes. One of the names listed was Shiphrah. This Shiphrah may have been the midwife instructed to kill the Hebrew newborn males, as she was personally known by the pharaoh (Ex 1:15). This pharaoh appears to be the one that ordered the deaths of the Hebrew newborn males to end Moses’s life.13 It was recorded in the Bible that pharaoh’s daughter took up Moses and raised him as her son (Ex 2:10). To be able to raise a Hebrew slave as a prince of Egypt, this daughter would have had to have had an exceptional station provided by her father, the pharaoh. Here again we find a special instance where Sobekhotep’s daughter, Iuhetibu Fendy, was only one of two daughters in all of Egyptian history to have her name shown in a cartouche (which was normally reserved for pharaohs) prior to the end of the Middle Kingdom. , Josephus relays that the pharaohs of Moses’s upbringing were inclined to have him take the throne to circumvent him leading the Hebrews in a rebellion (Bk II, Chp IX: 7). So, having his Egyptian mother in the station of a “co-regent/queen” would position Moses in an acceptable standing to be received by the Egyptians. Josephus confirms that the pharaoh’s daughter, Thermuthis, throne name Iuhetibu Fendy, was referred to as the “queen” (Bk II, Chp IX: 5), which is congruent with her historic reference (name in a Cartouche) in Egyptology. Israel’s Entry into Egypt The archeological excavation site at Avaris revealed a community laid out on virgin soil in the area that was formally known in antiquity as Goshen. Based on typology dating methods, according to archaeologist Manfred Bietak, the site was first occupied from 1783 to 1550 B.C. (233 years). This community contained a high official's estate, sporting a mansion with 12 pillars and about 70 to 100 other houses similar in build as those of Haran in Mesopotamia, where Abraham was originally from. In the back of the mansion was found 12 tombs, 11 of which had skeletons laid on their side as a Palestinian would be buried, as opposed to an Egyptian who would be buried on his back facing up. The twelfth tomb was in a style that is normally reserved for Egyptian royalty, except that this person was not Egyptian, suggesting that he was regarded with the highest esteem by the pharaoh. This particular tomb was empty; however, it was found with a great statue of the person for whom the tomb was built. He is described as a Palestinian due to his hair style and throw stick across his shoulder (Figure 3-5). Additionally, he is wearing a coat of many colors. These patterns of evidence parallel the biblical account in all respects, from the 70 original souls that came into Egypt, the 12 sons of Israel matching the 12 pillars and the 12 tombs about the mansion. The description of the exceptional royal tomb built for a Palestinian, with the statue of what appears most ardently to be Joseph with his coat of many colors that was given to him by Jacob before he was sold into slavery, along with the tomb being empty, at the request of Joseph when they left Israel to be buried with his father in the field of Machpelah, is crucial evidence. Manfred Bietak’s estimate for the start and end of the first Semitic occupation of Avaris (1783-1550 B.C.) being perfectly matched with the WBT (1774-1552 B.C.) overwhelmingly establishes this period as the time of the Israeli occupation in Egypt. Figure 3-5. Statue of Joseph. The description of the Pharaoh Senusret III’s (1878 B.C. to 1839 [WBT = 1763-1726]) dynasty at the time the children of Israel entered Egypt (1767) appears to reflect the state of affairs in Egypt congruent with biblical record (Genesis 41). Joseph was about 40 years old when Israel came into Egypt . Senusret III. Fundamental changes were made during the reign of Senusret III in material culture and in the administration. There was also a major overhaul of burial customs – such as the end to the custom of writing extensive rituals and other funerary literature on coffins. The country became more centralized, the provincial centers declined in importance, and the Fayum-Lisht region around the residence of the king grew in scale and wealth. Gen 47:14: And Joseph gathered up all the money that was found in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, for the corn which they bought: and Joseph brought the money into Pharaoh's house. Gen 47:15: And when money failed in the land of Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, all the Egyptians came unto Joseph, and said, Give us bread: for why should we die in thy presence? for the money faileth.