I remember as a child being told that Ramses was Pharaoh in the time of Moses.  Who can forget the movies that were made to forever solidify this narrative? The minds of people too easily follow a thin populist story.

The truth behind how the transition from the time of Joseph to that of Moses is a saga left untold within history.  This story should have never been silenced.  Nevertheless, Egyptian powers at the time sought to erase the Hebrews influence from history.

Pharaoh Sesostris I To Joseph

As I stated before, Joseph knew and was friends with Sesostris I.  What many preachers would not know is that Sesostris ruled as a co-regent with his father Amenemhet I. 

After the death of his father, it would be Sesostris that would later solidify his power albeit after some internal unrest.

The Biblical record would state that Joseph’s name was Zaphnathpaaneah, and it was called this for the people of Israel.  In my days as an archeologist, I would use this as an argument citing the obvious error of the Biblical record.

After living my adventures, I learned how common it was for these men to have multiple names to the respective tongues. A name can shift by the language of a people.  Zaphnathpaaneah is how the future Hebrews would know Joseph, yet his name to the Egyptians was Mentuhotep.

If you remember Joseph was next to Pharaoh in power, he ruled Egypt.  Yet here the modern world would muddle history for a good reason.  Something took place which few know.

From Mentuhotep To Amenemhet II

What modern Egyptology misses is a proper chronology of the Pharaohs.  The modern world will often not explain how muddled the records of ancient Egypt are.  More often than admitted, internal struggles when a new Pharaoh took power allowed attempts to erase the previous Pharaoh from history.

Nevertheless, another issue can be found in the modern worlds desire to list many Pharaohs within consecutive rule.  In reality the rule of Egypt was often concurrent.

Jacob’s son Joseph, also known as Mentuhotep, had sons.  Just as Sesostris ruled with his father and then Joseph, so would the sons of Mentuhotep rule with him.

Where Egypt began to turn against Israel was with a Pharoah named Amenemhet II.  In modern times the story is known how Amenemhet turned against Mentuhotep, yet they miss which Amenemhet it was.

After Amenemhet I ruled with his son Sesotris I, the father was assassinated.  Sesostris I married his sister Neferu III and they would have a son named Amenemhet II.  It would be this Pharoah which would target Joseph’s sons to remove them from history.

The struggle was born out of Amenemhet II desiring to have legitimate claim by bloodline to being Pharaoh.  His goal was to unify lands.  Due to this Mentuhotep IV was declared illegitimate.  This can account for the seven missing years within the Turin Canon.

Some of Joseph’s sons would rule parts of Egypt alongside the lineage of Sesostris.  It was Amenemhet II which turned against the children of Israel and “remembered them no more” so they became slaves.

In the Luxor Museum of the modern world, one can see the statue attributed to Joseph.  The head was removed, defaced, and meant to be a mockery.  It is these kinds of actions which bring such muddled understanding to history.

Four Hundred Thirty Years To Moses

A major problem with understanding time in Egypt comes from the consecutive view of time.  It elongates the timeline which pushes back the Pharaoh’s of history to before Noah’s flood, and too far forward into the future.

The irony to this story is that too many Biblical scholars miss who the real Pharoah was in the time of Moses.  They use arbitrary likenesses to make comparisons saying “this must be the Pharaoh”.  How little do they realize that within concurrent ruling, royal families would have many kinds of dysfunctions.

From the day Jacob walked into Egypt under Sesostris, to the days of the sons of Mentuhotep, and the civil conflict of Amenemhat II, Moses as a young man would know Amenemhat III.

This Pharoah had a daughter who was childless.  Her name was Sobekneferu.  This would be the young woman who took Moses from the basket as he floated on the water. 

Moses was forced to leave Egypt after murdering an Egyptian.  Amenemhat III wanted Moses for murder thus Moses would spend forty years as a shepherd.  The moment God reveals Himself to Moses at the burning bush, Neferhotep I is Pharaoh of Egypt.

Neferhotep I would have no child.  After his armies were destroyed at the Red Sea, the invading  Hyskos people would become a terror to Egypt.  The dynasty would then shift to a brother named Sobkhotpe IV to rule Egypt.

Discovering A Torn World

Arriving in the Indus Valley I never expected to be caught within regional turmoil.  Early Asian nations had begun to form but within violent ways.  Passage through lands were becoming impossible.

Turning back we trekked towards Mesopotamia.  After the fall of what has been called the late civilization of Ur III new nations there also began to form.

The primary powers at play was early Babylonia, to their North was Assyria, then East the Mitanni.  The Mitanni would soon disappear by conflict as they resided between Assyria and the Hittites to their West.

The moment Nathan, Jared, and I were taken captive as slaves in Babylonia I realized why it was necessary for Israel to go into Egypt.  The lands were in complete turmoil not only from the famine of Josephs day, but also the shifting scenes of powers in play.

After leaving Egypt it would take eighty years for us to also be captives.

My Life As A Slave

There are many different kinds of slaves.  Think of the many different possible uses or situations a slave owner could put another human being into. After this you will still miss what can be done.

The people of this time thought of slavery as something that was natural.  It held no social stigma whatsoever.  The horrors which came with slavery were numbed within the minds of people, except for those who endured its pain.

Of all the roles which we could have been placed within, I never would have expected what we would be required to endure.  We were sold to the Assyrians to be used as soldiers of sport.  In this time sports meant fighting.

I am reminded of the scenes from Conan the Barbarian where some early prehistoric gladiatorial combat took place.  This is what we became.  Placed within pits we were required to take life, after life, after life.

Fortunately they never desired Nathan, Jared, or myself to fight each other.  We were each so proficient that we became too valuable to desire a fight between one another.  Due to my role, I was at least afforded the comfort of being allowed to use my swords which Noah made for me.

I witnessed the expansion of Assyrian power as it began to push towards the Hittite lands.  I heard of how the Hittites also were pushing towards the Assyrians as the Mitanni began to be conquered.  It was unfortunate that many of those I was required to fight were Mitanni warriors.

More than four hundred years would pass as we were sold, bought, then sold again for this purpose.  Then one night everything finally changed.

We had been sold to an Assyrian and were being transported to his estate.  Local people of the Mitanni within these newly acquired lands were still very disenfranchised.  They attacked the caravan we were in.

Knowing that slaves were within the caravan, we were freed and given weapons.  Naturally we would turn against our captors.  The victory was quick.  I found my swords and we stole horses to begin our journey towards Canaan.

My Entry Into Egypt.

Historically there were very few records of Egypt ever having conflict within the region of Canaan before the Exodus.  I did remember some archeologists suspecting that it could have happened.  I had hope that we could reside in some lands north of Jacob’s old home, but conflict would prevent this.

In my first journey around the world the men I had with me prevented us from being subjected by any one people.  In that time the peoples of the world had not formed large armies.  Additionally, I had time to gain men, train them, and move at my own pace.

Within this present moment I could not travel more than a few hundred miles before encountering problems.  It was at this time within Canaan that we were taken as slaves by the Egyptians.

As I sat within a cage I watched an Egyptian purchase us, and my swords.  We were seen as seasoned warriors and considered dangerous.  Due to this we were never allowed freedom, that is until we arrived in Itjtawy Egypt.

The irony of all this is that here we are near four hundred and thirty years after Jacob entered Egypt and I find myself back in Itjtawy.  I realized the home of Pharaoh Neferhotep was in a city called Ramses.  This was the Pharaoh that Moses would soon encounter demanding that his people be set free, and also were we would soon live.

There are some moments in life where you begin to realize how foolish you are.  To think that I could escape the troubles of the world was ignorance.  Furthermore, I knew that my arrival here was also God’s doing.

The truth was I was also attempting to escape God.  I tried to run beyond the reach of where He wanted me to be.  At every opportunity I was opposed, taken, and held back from having any hope of reaching my goals.

I was certainly angry.  Why is it that I had to be here going through all of this?  Why did I have to endure the hardships of the past four hundred years becoming a monster?

My dreams were filled with the actions I was forced to do.  My mind seemed broken and often I questioned if I retained any form of my sanity.  The one thing I did know is that I needed out of the cage.

Becoming A Hebrew Was My Only Choice

It took a little time and self-control, but soon we would not be seen as threats.  It took a little convincing, but the Egyptians came to believe that we were Hebrews.  To be a Hebrew meant one was of the lineage of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

While none of the three of us looked like them, we did know these men personally.  We knew their way of life.  We knew their beliefs and how they would think.  In the end we were placed to live with the other Hebrews within the city.

This did create some confusion.  My skin was dark from the sun but a boy from Tennessee would never pass for a Hebrew.  Nathan and Jared, while my size, they were originally from Babel before its fall.  The Hebrews didn’t know exactly what do to with us.

We could recite their heritage, their stories, and cultural memories.  This the people could not refute.  With a little time we came to be accepted although an anomaly that was an odd curiosity.

The Arrival Of Moses

It would be rumors at first.  Some believed it to be only that, a rumor.  Others were angry that a man appeared to rock the boat of what came to be known as normal life.  While in suffering, these people did not want it to become worse.

Then there were those who saw hope.  These people came to believe that the idea of freedom could be real.  It all began the moment Moses came.

The family I lived with was one of those who came to believe quickly.  Of course, I knew what would happen.  This story was too famous.  Yet it was the enthusiasm of the young man in this household that shocked me.

This young man’s name was Joshua.  He was only a teenager.  Once again I could feel within me something come to life that had for so long been dead.

No one can understand the hopelessness that comes with being a slave.  Bondage is worse than death.  Being trapped to a soulless life where everything inside you is dead.  What I felt stirring inside me now was something I knew all too well.

Things were about to change.