Why is the Bible silent about the real Israel/Egyptian connections?

by fulltimestudent 11 Replies latest watchtower bible

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  fulltimestudent

  The Bible does connect Egypt and Israel (including Judah), but does not tell the truth about the connection.

  An exhibition at the Israel Museum tells a clearer story.

  It tells of two periods of connection;

  The first connection around 1800 to 1550 BCE when Canaanites settled in the eastern section of the Nile River Delta. It seems this is the era that saw the development of stories like the Joseph story and the Mose's story. But much is left out. Of course, some narratives may have been lost as Acts 7:22 seems to indicate:

  Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in speech and action.

  Why and how precisely did Luke's "Moses" receive that education? How had he demonstrated his power? Why did the author of Acts think of Moses in that way? Was it just an assumption, or has some record been lost?

  The second period was around 1500 to 1150 BCE, a when the Egyptians conquered Canaan and established of an Egyptian military and administrative presence in Canaan during the Late Bronze Age. Not amuch about that time in the Bible, is there. Why not?

  I guess few of us will have an opportunity to view this exhibition, but watch out for news of it, there's a lot to learn, especially if you wish to view the Bible objectively, and not see it as a piece of Jewish propaganda.

  Link: http://www.imj.org.il/exhibitions/presentation/exhibit/?id=1073

  And the museum's description of the exhibition: Note - there are some interesting images on the above web-site.

  Pharaoh in Canaan: The Untold Story
  March 4, 2016-October 25, 2016
  Location: Bella and Harry Wexner Gallery
  Curator: Dr. Daphna Ben-Tor,Curator of Egyptian Archaeology Dr. Eran Arie,Curator of Iron Age and Persian Periods
  Pharaoh in Canaan tells the highly revelatory and previously untold story of the rich cross-cultural ties between Egypt and Canaan during the second millennium BCE. Most commonly known from the biblical narratives of Joseph and Moses in Egypt, this historical chapter took place during a time of great political flux in both regions, due to two central developments: settlement of the Canaanites in the eastern part of the Egyptian Delta during the Middle Bronze Age (circa 1800–1550 BCE); and the consequent period of Egyptian rule over Canaan that saw the establishment of an Egyptian military and administrative presence in Canaan during the Late Bronze Age (circa 1500–1150 BCE).
  The exhibition presents more than 680 objects demonstrating the cross-fertilization of ritual practices and aesthetic vocabularies between these two distinct ancient cultures.
  From large-scale royal victory steles and anthropoid coffins to scarabs and amulets, the exhibition draws from the Israel Museum’s own extensive holdings and from archaeological finds excavated in Israel by the Israel Antiquities Authority, together with seminal loans from The Metropolitan Museum, NY; the Louvre Museum, Paris; the Egyptian Museum, Turin, the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, and other important collections worldwide.
  Canaanite amulet of a schematic nude goddess in Egyptian style
  Tell el-Ajjul, 15th century BCE, gold
  Collection of Israel Antiquities Authority
  Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Elie Posner
  Lid of anthropoid sarcophagus
  Tel Shadud, 13th century BCE, pottery
  Collection of Israel Antiquities Authority
  Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Elie Posner
  Victory stela of Seti I erected at Beth Shean
  13th century BCE, Basalt
  Collection of Israel Antiquities Authority
  Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Elie Posner
  
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  Crazyguy

  It seems to me that most of the old testament was written during the Babylonian captivity and after, the book of Ezra almost concurs. There's also a lot of mistakes in the writings to be written during the actual time period. Some of the writings could have been just before like parts of Jeremiah and Isaiah we're it talks about the coming destruction of Damascus but other parts are clearly much later. Look at the example of the story of David and Goliath, Goliath is clearly wearing a Greek set of armour. But the Exodus story is intriguing and so is the story of Solomon, clearly a connection to Egypt. I think the Exodus story was about the hyksos and became a legend. Solomon was a Pharaoh and his temple was built at Tanis.
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  2+2=5

  Rubbing my scent all over this. When I'm sniffin round here later I'll smell it.
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  Mephis

  One idea which has been suggested, and seems to have held up to scrutiny, is that Song of Solomon is remarkably similar to Egyptian love poetry of c.1200 BCE. Coincidence I'm sure, ahem.

  Looks like a fascinating exhibition.
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  Vidiot

  fulltimestudent - "Why is the Bible silent about the real Israel/Egyptian connections?"

  Because history is written by the victors.
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  Mephis

  Nice article covering the exhibition: http://www.haaretz.com/jewish/archaeology/.premium-1.706655
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  Half banana

  I suggest your question Fulltimestudent, leads to a vital conclusion as to why the Bible was written!

  The essential detail is that Israel was ever historically a subordinate territory and a nation occupied by the prevailing dominant powers, namely Egypt, Babylon and Assyria in succession. Israel remained a backwater for centuries and was the land through which lay the highland route for connecting between the great powers in the north and south. Normally, with fortified garrisons and occupying troops at ten mile intervals or so along the way. No people would celebrate its occupying forces, and to write things down was like a divine edict so Israel would not want to record that indignity.

  Israel (the worshippers of El the father of Jehovah) are first mentioned about 1200 BCE. For some centuries the unproductive highlands of central Canaan had been a refuge for the dispossessed from all over the north of the Levant and Assyria. These were loose bands of refugees called the Ebiru which seems to be the source of the word ‘Hebrew’ (recorded at least from 1500 BCE onwards).

  Unlike the illustrious neighbours such as the highly organised, wealthy, literate and tolerant Egyptians to the south west or the Philistines to the south or the maritime traders the Phoenicians next door to the west; Israel by contrast was very small potato. This is borne out by the archaeology.

  The archaeology of Israel in the British Museum correspondingly shows very little indigenous material other than humble domestic ware intermittently over a long period. The two more interesting areas of finds are the things left behind by the foreign occupiers or objects copied from neighbouring lands. (Jehovah for example was seated idol in imitation of the Egyptian ones, with either an ox head or sometimes a human head with large cow horns). Having said that, the territory of modern Israel has a fascinating archaeological record notable for its continuity stretching back from early human and Neanderthal finds around 90,000 years bp (before present) right the way through the rest of the Old Stone Age and into the New and then on into the Bronze Age and later.

  However the artefacts from native Israel before the early seventh century BCE tend towards revealing a culturally and materially impoverished people and small in population number...don't believe what the Bible says on figures.

  Perhaps it is this very impoverishment and the political impotence of early Israel which drove the people there to create the imaginative Biblical narrative towards the hyperbole of power and military triumph? For certainly the dream of the conquering king is a leitmotif.

  It was the material poverty of Israel which I suggest led to a literature of messianic hope and hence the enduring quality behind the success of the Bible. Truth however has little to do with its content.
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  fulltimestudent

  Thanks for posting your thoughts, Half Banana.

  I agree with you, that the subjection of Israel to the surrounding Imperial powers of Egypt, Babylonia, Iran (Persia) Greece, and eventually Rome, was a key point in the development of Judaism.

  Succinctly, it was a religion for losers.

  Israelites/Jews seldom had independence. Their god YHWH, was seldom able to defeat the Gods of surrounding nations. It climaxed in 70 CE with the destruction of YHWH's holy city of Jerusalem, by the Romans who worshipped other Gods.
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  fulltimestudent

  An ancient burial ground, discovered in 2013, and located near Bethlehem is providing further evidence of the Egyptian connection to Palestine. It seems to have been in use between 2200 BCE and 650 BCE.

  Following is a quotation from a recent LiveScience story on this archaeological project:

  Another intriguing tomb contained two Egyptian-like amulets, known as scarabs, which were mounted on rings made of bronze or gold. It’s possible that, rather than being imported from Egypt, the scarabs were made locally.
  The scarabs date to the 13th dynasty of Egypt (1802 B.C. to 1640 B.C.), Nigro said. One of the scarabs contains a series of circular decorations, while the other has swirling designs and what appears to be hieroglyphic writing. Two of the hieroglyphic symbols are written within an oval circle known as a cartouche. The Egyptians often wrote royal names in cartouches, and archaeologists are studying the scarabs for these types of details.
  Egyptian scarabs have been found at many other sites in the eastern Mediterranean. Ancient records say the Egyptians were very active in the region, trading for goods and, at times, conquering territory.

  http://www.livescience.com/53939-ancient-burial-ground-found-near-bethlehem.html
  
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  Crazyguy

  There is a Scripture where the lord is with Judea yet he was not able to defeat the peoples of the valley or coast because they had chariots. You make a good point since the time of chariots Israel had never won a battle. It took tanks before they had any success.