As mentioned in a previous blog post, a fun way to keep track of historical studies is with a timeline book.
Biblical Timeline Reference
However, finding Biblical timelines was problematic because they are not easily found.
We first hit a wall when we tried to date Creation and other events in Genesis. The Christian-based history curriculum I had purchased used an Old Earth timeline, which isn’t Biblical.
We found the same to be true of some other history curriculums and even some Christian websites, that surprised me.
Then I remembered having seen timelines in my Kay Arthur Study Bible. I opened to the front reference section where I was relieved to a Young Earth, Biblical timeline.
Moses in Egypt Revised Timeline
Then we began our study of Ancient Egypt, in reference to the lives of Joseph and Moses.
While researching their stories during our lessons on the culture of Ancient Egypt, I stumbled upon an interesting article at Answers in Genesis by archaeologist David Down.
He said that most Biblical timelines name Thutmose III of the 18th dynasty as the pharaoh of Moses’ time, around 1445 BC.
Although the date is correct for Moses, the pharaoh is dubious because there is no record of devastation during his reign: such as the 10 plagues and the entire Egyptian army destroyed in the Red Sea.
Thus, Down argues that the 12th dynasty makes more sensefor pharoah due to a reign marked by: large numbers of Semitic slaves, sudden devastation in the land, and a sudden departure of the Semitic slaves.
One of the last pharaohs of this dynasty, Sesotris III is depicted as a tyrant.
His son Amenemhet III also appears to be tyrannical. It’s most probable that Moses was born near the beginning of his 46-year reign.
Now the facts get more interesting. The best we know is that Amenemhet III had one son, Amenemhet IV, who mysteriously disappeared despite having the rein of the kingdom at his fingertips.
Could this be Moses? What about his Egyptian mother?
Amenemhet III’s daughter, Sobekneferu, did not have children of her own. Because the Egyptians worshipped the Nile as a fertility god, it is likely she bathed here as a ceremonial rite to become fertile.
If she is truly the Egyptian mother of Moses in the Bible, it is likely that when she found him in the water, she found him as the answer to her prayers.
Shortly after Amenemhet IV disappears, Amenemhet III dies without a male to succeed him. His daughter rules for 8 years, then dies, ending the 12th dynasty.
Joshua Revised Timeline
In correlation to the revised Moses timeline is the revised Joshua timeline.
There is no archaeological evidence of Palestine’s invasion during the time of Joshua, which was the Late Bronze Period, but there is evidence in the Early Bronze Period.
Resources
Read more of this interesting article here.
A few months after we studied Ancient Egypt at the dialectic level, Unwrapping the Pharaohs: How Egyptian Archaeology Confirms the Biblical Timeline by John Ashton and David Down was published.
Since it’s an extension of what we read in the above article, I purchased it for our rhetoric studies in 4 more years.
The on-line version of the book is at Answers in Genesis. My son enjoyed the book so much he decided to keep it when we moved out of the house.
This is another great Bible timeline resource from Biblehub.
Epilogue 2024
One might be asking: why does this matter?
Fast forward to 2014 when Patterns of Evidence publishes the DVD, Exodus, which calls for a revised timeline on Egyptian chronology because: a debate rages over the credibility of the Bible. Most archaeologists today have concluded that there’s no evidence that the Exodus of Israelite slaves from Egypt ever happened. (quote from Patterns of Evidence)
