History Forum / General / Ancient History / January 2006

The timeline for Akhenaton varies depending upon the source but using the
timeline found in "EGYPT, The World Of the Pharoahs" we find good continuity
for comparisons from the Bible for Joseph and Moses.

In the above timeline the 1st of Akhenaton is dated to 1351BCE.  If we date
the Exodus at the beginning of the reign of Akhenaton, then 215 years
earlier is when the Jews came into Egypt to dwell at the time of Joseph
dated to 1566 BCE.  This is during the reign of the Hyksos pharoah Apophis.
Of note Manetho says this was the pharoah ruling at the time of Joseph.

But it is also at this time that the Jews settled in Goshen which is also
called the "land of Rameses."  Genesis 47:11 "Thus Joseph had his father and
his brothers dwell and he gave them a possession in the land of Egypt, in
the very best of land, in the land of Rameses, just as Pharoah had
commanded."

Thus the land of Goshen was associated with Rameses long before a line of
pharoahs bearing that name began to rule.   Later after the Hebrews were
enslaved they were used to build "cities as storage places for Pharoah,
namely, Pithom and Raameses."(Exodus 1:11)     But just as this land was
called the "land of Rameses" meany years earlier during the reign of
Apophis, cities named after Raameses later on did not mean that Rameses was
ruling over Egypt at that time.  But what could be the explanation?

Good question.  But this could be explained if Rameses was the family name
of the landholders of that region.   The children of this prominent Egyptian
family would have high posts in the government and be suitable marriage
partners to the ruling pharoah and thus likewise we find Rameses I acting as
a general in the army, after which he rose to become pharoah, thus starting
the new dynasty of kings named Rameses.    This contradicts what some have
casually presumed regarding the Exodus occuring during the reign of Rameses
simply because a city was named Rameses.

Instead the corrected timeline based upon the Bible and Egyptian records
date the Exodus at the end of the reign of Amenophis III and the beginning
of the reign of Akhenaton.  Moses was 80 at the time of the Exodus and thus
would have been born in 1431 BCE during the reign of Thutmosis III
(1479-1425 BCE).  He would have fled Egypt at 40 in 1391 BCE during the
reign of Thutmosis IV (1397-1388BCE) who died shortly thereafter, followed
by the reign of Amenophis III (1388-1351 BCE).

Thus the Egyptian timeline for this period dovetails quite nicely with that
from the Bible when the Exodus is dated the same year Akhenaton begins his
rule and the region in which the Jews occupied in Goshen was a region owned
by the wealthy Ramses family after whom the land was named as well as cities
later built by the Jews in this same region.

Larry

P.S.  Please note that astronomical dating using the KTU 1.78 dates the 12th
year of Akhenaton in 1375BCE and thus his first year in 1386BCE.  This is
the critically improved date that aligns with the strict Biblical timeline
that also dates the Exodus in 1386BCE.  But since the relative chronology
comparisons were the focus here, one of the popular timelines were simply
used.  The above timeline would be corrected by 35 years, but another
popular timeline for Akhenaton is only corrected by 9 years.  These are
considered relatively minor adjustments.