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Line 3: + + − 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 Thutmose 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; the fact that the remaining population was Semetic help fuel the hatred that many Egyptians felt for the Hebrew slaves remaining in Goshen. (Albright, pg. 44)+
added Hyksos information
[[Image:Nomads1895.JPG|thumb|200px|right|Egyptian wall relief of Semitic nomads, c. 1800 B.C.]]
[[Image:Nomads1895.JPG|thumb|200px|right|Egyptian wall relief of Semitic nomads, c. 1800 B.C.]]
The '''Exodus''' was the event described in the [[Bible]] when the Hebrews left Egyptian slavery for the Promised Land under the leadership of [[Moses]]. The actual date with which this event took place has been the subject of serious study, speculation, and controversy. Currently, debate has centered on two dates: an early date of 1441 B.C.; and a late date of 1290 B.C.
The '''Exodus''' was the event described in the [[Bible]] when the Hebrews left Egyptian slavery for the Promised Land under the leadership of [[Moses]]. The actual date with which this event took place has been the subject of serious study, speculation, and controversy. Currently, debate has centered on two dates: an early date of 1441 B.C.; and a late date of 1290 B.C.
==Conditions prior to the Hebrew slavery==
The [[Hyksos]], a word from the Egyptian language meaning "rulers of foreign lands" were a Semitic/Asiatic people who invaded the Delta region of northern Egypt about 1720 B.C., making their capitol at Avaris. They ruled Egypt as the 15th Dynasty, and were listed as legitimate kings on the Turin Papyrus, but their rule did not interfere with Egyptian control or politics of the south. They introduced the chariot and the bow, improved battle axes, and better techniques of fortification. Their rule may have been somewhat harsh, or they themselves may have been hated by the Egyptian population as a whole; the Egyptian revolt began under Khamose, and Avaris fell under Ahmose about 1550 B.C., using against them many of the same military weapons and tactics introduced by the Hyksos. The powerful 18th Dynasty was founded by Amenhotep I (1546-1525 B.C.), who came to power after the Hyksos campaign.
==Evidence for pre-Exodus slavery==
==Evidence for pre-Exodus slavery==
Remaining Semites who stayed behind after the Hyksos were driven out were treated brutally by the next several kings (Thutmose I and Thutmose II), culminating in Thutmose 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). Thutmose III was known as "the Napoleon of Egypt", and who set about conquering large swaths of territory once occupied by the Hyksos and their allies. He was also a great builder who used many slaves in his building projects; the population of slaves included large numbers of Semites, who were hated by Thutmose as a result of the Hyksos period. 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; the fact that the remaining population was Semetic 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)
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)