JOSHUA COLORING PAGE

JOSHUA

Click to Expand After wandering in the wilderness for 40 years, Moses handed over leadership to Joshua, whose responsibility it was to bring the nation of Israel into the promised land of Canaan. After entering Canaan, Joshua had to go to war with the people who occupied the land. Canaan was a land of city-states. There was no central gov­ernment; each city had its own king. To conquer the land each city would have to be defeated.   At the time of the Conquest of Canaan by Israel Egypt was nominally in control of the region. -         Pharaoh Thutmose III (1504-1450) had added the region to Egypt’s domain. -         His son, Amenho­tep II (1450-1424), Pharaoh of the Exodus, continued control. -         His son, Thutmose IV (1424-1414), Pharaoh while Israel was in the wilderness, was more interested in foreign alliances than military dominance. o       He had married the Asiatic daughter of Artatama, King of Mitanni. Mitanni was in northern Mesopotamia, mostly Hurrian.   -         His son, Amenhotep III (1414-1378), who now ruled, was not interested in maintaining an empire. He was more concerned with domestic interests. o       The Tell el-Amarna letters depict him as ignoring the Canaanite pleas for help against the Hapiru. o       He left the individual cities of Canaan to themselves during the conquest by Israel.   CANAAN     Canaan culture was fairly advanced. -         Cities were well laid out, and houses showed good design and con­struction. -         Floors of buildings, were often paved, or plastered. -         Drainage systems had been developed. -         Workers were skilled in the use of copper, lead, and gold. -         Pottery was among the finest anywhere in the world. -         Extensive trade was conducted with foreign countries, including Egypt, Northern Mesopota­mia, and Cyprus.   God com­manded that all Canaanites be de­stroyed or driven from the land (Num. 33:51-56; Deut. 7:1-5). -         Had Israel done so, all would have been well; but she did not. Many Canaanites were allowed to remain, and Israel suffered the effects of their influence. -         This was the dan­ger that God wanted to avoid. o       Many of the people accepted the worship of Canaanite Baal (fig. 2) rather than God. o       The attraction was that Baal was held to be god of rainfall and good crops. No doubt the Canaanites advised their new farming neighbors that technical skill was not enough to insure a good harvest, but that worship of Baal was still more impor­tant.   Moses’ strategy for taking Canaan, no doubt revealed to him by God, clearly had been to attack the land at its approximate midpoint, coming in from the east, and divide it into a south and north section, that each could be con­quered separately. -         We may assume that Moses had shared this plan with Joshua, so that the new leader had the plan in mind as the people prepared for crossing the Jordan.   JERICHO   Reconnaissance   Jericho stood as a first and principal objective in the conquest of Canaan. -         Joshua sent two spies to make recon­naissance. -         The two crossed the Jordan and came to the city where they were protected by a harlot, Rahab, whose house was located on the city wall. -         When the men were detected, Rahab hid them beneath stalks of flax on the roof and then pointed the pursuers in the wrong direction. -         Convinced that Jericho would fall to Israel, Rahab requested safety for her and her family in return for her help. The men gave their promise and with further help escaped back to Joshua. -         Joshua learned from Rahab that the people feared Israel greatly. News of victories over Sihon and Og had reached Jericho.   Crossing the Jordan   The morning after the spies’ return, Joshua ordered the people to move to the bank of the Jordan. Shittim (exact location unknown), is where they encamped. -         It was spring and the Jordan was at flood stage. Before crossing three days were spent in final preparations and instructions. -         We may be­lieve that during these three days the people wondered how all Israel could possibly cross the wide expanse of water flowing by them. When everything was ready, the priests, carrying the ark, moved toward the river. The people, followed at a distance of 3000 feet (Josh. 3:4). This insured that a maximum number would see the ark as the guiding signal. -         When the feet of the priests touched the water, it miracu­lously separated. As if stopped by a dam, the water from upstream that flowed toward them “stood up in a heap.” The other water continued its course to the Dead Sea, leaving a wide space for the people to cross (fig. 3). -         The priests bearing the ark stopped and remained in the middle of the river as the people moved past. As the people crossed, the water backed up approximately 15 miles upriver, as far as the city Adam. o       This gave testimony to each person that God was restraining the water. o       Adam is identified with Tell ed-Damieh about 20 miles from the Dead Sea. Israel crossed the Jordan opposite Jericho about five miles from the Dead Sea, so they were 15 miles from Adam. Since rockslides have occurred near Adam temporarily stopping the Jordan (once in AD 1267, 1906 and 1927), some have suggested that God used this means here.   -         As soon as everyone had left the riverbed, the water was released and the river flowed again. -         Two memorials of this crossing were created, one in the Jordan and one across at Gilgal, where the people encamped (Josh. 4:1-24).   Gilgal   Gilgal now became a continuing center of Israelite activity. Its exact location is still uncertain, but clearly it was somewhere in the Jordan Valley between Jericho and the Jordan River (Josh. 4:19). -         From here, Jericho and Ai were soon taken. -         Later the Gibeonites came to Gilgal seeking a peace treaty (Josh. 9:6). From Gilgal Joshua led his army by forced march to help the Gibeonites against the southern con­federacy (Josh. 10:6-7). -         From here, too, he went north to meet the northern confederacy (Josh. 11:6-14). -         And here the first allotment of tribal territo­ries was made (Josh. 14:6). While the army was in the field fighting, the people remained at Gilgal as home base.   Three important events transpired soon after encampment. The circumcision of all the men (Josh. 5:2-9). The observ­ance of the Passover (Josh. 5:10). The cessation of manna. God had supplied this food since the first year of travel(Exod. 16:14-22).   Defeat of Jericho   Frequent biblical reference to Jericho shows that it was of major importance in the land. Jericho is well identified with Tell es-Sultan, five miles west of the Jordan and seven miles north of the Dead Sea. The mound covers about eight acres (fig. 4). -         After Jerusalem, Jericho is the most excavated site in Israel.  Charles Warren in 1868 sank several shafts but concluded that nothing was to be found. Germans Sellin and Watzinger excavated 1907-13, Garstang 1930-36 and Kenyon 1952-58.  Since 1997 an Italian-Palestinian team has been digging. -         Kenyon’s description of the walls of Jericho is significant. o       The walls were of a type, which made direct assault practically impossible. An ap­proaching enemy first encountered a stone abutment 11 feet high, back and up from which sloped a 35o plastered scarp reaching to the main wall some 35 vertical feet above (fig. 5). o       The steep, smooth slope prohib­ited battering the wall by any effective device or building fires to break it. o       An army trying to storm the wall found difficulty in climbing the slope, and ladders to scale it could find no satisfac­tory footing.   God had plans for taking Jericho, which were revealed to Joshua in an unusual manner(Josh. 5:13-6:5). -         Joshua was met by one called the “commander of the army of the LORD.” -         “Commander of the army of the Lord,” could be the appearance of Christ as the Angel of God. This “Commander” called the ground “holy” (Josh. 5:15), as with Moses at the burning bush (Exod. 3:5), and used the personal pronoun “I” as giving Jericho into Joshua’s hand. -         The plans were to have “armed men,” led by seven priests carrying the ark, walk around the city once each day for six days and seven times on the seventh. At the close of the thirteenth circuit, the priests would blow trumpets and the people shout with a loud voice. When they did, the walls of the city would collapse and the army could enter.   The plan was executed as instructed. -         Thirteen times the city was circled and then the walls fell as the trumpets sounded and the people shouted. The army took the city with ease.   All the people of the city were killed, with the exception of Rahab and her family, whose lives were spared in keeping with the spies’ promise, and the city was leveled by fire. No Israelite was permitted to enrich himself by looting. God placed a ban on the city, declaring that it was “devoted” to Himself (Josh. 6:17-18). -         Spared, Rahab came to be included in the ancestral line of David and so of Christ(Matt. 1:5).   Archaeologists have found that the walls of Jericho did indeed fall down, they date the destruction of the wall to the time of Joshua (c. 1400 BC). -         The first major excavation of Jericho was carried out by a German team between 1907 and 1909. They found piles of mud bricks at the base of the mound the city was built on. -         It was not until a British archaeologist named Kathleen Kenyon excavated the site with modern methods in the 1950s that it was understood what these piles of bricks were. She determined that they were from the city wall, which had collapsed when the city was destroyed. -         The Bible says that when the walls collapsed, the Israelites stormed the city and set it on fire. Archaeologists have found evidence of a massive destruction by fire just as the Bible states. Kenyon wrote in her excavation report: “The destruction was complete. Walls and floors were blackened or reddened by fire, and every room was filled with fallen bricks, timbers, and household utensils; in most rooms the fallen debris was heavily burnt.”   What caused the walls of Jericho to collapse? -         The common secular explanation is an earthquake must have caused the collapse. o       It must have been a very unusual earthquake because it struck in such a way as to allow a portion of the city wall on the north side of the site to remain standing, while everywhere else the wall fell.   -         Rahab’s house was evidently located on the north side of the city. o       The Bible states that her house was built against the city wall. Before returning to the Israelite camp, the spies told Rahab to bring her family into her house and they would be spared. Rahab’s house was miraculously spared while the rest of the city wall fell. o       This is exactly what archaeologists have found. The preserved city wall on the north side of the city had houses built against it. -         The timing of the earthquake and the manner in which it selectively took down the city wall suggests something other than a natural calamity…It was God at work.   Both Garstang and Kenyon found dozens of store jars full of grain from the Canaanite city of Jericho. -         The obvious conclusion is that these were from the city when it was burned, not looted, by Joshua. -         The archaeological record fits the biblical account precisely.

Bathsheba's Crispy Baked Potatoes with Rosemary

8 small new potatoes, quartered

4 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

1 long sprig fresh rosemary, finely chopped

salt and pepper to taste

a sprinkle or two of Balsamic vinegar

radicchio leaves as needed

With starch, spice, and sweetness, Bathsheba's Crispy Baked Potatoes with Rosemary has all the makings of a great potato dish.

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Place potatoes, olive oil, and rosemary in large bowl; put a dinner plate over the bowl and toss, shaking up and down a few times until well-mixed. Arrange potatoes on large baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper; bake, turning occasionally, about 45 minutes, or until golden brown. Before serving, baste with Balsamic vinegar and place on a bed of radicchio for a fine presentation.

Yield: 8 servings

The Text

39b Then David sent word to Abigail, asking her to become his wife.

His servants went to Carmel and said to Abigail, “David has sent us to you to take you to become his wife.”

She bowed down with her face to the ground and said, “Here is your maidservant, ready to serve you and wash the feet of my master's servants.”

42 Abigail quickly got on a donkey and, attended by her five maids, went with David's messengers and became his wife.

I Samuel 25:39b-42, New International Version

A jug of olive oil was representative of the feast of kings, as the ancient Hebrews believed that olive oil was capable of restoring health and adding longevity.

Biblical Passage Notes

The Bible does not provide us with any words about the preparations for David's marriages, but there seems to be a long history associated with a wedding feast in the House of David. The imagery is seen over and over again in the Song of Songs, where some scholars and a longstanding tradition identify the male protagonist, the lover, as Solomon, David's son and successor. In addition, the parable of the wedding feast in the Christian gospels (Matthew 22:1–14, Luke 14:15–24) is rooted in a Jewish understanding of the marriage of a great king. The stories surrounding David were undoubtedly on the minds of the gospel writers as they related the teachings of Jesus, who himself was said to be a descendant of David.

The Preparation

What would a feast for such a great king look like? In modern-day Israel, one will come across more than a few sites pitching “King David's Feast” (such as Genesis Land just outside of Jerusalem) to the tourist trade; and many of the cookbooks of the last seventy years have a recipe or two that imagine some glorious confection worthy of the Jerusalem court. We've attempted a fair cross section of both offerings, while adding in a few recipes we think would make an 11th-century b.c.e. royal meal complete. If you're going to try the whole menu at one sitting, make sure you have left yourself a lot of preparation time and that you've invited lots of friends and family with hearty appetites!

FUN PAGE

PHILISTIA

Philistia

fi-lis´ti-a: The country is referred to under various designations in the Old Testament: namely, פּלשׁת, pelesheth (Philistia) (Psa_60:8 (Hebrew 10); Psa_87:4), פּלשׁתּים ארץ, 'erec pelishtı̄m, “land of the Philistines” (Gen_21:32, Gen_21:34), הפּלשׁתּים גּלית, gelōth ha-pelishtı̄m; Septuagint gḗ tṓn Phulistieı́m, “the regions of the Philistines” (Jos_13:2). The Egyptian monuments have Puirsatha, Pulsath (Budge), Peleset (Breasted) and Purasati (HGHL), according to the different voweling of the radicals; the Assyrian form is Palastu or Pilistu, which corresponds very closely to the Egyptian and the Hebrew. The extent of the land is indicated in Jos_13:2 as being from the Shihor, or Brook of Egypt (Revised Version), to the border of Ekron, northward. The eastern border was along the Judean foothills on the line of Beth-shemesh (1Sa_6:9) with the sea on the West. It was a very small country, from 25 to 30 miles in length and with an average width of about half the length, but it was fertile, being an extension of the plain of Sharon, except that along the coast high sand dunes encroached upon the cultivated tract. It contained many towns and villages, the most important being the five so often mentioned in Scripture: Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath and Ekron. The population must have been large for the territory, which enabled them to contend successfully with the Israelites, notwithstanding the superiority of position in the hills to the advantage of the latter.

Journey from Succoth to Etham. - Succoth, Israel's first place of encampment after their departure, was probably the rendezvous for the whole nation, so that it was from this point that they first proceeded in an orderly march. The shortest and most direct route from Egypt to Canaan would have been by the road to Gaza, in the land of the Philistines; but God did not lead them by this road, lest they should repent of their movement as soon as the Philistines opposed them, and so desire to return to Egypt, פֶּן: μή, after אָמַר to say (to himself), i.e., to think, with the subordinate idea of anxiety. The Philistines were very warlike, and would hardly have failed to resist the entrance of the Israelites into Canaan, of which they had taken possession of a very large portion. But the Israelites were not prepared for such a conflict, as is sufficiently evident from their despair, in Exo_14:10. For this reason God made them turn round (יַסֵּב for יָסֵב, see Ges. §67) by the way of the desert of the Red Sea. Previous to the account of their onward march, it is still further stated in Exo_13:18, Exo_13:19, that they went out equipped, and took Joseph's bones with them, according to his last request. חֲמֻשִׁים, from חֹמֶשׁ lumbus, lit., lumbis accincti, signifies equipped, as a comparison of this word as it is used in Jos_1:14; Jos_4:12, with חֲלוּצִים in Num_32:30, Num_32:32; Deu_3:18, places beyond all doubt; that is to say, not “armed,” καθωπλισμένοι (Sym.), but prepared for the march, as contrasted with fleeing in disorder like fugitives. For this reason they were able to fulfil Joseph's request, from which fact Calvin draws the following conclusion: “In the midst of their adversity the people had never lost sight of the promised redemption. For unless the celebrated adjuration of Joseph had been a subject of common conversation among them all, Moses would never have thought of it.”

COLORING PAGE

COLUMNS

EXODUS AND DESERT WANDERING

Exodus and Desert Wandering

"When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land Philistines, although that was near; For God said: "Lest the people repent when they see war and return to Egypt." (Exodus 13:17)

Prof. Malamat explains the reason for this detour: At that time in Egyptian history, and lasting for only about 200 years, there was a massive, nearly impenetrable network of fortresses situated along the northern Sinai coastal route to Canaan. Yet these same defenses were absent near Egypt's access to southern Sinai ― because the Egyptians felt the southern route was certain death in the desert.

Therefore, when Moses tells the Israelites to encamp at a site that will mislead Pharaoh, the Egyptians will conclude that the Israelites "are entangled in the land, the wilderness has closed in on them" (Exodus 14:3). This, according to Malamat, "reflects a distinctly Egyptian viewpoint that must have been common at the time: In view of the fortresses on the northern coast, anyone seeking to flee Egypt would necessarily make a detour south into the desert, where they might well perish."

More evidence comes from an ancient victory monument called the "Elephantine Stele." Here is recorded a rebellion in which a renegade Egyptian faction bribed Asiatics living in Egypt to assist them. Although the rebellion ultimately failed, it does confirm that in the same time period when the Israelites were in Egypt, the Egyptians would very likely say, "Come let us deal wisely with them, for if war befalls us, they may join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land" (Exodus 1:10). "That is precisely what happened in the episode recorded in the Elephantine Stele," Malamat asserts.

Biblical criticism comes from the late archaeologist Gosta Ahlstrom. He declares: "It is quite clear that the biblical writers knew nothing about events in Palestine before the 10th century BCE, and they certainly didn't know anything of the geography of Palestine in the Late Bronze age," the time of the desert wandering and subsequent conquest of the land of Canaan. Ahlstrom's proof? He cites the biblical listing of cities along the alleged route that the Israelites traveled immediately before reaching the Jordan River ― Iyyim, Divon, Almon-divlatayim, Nevo, and Avel Shittim (Numbers 33:45-50), and reports that most of these locations have not been located, and those that were excavated did not exist at the time the Bible reports.

In the meantime, writings from the walls of Egyptian Temples say differently. It is well known that Egypt had much reason to travel to Canaan in those days; trade, exploitation, military conquest. These routes are recorded in three different Egyptian Temples ― listed in the same order as provided in the Bible, and dated to the exact period of the Israelite conquest of Canaan.

Another piece of outside verification is an ancient inscription housed in the Amman Museum. Dating to the 8th century BCE (at least), it was found in the Jordanian village of Deir Alla, which was Moabite territory in biblical times. This inscription tells of a person by the name of Bilaam ben Beor, known to the locals as a prophet who would receive his prophecies at night. These features match precisely the Bilaam described in the Bible (Numbers 21) ― his full name, occupation, nighttime prophecies. And of course, Bilaam was a Moabite.

From Which Perspective?

The biblical story of the Exodus is filled with divine intervention in the form of impressive miracles; the splitting of the sea, the revelation at Mount Sinai, the manna bread which fell from heaven, etc. In the opinion of Bible critics, the story is nonrealistic because there is little record of mass encampments from that time, and it is absurd to consider that the Israelites had provisions in the desert for such a huge population and for such a long period of time.

Not always fitting the academic view, is no indictment of the Bible.

However, this opinion needs to be viewed in its proper perspective. It is not the Bible that the archaeologists are impugning, rather they find inconsistencies with their own reconstructed version! The Bible clearly states that the Israelites' food, clothing, and protection was provided directly by God. That the Bible does not always fit the academic reconstituted view, does not constitute an indictment of the Bible.

As for the issue of encampments are concerned, it is nearly impossible to find traces of large Bedouin encampments in the Sinai Desert from 200-300 years ago. So would one expect the remains of large encampments after 3,000 years?

WALNUT TREE COLORING PAGE

DATES WITH HONEY AND RICOTTA CURDS SPREAD

Dates with Honey and Ricotta Curds Spread

Meal: Entertaining Angels Unawares Recipe 

Dates with Honey and Ricotta Curds Spread
2 cups rich fresh ricotta curds
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
2 Tbsp. honey
⅛ tsp. nutmeg
1 Tbsp. ground walnuts
sprig of fresh mint

Mix the curds, honey, walnuts, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a small, deep, chilled bowl. Stir until well combined. Chop the mint leaves and sprinkle over the mixture.

Use as a filling for pitted dates or as a topping on celery or endive; it is also fine on toasted cinnamon bread.

Yield: 6–8 servings




The Text

The Lord appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre as he sat at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day. He looked up and saw three men standing near him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent entrance to meet them, and bowed down to the ground. He said, “My lord, if I find favor with you, do not pass by your servant. Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. Let me bring a little bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.” And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah, and said, “Make ready quickly three measures of choice flour, knead it, and make cakes.” Abraham ran to the herd, and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to the servant, who hastened to prepare it. Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree while they ate.

Abraham cooked the meat by cutting it into small pieces and broiling them on skewers over an open fire.

Genesis 18:1–8, New Revised Standard Version
Biblical Passage Notes

“The Oaks of Mamre”: In Hebrew, Elonei Mamre or Alonei Mamre, the place where Abram settled and built an altar to God after dividing his household between himself and Lot. Some scholars have connected the place with ancient tree-worshipping cults, and such a connection would seem to emphasize the difficulty of Abram/Abraham's break from polytheistic traditions. Others indicate that Mamre was the name of an Amorite inhabitant of the area (that is, someone from the hill country or the vicinity of Jerusalem). Over the ensuing millennia, pilgrims have venerated the site because of Abram/Abraham's commitment to monotheism, though there is some question about the precise location of the oaks. Con-stantine, the 4th-century c.e. Roman emperor, consecrated one spot with the Basilica of the Terebinth of Mamre, but during the time of Saint Jerome, pilgrims held fairs under a growing oak tree. The Crusades brought renewed interest, and pilgrims celebrated the Feast of the Trinity at a supposedly original site, remembering the three strangers (God and two angels) who visited Abram/Abraham there.

The name Abu-ramu is sometimes taken to mean “lofty father,” but this is a doubtful translation of the Assyrian. The name Abraham is also thought to mean “ancestor of a multitude,” though that meaning is probably folklore, and there seems to be no linguistic evidence to support it. It is probable that Abraham is merely a dialectical variation of Abram.
The Preparation

This was a simple meal that Abraham prepared for his visitors, and probably the first instance of fast food in the Bible. It takes place near Hebron, about twenty-three miles south of present-day Jerusalem. The city itself is situated on a plain about 3,000 feet above sea level. To this place the three visitors arrived, we are told, and Abraham “hastened” to prepare a meal, as he was not expecting strangers, especially at hot midday, when one usually rests. Sarah was given the task of making the bread, the daily custom of grinding and baking reserved for the women of the household, most often the wife. Generally, flour was mixed with water, made into dough, and rolled out into cakes. The cakes were then placed on ground previously heated by fire, then covered with hot embers till baked. It was a quick process.1

Luckily the visitors were not in too much of a hurry, as preparing a calf from pasture to palate would take a bit longer. In the interest of time and hospitality, the calf would probably have been cooked either by roasting it whole (no fancy preparation or cuts) or by cutting it up into small, hacked pieces and broiling them on skewers over the fire. Many scholars point out that the meat would have been served with some sort of grain and vegetable dish (the KJV speaks of “corn,” but as it was originally a North American plant, probably barley or some other large grain was used). A bowl of camel's milk and some cheese or curds served as dessert; the 21st-century cook with a sense of humor might add or substitute Angel Food Cake.

Abraham served this meal, or something like it, at the terebinth of Mamre, a tall spreading tree or grove of trees, an ideal setting for today's cookout or picnic meal. The recipes that follow comprise an entire meal for six to eight people, yet they require some planning and advance preparation.

Many of the ingredients for these recipes are found in the Bible: yeast (Leviticus 10:12), flour (Numbers 15:4), salt (Ezra 6:9), saffron (Song of Songs 4:14), honey (I Kings 14:3), walnuts (Song of Songs 6:11), cinnamon (Exodus 30:23), mint (Luke 11:42), endive (one of the “bitter herbs' of Exodus 12:8), leeks and garlic (Numbers 11:5), olive oil (Luke 16:6), egg whites (Job 6:6), veal (I Samuel 28), cumin (Isaiah 28:25, 27), cucumbers (Isaiah 1:8), and goat cheese (II Samuel 17:29), but feel free to substitute or adapt as needed. It will still be a heavenly meal!

ISAIAH AND THE SERAPHIM

PITHOM

Pithom

pı̄´thom (פּתם, pithōm; Πειθώ, Peithṓ (Exo_1:11)):

1. Meaning of Name:
Champollion (Gesenius, Lexicon, under the word) considered this name to mean “a narrow place” in Coptic, but it is generally explained to be the Egyptian Pa-tum, or “city of the setting sun.” It was one of the cities built by the Hebrews (see RAAMSES), and according to Wessel was the Thoum of the Antonine Itinerary.
Brugsch (History of Egypt, 1879, II, 343) says that it was identical with “Heracleopolis Parva, the capital of the Sethroitic nome in the age of the Greeks and Romans ... half-way on the great road from Pelusium to Tanis (Zoan), and this indication given on the authority of the itineraries furnishes the sole means of fixing its position.” This is, however, disputed. Tum was worshipped at Thebes, at Zoan, and probably at Bubastis, while Heliopolis (Brugsch, Geogr., I, 254) was also called Pa-tum.
There were apparently several places of the name; and Herodotus (ii. 158) says that the Canal of Darius began a little above Bubastis, “near the Arabian city Patournos,” and reached the Red Sea.

2. Situation:
(1) Dr. Naville's Theory.
In 1885 Dr. E. Naville discovered a Roman milestone of Maximian and Severus, proving that the site of Heroopolis was at Tell el Maḥûṭah (“the walled mound”) in Wâdy Tumeilât. The modern name he gives as Tell el Maskhûtah, which was not that heard by the present writer in 1882. This identification had long been supposed probable. Excavations at the site laid bare strong walls and texts showing the worship of Tum. None was found to be older than the time of Rameses II - who, however, is well known to have defaced older inscriptions, and to have substituted his own name for that of earlier builders. A statue of later date, bearing the title “Recorder of Pithom,” was also found at this same site. Dr. Naville concluded that this city must be the Old Testament Pithom, and the region round it Succoth - the Egyptian T-k-u (but see SUCCOTH). Brugsch, on the other hand, says that the old name of Heropolis was Ḳes (see GOSHEN), which recalls the identification of the Septuagint (Gen_46:28); and elsewhere (following Lepsius) he regards the same site as being “the Pa-Khetam of Rameses II” (see ETHAM), which Lepsius believed to be the Old Testament Rameses (see RAAMSES) mentioned with Pithom (Brugsch, Geogr., I, 302, 262). Silvia in 385 AD was shown the site of Pithom near Heroopolis, but farther East, and she distinguishes the two; but in her time, though Heroopolis was a village, the site of Pithom was probably conjectural. In the time of Minepthah, son of Rameses II (Brugsch, History, II, 128), we have a report that certain nomads from Aduma (or Edom) passed through “the Khetam (or fort) of Minepthah-Hotephima, which is situated in T-k-u, to the lakes (or canals) of the city Pi-tum of Minepthah-Hotephima, which are situated in the land of T-k-u, in order to feed themselves and to feed their herds.”

(2) Patoumos of Herodotus.
These places seem to have been on the eastern border of Egypt, but may have been close to the Bitter Lakes or farther North (see SUCCOTH), whereas Tell el Maḥûṭah is about 12 miles West of Ism'ailieh, and of Lake Timsah. The definition of the Pithom thus noticed as being that of Minepthah suggests that there was more than one place so called, and the Patoumos of Herodotus seems to have been about 30 miles farther West (near Zagazig and Bubastis) than the site of Heropolis, which the Septuagint indentifies with Goshen and not with Pithom. The latter is not noticed as on the route of the Exodus, and is not identified in the Old Testament with Succoth. In the present state of our knowledge of Egyptian topography, the popular impression that the Exodus must have happened in the time of Minepthah, because Pithom was at Heropolis and was not built till the time of Rameses II, must be regarded as very hazardous. See EXODUS. The Patoumos of Herodotus may well have been the site, and may still be discovered near the head of Wâdy Tumeilât or near Bubastis.

Exo 1:8-14
The promised blessing was manifested chiefly in the fact, that all the measures adopted by the cunning of Pharaoh to weaken and diminish the Israelites, instead of checking, served rather to promote their continuous increase.
Exo_1:8-9
“There arose a new king over Egypt, who knew not Joseph.” וַיָּקָם signifies he came to the throne, קוּם denoting his appearance in history, as in Deu_34:10. A “new king” (lxx: βασιλεὺς ἕτερος; the other ancient versions, rex novus) is a king who follows different principles of government from his predecessors. Cf. חֲדָשִׁים אֱלֹהִים, “new gods,” in distinction from the God that their fathers had worshipped, Jdg_5:8; Deu_32:17. That this king belonged to a new dynasty, as the majority of commentators follow Josephus
(Note: Ant. ii. 9, 1. Τῆς βασιλέιας εἰς ἄλλον οἶκον μεταληλυθυΐ́ας.)
in assuming, cannot be inferred with certainty from the predicate new; but it is very probable, as furnishing the readiest explanation of the change in the principles of government. The question itself, however, is of no direct importance in relation to theology, though it has considerable interest in connection with Egyptological researches.
(Note: The want of trustworthy accounts of the history of ancient Egypt and its rulers precludes the possibility of bringing this question to a decision. It is true that attempts have been made to mix it up in various ways with the statements which Josephus has transmitted from Manetho with regard to the rule of the Hyksos in Egypt (c. Ap. i. 14 and 26), and the rising up of the “new king” has been identified sometimes with the commencement of the Hyksos rule, and at other times with the return of the native dynasty on the expulsion of the Hyksos. But just as the accounts of the ancients with regard to the Hyksos bear throughout the stamp of very distorted legends and exaggerations, so the attempts of modern inquirers to clear up the confusion of these legends, and to bring out the historical truth that lies at the foundation of them all, have led to nothing but confused and contradictory hypotheses; so that the greatest Egyptologists of our own days, - viz., Lepsius, Bunsen, and Brugsch - differ throughout, and are even diametrically opposed to one another in their views respecting the dynasties of Egypt. Not a single trace of the Hyksos dynasty is to be found either in or upon the ancient monuments. The documental proofs of the existence of a dynasty of foreign kings, which the Vicomte de Rougé thought that he had discovered in the Papyrus Sallier No. 1 of the British Museum, and which Brugsch pronounced “an Egyptian document concerning the Hyksos period,” have since then been declared untenable both by Brugsch and Lepsius, and therefore given up again. Neither Herodotus nor Diodorus Siculus heard anything at all about the Hyksos though the former made very minute inquiry of the Egyptian priests of Memphis and Heliopolis. And lastly, the notices of Egypt and its kings, which we meet with in Genesis and Exodus, do not contain the slightest intimation that there were foreign kings ruling there either in Joseph's or Moses' days, or that the genuine Egyptian spirit which pervades these notices was nothing more than the “outward adoption” of Egyptian customs and modes of thought. If we add to this the unquestionably legendary character of the Manetho accounts, there is always the greatest probability in the views of those inquirers who regard the two accounts given by Manetho concerning the Hyksos as two different forms of one and the same legend, and the historical fact upon which this legend was founded as being the 430 years' sojourn of the Israelites, which had been thoroughly distorted in the national interests of Egypt. - For a further expansion and defence of this view see Hävernick's Einleitung in d. A. T. i. 2, pp. 338ff., Ed. 2 (Introduction to the Pentateuch, pp. 235ff. English translation).)
The new king did not acknowledge Joseph, i.e., his great merits in relation to Egypt. יָדַע לֹא signifies here, not to perceive, or acknowledge, in the sense of not wanting to know anything about him, as in 1Sa_2:12, etc. In the natural course of things, the merits of Joseph might very well have been forgotten long before; for the multiplication of the Israelites into a numerous people, which had taken place in the meantime, is a sufficient proof that a very long time had elapsed since Joseph's death. At the same time such forgetfulness does not usually take place all at once, unless the account handed down has been intentionally obscured or suppressed. If the new king, therefore, did not know Joseph, the reason must simply have been, that he did not trouble himself about the past, and did not want to know anything about the measures of his predecessors and the events of their reigns. The passage is correctly paraphrased by Jonathan thus: non agnovit (חַכִּים) Josephum nec ambulavit in statutis ejus. Forgetfulness of Joseph brought the favour shown to the Israelites by the kings of Egypt to a close. As they still continued foreigners both in religion and customs, their rapid increase excited distrust in the mind of the king, and induced him to take steps for staying their increase and reducing their strength. The statement that “the people of the children of Israel” (יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּנֵי עַם lit., “nation, viz., the sons of Israel;” for עַם with the dist. accent is not the construct state, and ישראל בני is in apposition, cf. Ges. §113) were “more and mightier” than the Egyptians, is no doubt an exaggeration.
Exo_1:10-14
“Let us deal wisely with them,” i.e., act craftily towards them. הִתְחַכֵּם, sapiensem se gessit (Ecc_7:16), is used here of political craftiness, or worldly wisdom combined with craft and cunning (κατασοφισώμεθα, lxx), and therefore is altered into הִתְנַכֵּל in Psa_105:25 (cf. Gen_37:18). The reason assigned by the king for the measures he was about to propose, was the fear that in case of war the Israelites might make common cause with his enemies, and then remove from Egypt. It was not the conquest of his kingdom that he was afraid of, but alliance with his enemies and emigration. עָלָה is used here, as in Gen_13:1, etc., to denote removal from Egypt to Canaan. He was acquainted with the home of the Israelites therefore, and cannot have been entirely ignorant of the circumstances of their settlement in Egypt. But he regarded them as his subjects, and was unwilling that they should leave the country, and therefore was anxious to prevent the possibility of their emancipating themselves in the event of war. - In the form תִּקְרֶאנָה for תִּקְרֶינָה, according to the frequent interchange of the forms הל and אל (vid., Gen_42:4), nh is transferred from the feminine plural to the singular, to distinguish the 3rd pers. fem. from the 2nd pers., as in Jdg_5:26; Job_17:16 (vid., Ewald, §191c, and Ges. §47, 3, Anm. 3). Consequently there is no necessity either to understand מִלְחָמָה collectively as signifying soldiers, or to regard תִּקְרֶאנוּ drager ot , the reading adopted by the lxx (συμβῆ ἡμῖν), the Samaritan, Chaldee, Syriac, and Vulgate, as “certainly the original,” as Knobel has done.
The first measure adopted (Exo_1:11) consisted in the appointment of taskmasters over the Israelites, to bend them down by hard labour. מִסִּים שָׂרֵי bailiffs over the serfs. מִסִּים from מַס signifies, not feudal service, but feudal labourers, serfs (see my Commentary on 1Ki_4:6). עִנָּה to bend, to wear out any one's strength (Psa_102:24). By hard feudal labour (סִבְלֹות burdens, burdensome toil) Pharaoh hoped, according to the ordinary maxims of tyrants (Aristot. polit., 5, 9; Liv. hist. i. 56, 59), to break down the physical strength of Israel and lessen its increase-since a population always grows more slowly under oppression than in the midst of prosperous circumstances-and also to crush their spirit so as to banish the very wish for liberty. - וַיִּבֶן - .ytrebil r, and so Israel built (was compelled to build) provision or magazine cities vid., 2Ch_32:28, cities for the storing of the harvest), in which the produce of the land was housed, partly for purposes of trade, and partly for provisioning the army in time of war; - not fortresses, πόλεις ὀχυραί, as the lxx have rendered it. Pithom was Πάτουμος; it was situated, according to Herodotus (2, 158), upon the canal which commenced above Bybastus and connected the Nile with the Red Sea. This city is called Thou or Thoum in the Itiner. Anton., the Egyptian article pi being dropped, and according to Jomard (descript. t. 9, p. 368) is to be sought for on the site of the modern Abassieh in the Wady Tumilat. - Raemses (cf. Gen_47:11) was the ancient Heroopolis, and is not to be looked for on the site of the modern Belbeis. In support of the latter supposition, Stickel, who agrees with Kurtz and Knobel, adduces chiefly the statement of the Egyptian geographer Makrizi, that in the (Jews') book of the law Belbeis is called the land of Goshen, in which Jacob dwelt when he came to his son Joseph, and that the capital of the province was el Sharkiyeh. This place is a day's journey (for as others affirm, 14 hours) to the north-east of Cairo on the Syrian and Egyptian road. It served as a meeting-place in the middle ages for the caravans from Egypt to Syria and Arabia (Ritter, Erdkunde 14, p. 59). It is said to have been in existence before the Mohammedan conquest of Egypt. But the clue cannot be traced any farther back; and it is too far from the Red Sea for the Raemses of the Bible (vid., Exo_12:37). The authority of Makrizi is quite counterbalanced by the much older statement of the Septuagint, in which Jacob is made to meet his son Joseph in Heroopolis; the words of Gen_46:29, “and Joseph went up to meet Israel his father to Goshen,” being rendered thus: εἰς συϚάϚτησιν Ἰσραὴλ τῷ πατρὶ αὐτοῦκαθ ̓ Ἡρώων πόλιν. Hengstenberg is not correct in saying that the later name Heroopolis is here substituted for the older name Raemses; and Gesenius, Kurtz, and Knobel are equally wrong in affirming that καθ ̓ ἩρώωϚ πόλιν is supplied ex ingenio suo; but the place of meeting, which is given indefinitely as Goshen in the original, is here distinctly named. Now if this more precise definition is not an arbitrary conjecture of the Alexandrian translators, but sprang out of their acquaintance with the country, and is really correct, as Kurtz has no doubt, it follows that Heroopolis belongs to the γῆ Ῥαμεσσῆ (Gen_46:28, lxx), or was situated within it. But this district formed the centre of the Israelitish settlement in Goshen; for according to Gen_47:11, Joseph gave his father and brethren “a possession in the best of the land, in the land of Raemses.” Following this passage, the lxx have also rendered גֹּשֶׁן אַרְצָה in Gen_46:28 by εἰς γῆν Ῥαμεσσῆ, whereas in other places the land of Goshen is simply called γῆ Γεσέμ (Gen_45:10; Gen_46:34; Gen_47:1, etc.). But if Heroopolis belonged to the γῆ Ῥαμεσσῆ, or the province of Raemses, which formed the centre of the land of Goshen that was assigned to the Israelites, this city must have stood in the immediate neighbourhood of Raemses, or have been identical with it. Now, since the researches of the scientific men attached to the great French expedition, it has been generally admitted that Heroopolis occupied the site of the modern Abu Keisheib in the Wady Tumilat, between Thoum = Pithom and the Birket Temsah or Crocodile Lake; and according to the Itiner. p. 170, it was only 24 Roman miles to the east of Pithom, - a position that was admirably adapted not only for a magazine, but also for the gathering-place of Israel prior to their departure (Exo_12:37).
But Pharaoh's first plan did not accomplish his purpose (Exo_1:12). The multiplication of Israel went on just in proportion to the amount of the oppression (כֵּן = כַּאֲשֶׁר prout, ita; פָּרַץ as in Gen_30:30; Gen_28:14), so that the Egyptians were dismayed at the Israelites (קוּץ to feel dismay, or fear, Num_22:3). In this increase of their numbers, which surpassed all expectation, there was the manifestation of a higher, supernatural, and to them awful power. But instead of bowing before it, they still endeavoured to enslave Israel through hard servile labour. In Exo_1:13, Exo_1:14 we have not an account of any fresh oppression; but “the crushing by hard labour” is represented as enslaving the Israelites and embittering their lives. פֶּרֶךְ hard oppression, from the Chaldee פְּרַךְ to break or crush in pieces. “They embittered their life with hard labour in clay and bricks (making clay into bricks, and working with the bricks when made), and in all kinds of labour in the field (this was very severe in Egypt on account of the laborious process by which the ground was watered, Deu_11:10), כָּל־עֲבֹדָתָם אֵת with regard to all their labour, which they worked (i.e., performed) through them (viz., the Israelites) with severe oppression.” כל־ע את is also dependent upon ימָרֲרו, as a second accusative (Ewald, §277d). Bricks of clay were the building materials most commonly used in Egypt. The employment of foreigners in this kind of labour is to be seen represented in a painting, discovered in the ruins of Thebes, and given in the Egyptological works of Rosellini and Wilkinson, in which workmen who are evidently not Egyptians are occupied in making bricks, whilst two Egyptians with sticks are standing as overlookers; - even if the labourers are not intended for the Israelites, as the Jewish physiognomies would lead us to suppose. (For fuller details, see Hengstenberg's Egypt and the Books of Moses, p. 80ff. English translation).

CROWN

CROWN

HYKSOS PRINCESS CROWN

The Hyksos

Hyksos princess crown

It seems most likely that Joseph rose to power during the time of the Hyksos, or just before in the 12th Dynasty when many Asiatics came into Egypt. It also seems most likely that the Exodus from Egypt should be equated with the expulsion of the Hyksos. Not all the Hyksos were Israelites. It says in Exodus that a great mixed multitude came out of Egypt with Moses (Exodus 12:38). The Greek name "Hyksos" was coined by Manetho to identify his fifteenth Dynasty of Asiatic rulers of northern Egypt. The word comes from the Egyptian Hk3(w) h3swt, which means "ruler(s) of foreign countries" (Meyers 1997, 3:133) which Manetho mistranslated as "Shepherd Kings". The Hyksos were of West Semitic background probably from southern Palestine who migrated down into northern Egypt during the 12th and 13th dynasties. At first they lived peacefully with the Egyptians until the deterioration of Egypt's power when in 1648 BC they captured the Egyptian capital at Memphis.

The Hyksos made Avaris their capital which is modern Tell ed-Dab'a, which was later known as Piramesse (Exodus 1:11). "Avaris" is the Greek term for the Egyptian Hwt-w'rt meaning "mansion of the desert plateau" (Meyers 1997 3:134). Other important Hyksos cities were Tell el-Yahudiyeh (meaning "mound of the Jews") known for its distinctive black and white ware, and Tell el-Maskhuta (probably Succoth in Exodus 12:37 NIV note, 13:20).

Tell el-Yahudiyeh ware

ESAU'S POTTAGE

Esau's Pottage

½ cup olive oil
6 onions, diced
1 lb. lamb, cubed
2 carrots
2 stalks celery
1 green pepper
2 cups tomatoes
1 lb. lentils
2–3 cups water
1 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. black pepper



This hearty stew known as Esau's Pottage is so delicious that a brother might even give up his birthright for a mere taste.

Heat the oil; add the onions and saute until tender but not brown. Add the cubed meat (it should be as lean as possible) and let simmer while washing and dicing the vegetables. Add the vegetables and lentils to the meat with 2 cups of water, and simmer gently until lentils are tender. It will take about 1½ hours. Add salt and pepper when the lentils are cooked. Shake the pot occasionally or add another cup of water to prevent sticking. * Serve hot in a bowl or on a plate next to a cucumber salad.

Yield: 6–8 servings

*If you double the recipe, you'll keep adding water as needed. Those lentils soak up a lot of liquid! Source: Adapted from The Bible Cookbook by Marian Maeve O'Brien, 203.


acob gave Esau bread and a stew of lentils in exchange for the older brother's birthright.

24 When Rebekah's time to give birth came, sure enough, there were twins in her womb.

25 The first came out reddish, as if snugly wrapped in a hairy blanket; they named him Esau.

26 His brother followed, his fist clutched tight to Esau's heel; they named him Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when they were born.

27 The boys grew up. Esau became an ex pert hunter, an outdoorsman. Jacob was a quiet man preferring life indoors among the tents.

28 Isaac loved Esau because he loved Esau's game, but Rebekah loved Jacob.

29 One day Jacob was cooking a stew. Esau came in from the field, starved.

30 Esau said to Jacob, “Give me some of that red stew—I'm starved!” That's how he came to be called Edom.

31 Jacob said, “Make me a trade: my stew for your rights as the firstborn.”

32 Esau said, “I'm starving! What good is a birthright if I'm dead?”

33 Jacob said, “First, swear to me.” And he did it. On oath Esau traded away his rights as the firstborn.

34 Jacob gave him bread and the stew of lentils. He ate and drank, got up and left. That's how Esau shrugged off his rights as the firstborn.

Genesis 25:24–34, adapted from The Message


The stew that Jacob feeds his brother is made of lentils, a vegetable that is mentioned only four times in the Bible (II Samuel 17:28 and 23:12; Ezekiel 4:9; and in this chapter of Genesis), but it seems very likely that lentils were widely planted and utilized during the biblical era. Even today they are grown throughout the Middle East and are known as a good source of vitamins A and C, and they are rich in protein and amino acids, making it natural that they became a staple among the poorer inhabitants of the land. Planted during the winter season in very small patches of plowed soil and harvested during late spring or early summer, the plants grow to about one foot tall and sport small bluish-white flowers.2

There are two main types of lentils grown in the Middle East. The first is a large, gray bean with a reddish center. This is usually prepared by grinding off the outer layer, the seed coat, leaving the red cotyledons. The seed coat residue is fed to animals.3 Lentils of this type cook more rapidly than the second type, which is smaller and does not have red cotyledons, although some of the seed coats themselves can have a brownish-red hue. This type of lentil is eaten with the outer coating intact. (Cotyledons are the first part of the plant that pokes out of the ground when a seed sprouts; they keep the new seedling fed until it can make its own food through photosynthesis.)

ROCK

ROCK

According to the Turin king list there were six Hyksos kings who ruled for 108 years. One important ruler was named "Y'qbhr" or "Jacob-hr" (Albright 1934, 11). There have been several different translations of this name. Early scholars purposed the meaning of "Jacob-El" as "Jacob is my god", but Albright observed that the name is a name-pattern verb plus theophorous element (1935, 191, n.59; Ward 1976, 358). In Phoenician and Akkadian hr means "mountain". Ward states:Here hr, 'mountain,' appears as a synonym for 'ilu, 'god, much as Hebrew sur, 'rock,' and similar words were used, e.g., Suri-'el, 'El is my rock.' I would thus render Y'qb-hr as '(My) mountain (i.e. god) protects,' which would be identical in meaning to Yahqub-'il (1976, 359).Hr meaning "mountain" or "rock" is identical to the word El or "god". In the Old Testament Zobel proposes:The name (Jacob) is a hyocoristic form of what was originally a theophorous name belonging to the class of statement-names made up of a divine name and the imperfect of a verb. Its full form, not found in the OT, was 'Jacob-El'(1990, 188-9; Shanks 1988, 24-25).

ROCK



(1) Some of the most striking and beautiful imagery of the Bible is based upon the rocks. They are a symbol of God: “Yahweh is my rock, and my fortress” (2Sa_22:2; Psa_18:2; Psa_71:3); “God, the rock of my salvation” (2Sa_22:47; compare Psa_62:2, Psa_62:7; Psa_89:26); “my God the rock of my refuge” (Psa_94:22); “the rock of thy strength” (Isa_17:10); “Lead me to the rock that is higher than I” (Psa_61:2); repeatedly in the song of Moses (Deu_32:3, Deu_32:4, Deu_32:18, Deu_32:30, Deu_32:31; compare 2Sa_22:32). Paul applies the rock smitten in the wilderness (Exo_17:6; Num_20:11) to Christ as the source of living water for spiritual refreshment (1Co_10:4).
(2) The rocks are a refuge, both figuratively and literally (Jer_48:28; Son_2:14); “The rocks are a refuge for the conies” (Psa_104:18). Many a traveler in Palestine has felt the refreshment of “the shade of a great rock in a weary land” (Isa_32:2). A very different idea is expressed in Isa_8:14, “And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offense” (compare Rom_9:33; 1Pe_2:8).
(3) The rock is a symbol of hardness (Jer_5:3; compare Isa_50:7). Therefore, the breaking of the rock exemplifies the power of God (Jer_23:29; compare 1Ki_19:11). The rock is also a symbol of that which endures, “Oh that they ... were graven in the rock for ever!” (Job_19:23, Job_19:24). A rock was an appropriate place for offering a sacrifice (Jdg_6:20; Jdg_13:19). The central feature of the Mosque of 'Umar in Jerusalem is Ḳubbat-uṣ-Ṣakhrat, the “dome of the rock.” The rock or ṣakhrat under the dome is thought to be the site of Solomon's altar of burnt offering, and further is thought to be the site of the threshing-floor of Araunah the Jebusite which David purchased to build an altar to Yahweh.

JACOB'S LADDER

YAKOBHER SEAL

YAKOBHER SEAL

According to the Turin king list there were six Hyksos kings who ruled for 108 years. One important ruler was named "Y'qbhr" or "Jacob-hr" (Albright 1934, 11). There have been several different translations of this name. Early scholars purposed the meaning of "Jacob-El" as "Jacob is my god", but Albright observed that the name is a name-pattern verb plus theophorous element (1935, 191, n.59; Ward 1976, 358). In Phoenician and Akkadian hr means "mountain". Ward states:Here hr, 'mountain,' appears as a synonym for 'ilu, 'god, much as Hebrew sur, 'rock,' and similar words were used, e.g., Suri-'el, 'El is my rock.' I would thus render Y'qb-hr as '(My) mountain (i.e. god) protects,' which would be identical in meaning to Yahqub-'il (1976, 359).Hr meaning "mountain" or "rock" is identical to the word El or "god". In the Old Testament Zobel proposes:The name (Jacob) is a hyocoristic form of what was originally a theophorous name belonging to the class of statement-names made up of a divine name and the imperfect of a verb. Its full form, not found in the OT, was 'Jacob-El'(1990, 188-9; Shanks 1988, 24-25). 

Therefore the name "Jacob" found in the Bible would be the same as the name "Jacob-El" which is found on a number of Hyksos Scarabs. Although this name was common among the Arameans, but uncommon among the Canaanites and Phoenicians (Zobel 1990, 189), R. Weil was the first to connect the Hyksos princes with the Biblical story of Jacob (Kempinski 1985, 134). In 1969 a scarab of Jacob-El was found in the Middle Bronze II tomb at Shiqmona, a suburb of Haifa, that was from a mid-18th century deposit 100-80 years before the Hyksos (Kempinski 1985, 132-3). The Jacob-El of Shiqmona must have been a local Palestinian ruler, possibly the same Jacob of the Bible. According to Genesis 32:23-33 Jacob's name was changed to Israel. Steuernagel was the first to propose the idea of the "Jacob tribe" or "proto-Israelite Jacob group" (Zobel 1990, 194). It may be that the name "Israel" was not officially used until after the conquest of Canaan when a league of 12 tribes was formed. This would help explain the absence of the name "Israel" from early sources. Joseph Austrian Manfred Beitak excavating Tell ed Dab'a, the ancient capital of the Hyksos, between 1984 to 1987 discovered a palace and garden dating back to the 12th Dynasty with a tomb containing a statue of an Asiatic with a mushroom hairstyle that some scholars think might be Joseph (Aling 1995, 33; 1981; Rohl 1995, 327-367). Much more evidence is needed to claim for certain that this is Joseph's tomb (Redford 1970). There is an interesting study done by Barbara Bell on the records of the Nile's water levels. She concluded that in the middle of the 12th Dynasty there were erratic Nile water levels that caused crop failure (Bell 1975, 223-269). Could this be Joseph's famine? There is "The Tradition of Seven Lean Years in Egypt" written during the Ptolemaic period about the reign of Djoser that states: To let thee know. I was in distress on the Great Throne, and those who are in the palace were in heart's affliction from a very great evil, since the Nile had not come in my time for a space of seven years. Grain was scant, fruits were dried up, and everything which they eat was short. Every man robbed his companion (ANET 1969, 31).

YAKOBHER SEAL

The Story of Two Brothers is an Egyptian text that dates to about 1225 BC that is very similar to the story of Joseph. This tale tells how a young man was falsely accused of a proposal of adultery by the wife of his older brother after he had rejected her advances (ANET 1969, 23-25; Lichtheim 1976, 2:203-211). In the 12th Dynasty Egyptian tomb of Khunum-hotep (1890 BC) at Beni Hasan is pictured a caravan of 37 Asiatics arriving in Egypt trading black eye paint (stibium) from the land of Shutu (ANEP 1969, fig. 3). The leader is named Ibsha and bears the title "ruler of foreign lands" from which the name "Hyksos" is derived (ANET 1969, 229). The land of Shutu is probably an ancient term for Gilead (Aharoni 1979, 146). The Ishmaelites who took Joseph down to Egypt came from Gilead through Dothan (Genesis 37:25). In the 13th Dynasty there were a number of Asiatics serving in Egyptian households. One text lists 95 servants from one Theban household with 37 of the names being Asiatics, and at least 28 females (ANET 1969, 553-4; Albright 1955, 222-233). There is a Asiatic women named Sekratu (line 13) which is related to "Issachar." In line 23 an Asiatic woman is called "Asher," and in line 37 another woman is called Aqaba which is related to "Jacob." This may indicate that some of the tribes of Israel were in Egypt at this time. In the Book of Sothis which Syncellus believed was the genuine Manetho it gives the specific time when Joseph rose to power under Hyksos king, Aphophis who ruled 61 years. It says: Some say that this king (Aphophis) was at first called Pharaoh, and that in the 4th year of his kingship Joseph came as a slave into Egypt. He appointed Joseph lord of Egypt and all his kingdom in the 17th year of his rule, having learned from him the interpretation of the dreams and having thus proved his divine wisdom (Manetho 1940, 239). Halpern has concluded, "Overall, the Joseph story is a reinterpretation of the Hyksos period from an Israelite perspective" (1992, 98).

Article from Institute for Biblical & Scientific Studies