The Jewish calender dates the Exodus to the year 2448. Now, let's see what that turns out to in the CE/BCE system. 5757 - 2448 = 3309, so it was 3309 year ago. 1997 - 3309 = -1312, so, that would be 1312 BCE (ignoring that there is no year 0...if that is taken into account, it is 1313 BCE). Okay, so 1313 BCE. Now, it is said variously that the volcanic island of Thera erupted in 1600 or 1500 BCE, causing the darkness, and other things (at G-d bidding and timing, of course). Given the 100 year difference in the 2 dates of Thera I have seen, it is completely possible that it is 200 year more off. This conjecture is supported by the fact that, according to National Geographic, May 1997. p 97, "volcanic material can be dated reliably to within a few thousand years with the potassium-argon method." This is fairly accurate if one is dealing with millions of years, but when dealing with thousands of years, it leaves a long range for dating anything. Thus I will stick with the Jewish calender's date of 1313 B.C.E.
Lets explore a bit. Suppose the Jewish date is accurate, but that the scholars have erred by 200 year, then Hatshepsut would probably be the Pharoah (Charles Pellegrino seems to think so, but place her around 1600) according to the standard cronology. This redating by 200 year places the Hykos as Pharoahs at the time of Joseph, out of power during slavery, and Hatshepsut at the time of the Exodus. The same result occurs if you assume the Jewish date to be wrong and date the exodus to 1500 instead, using the traditional Egyptian chronology. In each case, Akenatan is after the Exodus. Of course, the Israelites were monotheistic from the time of Avraham, so the date of Akenatan is really not all that relevent.
If, however, the scholars are correct, and all of the rulers of Egypt ruled when they said, but the Jewish date is correct for the Exodus, then the Exodus occured during the reign of Horemheb, who reigned 1321-1293 BCE (according to Funk and Wagnall). He was the successor to King Tut, who followed Akenaton, the sun worshiper.
The question arises when the Philistines, or Sea People invaded and were repelled, settling in Canaan, something that happened just prior to or doing the Exodus or at the latest, just prior to the entrance into Canaan. Most place this at 1212ish, was after it should have occured. Charles Pellegrino, on the other hand, says this took place in 1600ish, when Thera erupted, same time he dates the Ipwar papyrus. We will take a closer look at the connection between the Ipwar papyrus and the Sea People.
David M. Rohl, an Egyptologist says that the current Egyptian chronology is flawed, and incorrect. He wrote a book called "Pharohs and Kings: A Biblical Quest" where he shows how he came up with his new chronology. He has Haremheb, who current chronologies date to 1321-1293 BCE, during the Jewish date of the Exodus, as king much later, during Solomon's rule. This means Akenatan ruled after Moshe and the Exodus, not before. He places the Exodus in the year 1447 BCE in the reign of Dudimos, however, that is, after Akenatan.
Basically, it is confusing and by no means certain. I guess I prefer the Jewish date for the Exodus, after all, it was our history. As for where Thera and the Pharoahs fit, I cannot be certain. I also find Pelligrino's argument's compelling in some respects, Rohl's in other respects. Only G-d knows for certain.
I almost forgot to mention Nahum M. Sarna's book, "Exploring Exodus". He places the building of the store cities of Pithom and Ramses during the reign of Ramses II (1290-1224 BCE according to Sarna), and the conquest of Canaan by the Israelites during the reign of his successor, Merneptah (1224-1211 BCE according to Sarna), a reign marked by 20 years of anarchy and the invasion of the sea people, not only of Egypt, but of Canaan. The Stele of Merneptah says:
Seems to me there is a problem with connecting this to a Pharoah who was said to reign during the conquest of Canaan. It does show that Israel existed as a nation at the time, no matter what Biblical revisionists such as Neils Lemche believe to the contrary (Lemche, of the University of Copenhagen in Denmark is of the opinion that the land was always Palistine, a tune he altered only slightly when I informed him of the Roman coins naming the place Judea and then later coins that name it Palistine). By the way, this is the first known reference to Israel outside of the Tanach.
Professor Sarna also mentions that there were a number of cities destroyed in Canaan in the reign of Merneptah, and believes it to indicate that the conquest took place then. The problem I have with that is that the Merneptah stele makes it clear that Egypt had "passified" the land. That could mean the destruction at that time was from the Egyptians, not the Israelite conquest.
Charles Pellegrino ("Return to Sodom and Gomorrah: Bible Stories from Archaeologists"), cites different texts, specifically the Ipuwer papyrus, dating to the time of Hatshepsut and Tutmosis III (the time most copies, according to Pellegrino, seem to date) .
"The poem consists of the wise man Ipuwer's description of a mysteriously devastated Egypt and his rage against the Sun-god, who has abandoned the Nile and to whom he appears to be speaking:
One could say that this was refering to a sand storm and the invasion of the Hyksos, or one could view it as Pellegrino does, as refering to the eruption of Thera, the plaques of the Exodus, and the fleeing of the Israelites (the papyrus mentions clouds, but it also mentions sand). However, that leaves the question as to whom the people of the bow are that "come to Egypt", perhaps the Amalekites (boo) we met on the way were headed for Egypt en mass...our only meeting some of them? Perhaps not. Pelligrino himself connects it to the Isrealites comming into Egypt in Exodus 1:1, but that refers to our entry many years before, so I have a problem with his analysis of that. I think a better argument could be made that the people of the bow that came were the Sea People.
What was the war that was refered to on the way of the land of the Philistines? Who exactly were the Philistines? What is the connection with the bow? A few more passages from the Tanach will help clearify this matter.
It would seem that the Philistines did indeed use the bow. Amos 9:7 teaches us where the Philistines came from: "Are you not like the Kushites to me, O people of Israel? says the Lord. Did I not bring Israel out of the land of Egypt? And the Philistines from Caphtor, and the Arameans from Kir?" Caphtor is an island, the Philistines are the Sea People. Furthermore, there was a war between them and Egypt in the 2nd half of the 2nd millennim B.C.E. It would seem, that they were fleeing from their islands and at war with Egypt during the time of the Exodus, likely because of the devistation the eruption of Thera caused during that time. G-d, causing the eruption so as to bring the plagues upon Egypt, did indeed bring the Philistines from Caphtor. An Egyptian account of the war comes from a temple at Medinat Habu at Thebes, said to belong to Ramses III (1184-1153). That does not mean that it necessarily occured during Ramses III's time, but that it was commemorated in one of his temples. The Tanachic record makes it clear that there was war in the way of the Philistines, and this inscription speaks of that war with those who may just be the very same people of the bow spoken of in the Ipwar papyrus.
The attack took place on both land and sea, and Egypt succeeded in repulsing them from their soil, though not from having them entrench on the cost of the Land of Israel
Continue with Part 2 of this article
