THE DATE OF THE EXODUS OF THE HEBREWS FROM EGYPT

A Paper

Presented to

Dr. Steven Bramer

Dallas Theological Seminary

In Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Course

Old Testament History 302

By

D. Lance Waldie, box 1667

February 20, 1998

Finding the date of the Exodus from Egypt under the leadership of Moses is a topic that has been debated by scholars for many years. Some date it in the thirteenth century B.C. while others date it earlier to the fifteenth century B.C. Of course there are some who even doubt the historicity of Moses, but those arguments will not be considered here.

The exact date in which the Israelites departed from Egypt can be one of controversy. Some say it is uncertain because the information in the Bible can be interpreted to support more than one date. In addition, archaeological discoveries also present a confused picture. What follows is that some scholars date the Exodus as early as 1447 B.C., while others place it later, about 1280 B.C. Studying Egyptian history does not necessarily support the Biblical data because surviving Egyptian records do not mention either Joseph or Moses in any historical period; neither does the Bible name the Pharaoh who ruled Egypt in Moses’ day. However, Egyptian records do not contradict what the Bible says either. The rise of a new king who "did not know Joseph," or, who refused to recognize Joseph’s achievements as seen in Exodus chapter one, verse eight might suggest a date from about 1314-1194 B.C. -- a time when a great deal of rebuilding was begun in Egypt, but there is no firm evidence for such a date. Given the historical and Biblical data available this paper will focus on the dating of the actual Exodus as a real and historical event. The 250-year time gap that separates the early date from the late date is of utmost importance for those who believe in the inerrancy of Scripture. An early date will be defended, but arguments for a later date will be presented.

The promise of the Israelites exiting the land of Egypt began when God presented Himself before Moses at the burning bush in the book of Exodus, chapter three, verse two. Following this event God commissioned Moses and his brother Aaron to stand before Pharaoh and demand the release of the Israelites from their bondage. When Pharaoh refused God began to reveal his power and authority through a series of ten plagues that almost completely destroyed all of Egypt. The final plague, which resulted in the death of all the Egyptian firstborn children and animals, was the one that caused Pharaoh to release the Israelites. The Israelites were spared from death by remaining in their houses and putting sacrificial blood on the doorposts of their houses before they ate the newly-instituted Passover meal as described in Exodus chapter twelve, verses six through thirteen. The Egyptians were so overjoyed to see the Israelites leave, due to the fact that the plagues would now cease, they gave the departing Israelites gifts of gold, silver, and clothing (Exodus 12:35).

In order to find the actual date of the Exodus, using the Bible, in the years preceding the Messiah one must find certain points of reference to use as a starting point. Once Scriptural dates are solidified one can compare finds in archaeology and other historical writings to see if what the Bible says is in accord with what the rest of history says.

The starting point here will be found in First Kings, chapter six, verse one. It is noted here that King Solomon began to build the Temple in the fourth year of his reign, 480 years after the Israelites made their exit out of Egypt. The actual dates for Solomon’s reign as king over Israel "have been quite definitely established through references in ancient writings --they were 971-931 B.C." If King Solomon began his reign as king in the year 971 B.C. and he began to build the Temple four years later, then the starting point in which to date the Exodus is the year 967 BC. All one has to do now is add the 480 years that First Kings chapter six, verse one says regarding the time which had elapsed since the Exodus, and the date comes to 1447 BC. This date, according to the Scriptures, is the date in which the Israelites made their Exodus from Egypt -- out of the bond of slavery under the Egyptian Pharaoh.

Archaeological evidence from Egypt during this period corresponds with the Biblical account of the Exodus. For example, though Thutmose IV succeeded his father, who was Amenhotep II, Thutmose was not the eldest son. The eldest son had been killed by the Lord on the night of the first Passover, according to Exodus chapter twelve, verse twenty-nine. Amenhotep II (1450-1425 BC) repressed insurgents in the early part of his reign, and Semites were forced to make bricks. Several of the Pharaohs of Egypt’s 18th dynasty were involved in building projects in northern Egypt. "Since Eighteenth-Dynasty Pharaohs were very active in Palestinian campaigns, it would seem reasonable that they would have established garrisons and store cities somewhere in between Syro-Palestinian sites and Egypt itself." In other words, one can conclude that the Egyptian Pharaoh that hardened his heart during the plagues was Amenhotep II.

The events in Palestine around 1400 B.C. correspond with the conquest under Joshua. Archaeological evidence suggests that Jericho, Ai, and Hazor were destroyed about 1400 B.C. One scholar has concluded, "All the accredited Palestinian artifactual evidence supports the literary account that the Conquest occurred at the time specifically dated by the Biblical historians."

On the other hand, there are those who reject the early date for the Exodus, and they date it somewhere between 1290 to 1220 B.C. They do this for two reasons. First is Exodus chapter one, verse eleven, which describes the Israelites as slave laborers who "built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for Pharaoh." Archaeologists claim to have identified these two cities with Tell el-Maskhouta and Tanis respectively. These two sites show no occupation in the fifteenth century, and it has been demonstrated that el-Maskhouta was built by Rameses II who reigned circa 1290-1224 B.C. Also, the name of the city of Rameses is most naturally associated with the Pharaoh of that name.

The second reason for dating the Exodus to the thirteenth century B.C. is the archaeological remains in Palestine that have been associated with Joshua’s conquest of Canaan by various scholars. There are many sites with destruction layers dating to the thirteenth century B.C., and these have been identified with the incursion of Joshua and the Israelites into Palestine. The archaeological digs have shown that the economically inferior habitations that arose on top of these destruction layers are taken as further indications that the semi-nomadic Israelites were the ones who destroyed and then settled the sites. In other words, the site reveals the fact that some army came in and destroyed the ancient cities, then built their own economically inferior civilization over the one they destroyed. Furthermore, one archaeologist found no evidence of settlements in Edom, Moab, and Ammon from 1900-1300 B.C. Therefore Moses could not have encountered strong opposition there until later (in the thirteenth century).

It is argued that archaeological evidence suggests that the cities of Rameses and Pithom were built in the reign of Rameses II who then would have been the Pharaoh at the time of the Exodus. However, the cities of Rameses and Pithom were built at least 80 years before the Exodus because Moses, who was 80 years old at the time of the Exodus in chapter seven, verse seven, was not born until after the events recorded in Exodus one, chapter eleven. This would place the building of Pithom and Rameses before the rule of Rameses II. What this means is that the city of Rameses could not have been named for the monarch. Quite simply, the name Rameses might very well have been a very popular name at that time, but it is also noteworthy that the original spelling of the city is "Raamses" whereas Pharaoh’s name was spelled "Rameses."

Another problem with this argument is that there is no conclusive proof that the sites mentioned in Exodus chapter one, verse eleven (Rameses and Pithom) are the same as the ones which bear different names today but are considered to be the same sites, namely, Tanis and Tell el-Maskhouta. Rather, contemporary scholarship substantially favors the site of Qantir as the site of ancient Rameses. Qantir, unlike Tanis, gives large evidences for occupation that allows for a fifteenth century date. Quite simply, the site fits better, and it accommodates the Biblical account. The name of the city Rameses in Exodus chapter one, verse eleven could, like that of Dan in Genesis chapter fourteen, verse fourteen, be the result of a later textual updating. Furthermore, it has been shown the likelihood that the city of Pithom may be identified with either the site of Tell er-Retebah or Heliopolis, once again sites with a history earlier than the thirteenth century.

There is no real reason to believe that thirteenth-century destruction layers mentioned above should be identified with Joshua’s conquest. There are many other candidates for the cause of the city burning during the volatile period of Judges (which occurred later) that identify earlier destruction layers with the supposed Egyptian attacks upon Hyksos fortifications in Palestine (occurring during the Middle Bronze period). It is also believed that a better harmonization between text and archaeology takes place when one associates the earlier destructions with the conquest by Joshua and brings their date down into the fifteenth century B.C.

One archaeologist insisted that there were no civilizations existing during the time when Moses claims to have encountered opposition in Edom, Moab, and Ammon. In answering this problem, two replies could be given. First, there is really no indication in the passage that indicates a demand for urban life in Edom at that time. The Edomites, Moabites, and Ammonites may have simply had control of those territories without actually having lived in them. Furthermore, the archaeologist who found no evidence of civilization in these territories has come under attack regarding his methods of arriving at such conclusions. More recent findings suggest that some settlements were in the area.

These archaeological arguments which promote a late date for the Exodus must consider the fact that archaeology is not always an exact science. There are different interpretations within each finding, and the science has progressed with time in its accuracy. Archaeology does not present brute facts with which the Biblical material must conform and that can prove or disprove the Bible. Archaeology rather produces evidence that, like the Bible, must be interpreted.

Considering the fact that First Kings chapter six, verse one gives a date of 967 B.C. one can go all throughout the Bible and date certain events. Dr. Thomas Rodgers, in The Panorama of the Old Testament, uses First Kings as a starting point and comes up with some specific dates to consider. If the date of 971 B.C. as the date of Solomon’s starting point as king is rounded off to 970 B.C. (so as to use round numbers), then it can be established that King David began his reign in 1010 B.C. (because he was Solomon's predecessor and he reigned forty years), and that King Saul was crowned king in 1050 B.C. (because he too reigned for forty years). This verse helps with dates preceding it and in the years that followed as well. If the year 966 is added to the 480 years following the Exodus from Egypt the date comes to the year 1446 B.C. as the actual date of the Exodus (as shown above). With this in mind, reading Exodus chapter twelve, verse forty gives the time the sons of Israel lived in Egypt as being 430 years. By adding 430 to 1446 one discovers the time when the children of Israel began their sojourn in Egypt -- it was 1876 B.C. Moving on to Genesis chapter forty-seven, verse nine one finds that when Jacob stood before Pharaoh this began the sojourn in Egypt because Jacob was called by his son Joseph to Egypt. If Jacob was 130 years old at that time, as the verse reads, then one can add that to 1876 and come up with 2006 B.C. as the time when Jacob was born. Moving on to Genesis chapter twenty-five, verse twenty-six one finds that when Jacob and Esau were born, their father Isaac was sixty years old. That being the case, Isaac must have been born in the year 2066 B.C. Moving on to Genesis chapter twenty-one, verse five, when Isaac was born, Abraham was one hundred years old -- thus, Abraham was born in the year 2166 B.C. From this date, which is the time when Abraham (then Abram) lived in Ur, archaeology has shown that the country of Ur was a thriving place, a polytheistic place, and a cultured place. One can conclude that Abram was a cultured individual in one of the largest civilizations in the twenty-second century B.C. In looking at Genesis chapter twelve, verse four, it is evident that he was seventy-five years of age when he departed Haran -- giving the date at his departure from Haran of 2091 B.C. If the patriarchal age began with the departure of Abram from Haran to the time the children of Israel entered Egypt, then the time span goes from 2091 B.C. to 1876 B.C. If the Bible is accurate in all things then these dates must be true. It is also important to note that archaeology does not refute these dates with its own findings.

In conclusion, it appears that archaeological evidence does agree with the Biblical account for an early date on the Exodus (1447 B.C.). At worst archaeology does not disagree with it. Great arguments can be made both ways, and while some say that neither way should be held dogmatically, it must be noted that the Bible does not lie. There may not be exhaustive evidence, but there is sufficient evidence for an early Exodus and chronologically accurate numbers given in the Bible. There is not enough sufficient research in archaeology to dogmatically refute the Biblical account of an early date for the Exodus.

WORKS CITED

Constable, T., 1985. The Bible Knowledge Commentary. USA, Canada, England:

Victor Books, p. 499.

Dillard, R., & Longman, T., 1994. An Introduction to the Old Testament. Grand Rapids:

Zondervan, pp. 59-62.

Hannah, J., 1985. The Bible Knowledge Commentary. USA, Canada, England: Victor Books,

pp. 104-105.

Nelson’s Bible Dictionary, 1986 Ed., "The Book of Exodus."

Rodgers, T., 1988. The Panorama of the Old Testament. Newburgh: Trinity Press, pp. 21-24.