Changes

Contemporary history of Egyptian events also supports the 1441 B.C. date.  The pharaoh who refused to allow the Hebrews to leave most certainly would have been Amenhotep II, who reigned c. 1450-1425 B.C.  He was the son of the empire builder and conqueror Thutmose III, and Amenhotep lived off his father's largesse.  It is also clear from Egyptian inscriptions that the son who succeeded him to the throne, Thutmose IV, was not his first born; this was indicated by the inscription on a slab known as the [[Dream Stele]] at the foot of the Great Sphinx:  

Contemporary history of Egyptian events also supports the 1441 B.C. date.  The pharaoh who refused to allow the Hebrews to leave most certainly would have been Amenhotep II, who reigned c. 1450-1425 B.C.  He was the son of the empire builder and conqueror Thutmose III, and Amenhotep lived off his father's largesse.  It is also clear from Egyptian inscriptions that the son who succeeded him to the throne, Thutmose IV, was not his first born; this was indicated by the inscription on a slab known as the [[Dream Stele]] at the foot of the Great Sphinx:  

*''"One of those days it came to pass that the king's son, Thutmose, came, coursing at the time of midday, and he rested in the shadow of this great god.  A vision of sleep seized him at the hour (when) the sun was in the zenith, and he found the majesty of this revered god speaking with his own mouth, as a father speaks with his son, saying: "Behold thou me! See thou me! My son Thutmose.  I am thy father, Harmakhis-Khepri-Re-Atum, who will give to thee my kingdom on earth at the head of the living.  Thou shalt wear the white crown and the red crown upon the throne of Keb, the hereditary prince.  The land shall be thine in its length and breadth, that which the eye of the All-Lord shines upon.  The food of the Two Lands shall be thine, the great tribute of all countries, the duration of a long period of years."'' [http://www.kent.net/DisplacedDynasties/Menkheperure.html]

*''"One of those days it came to pass that the king's son, Thutmose, came, coursing at the time of midday, and he rested in the shadow of this great god.  A vision of sleep seized him at the hour (when) the sun was in the zenith, and he found the majesty of this revered god speaking with his own mouth, as a father speaks with his son, saying: "Behold thou me! See thou me! My son Thutmose.  I am thy father, Harmakhis-Khepri-Re-Atum, who will give to thee my kingdom on earth at the head of the living.  Thou shalt wear the white crown and the red crown upon the throne of Keb, the hereditary prince.  The land shall be thine in its length and breadth, that which the eye of the All-Lord shines upon.  The food of the Two Lands shall be thine, the great tribute of all countries, the duration of a long period of years."'' [http://www.kent.net/DisplacedDynasties/Menkheperure.html]

Rekhmire, the vizier to Thutmose III, left behind splended wall paintings in his tomb in which scenes of the making of bricks and other tasks are being carried out, similar to the scene in ''Exodus'' 5:6-19.  Found among the figures in the paintings are Semitic foreigners engaged in brick-making, with the hyroglyphic text having them say ''"He supplies us with bread, beer, and every good thing,"'' while they get a stern warning from the task-masters: ''"The rod is in my hand; be not idle!''  (Unger, pg. 333)  

Thutmose III was known as a great builder who used employed large numbers of slaves in his building projects; this number included large numbers of Semites, who were hated by Thutmose as a result of the Hyksos period.  The powerful 18th Dynasty was founded by Amenhotep I (1546-1525 B.C.), who came to power after a campaign to drive the Hyksos from Egypt had succeeded about 1570 B.C.  Remaining Semites who stayed behind were treated brutally by the next several kings (Thutmose I and Thutmose II), culminating in Thutmoses III, who ''"...made their lives bitter with hard bondage, in mortar, and in brick, and in all manner of service in the field..."'' (''Exodus'' 1:14). Archaeologist and historian W.F. Albright confirmed that the Hyksos invasion of Egypt was led by a Semetic people, not Hurrians or Indo-Aryans as some scholars contend; this fact help fuel the hatred that many Egyptians felt for the Hebrew slaves remaining in Goshen. (Albright, pg. 44)

Thutmose III was known as a great builder who used employed large numbers of slaves in his building projects; this number included large numbers of Semites, who were hated by Thutmose as a result of the Hyksos period.  The powerful 18th Dynasty was founded by Amenhotep I (1546-1525 B.C.), who came to power after a campaign to drive the Hyksos from Egypt had succeeded about 1570 B.C.  Remaining Semites who stayed behind were treated brutally by the next several kings (Thutmose I and Thutmose II), culminating in Thutmoses III, who ''"...made their lives bitter with hard bondage, in mortar, and in brick, and in all manner of service in the field..."'' (''Exodus'' 1:14). Archaeologist and historian W.F. Albright confirmed that the Hyksos invasion of Egypt was led by a Semetic people, not Hurrians or Indo-Aryans as some scholars contend; this fact help fuel the hatred that many Egyptians felt for the Hebrew slaves remaining in Goshen. (Albright, pg. 44)

Rekhmire, the vizier to Thutmose III, left behind splended wall paintings in his tomb in which scenes of the making of bricks and other tasks are being carried out, similar to the scene in ''Exodus'' 5:6-19.  Found among the figures in the paintings are Semitic foreigners engaged in brick-making, with the hyroglyphic text having them say ''"He supplies us with bread, beer, and every good thing,"'' while they get a stern warning from the task-masters: ''"The rod is in my hand; be not idle!''  (Unger, pg. 333)

The [[Amarna Letters]], named for Pharaoh [[Akenaton]]'s city where they were discovered in 1886, provide a glimpse into the details of an invasion of the land of Canaan by a people called the "Haibiru" or "Hapiru"; although some are divided on the matter, many agree that the "Haibiru" are actually the Hebrews just entering the Promised Land and putting fear into the vassals of Egypt in the area. [http://www.terraflex.co.il/ad/egypt/a-abdu-heba1.htm]  The letters date from c. 1400-1366, corresponding to the entry of [[Joshua]] according to the Biblical timeframe. [http://www.terraflex.co.il/ad/egypt/amarnaletters.htm]

The [[Amarna Letters]], named for Pharaoh [[Akenaton]]'s city where they were discovered in 1886, provide a glimpse into the details of an invasion of the land of Canaan by a people called the "Haibiru" or "Hapiru"; although some are divided on the matter, many agree that the "Haibiru" are actually the Hebrews just entering the Promised Land and putting fear into the vassals of Egypt in the area. [http://www.terraflex.co.il/ad/egypt/a-abdu-heba1.htm]  The letters date from c. 1400-1366, corresponding to the entry of [[Joshua]] according to the Biblical timeframe. [http://www.terraflex.co.il/ad/egypt/amarnaletters.htm]

Egyptologist and historian David Rohl created a stir when he published a [[New Chronology]] in 1995, essentially re-writing Egyptian history because he believes it was off by approximately 125 years as a result of mistakes made by archaeologists during the late 19th century.  While not far off with his date of the Exodus (1447 B.C.), he stated in his book that the pharaoh of the Oppression was Khenefere Sobekhotep IV, and the pharoah of the Exodus was Dudimose; this based on the writings of a Jewish historian named Artapanus, who wrote ''Peri Ioudaion'' (''Concerning the Jews''), and was cited by the early church historian Eusebius (Rohl, pg. 252-280).

Egyptologist and historian David Rohl created a stir when he published a [[New Chronology]] in 1995, essentially re-writing Egyptian history because he believes it was off by approximately 125 years as a result of mistakes made by archaeologists during the late 19th century.  While not far off with his date of the Exodus (1447 B.C.), he stated in his book that the pharaoh of the Oppression was Khenefere Sobekhotep IV, and the pharoah of the Exodus was Dudimose; this based on the writings of a Jewish historian named Artapanus, who wrote ''Peri Ioudaion'' (''Concerning the Jews''), and was cited by the early church historian Eusebius (Rohl, pg. 252-280).