Discoveries relating to the exodus of ancient Israel from Egypt

Transcription

1 Discoveries relating to the exodus of ancient Israel from Egypt Dr Michael Jarvis Prior to the development of scientifically based archaeology, it was widely accepted that events recorded in the Bible were based in real history. Some of the best known biblical events related to the Israelite nation s existence in ancient Egypt, their enslavement by the Egyptians and their exit from Egypt after a period of 430 years. The Bible time-line is as follows: Israelites initially go to Egypt to escape a widespread famine in 1876 BC Israelites leave Egypt after a series of plagues in 1446 BC However, these dates and even the truth of Israelite slavery in Egypt, have been doubted by some in the last 23 years, not only by secular scholars but even by biblical scholarship. The biblical scholarship credited with throwing doubt on events such as these was a group at Copenhagen University in the 1990 s, known as the Copenhagen School and their overall approach has been called Biblical Minimalism. This minimalism approach came to be applied to other scholars in different universities, all of whom claimed, amongst other things that: 1. The Bible cannot be considered reliable evidence for what happened in ancient Israel. 2. That Israel itself is a problematic subject for historical study. This movement has led to many, including a significant number of theologians within Christianity, to relegate much of the Bible to categories such as myths with moral significance but not based in real history. This sort of criticism has even extended to the New Testament section of the Bible, resulting in some theologians questioning fundamentals of Christian theology. Fortunately this minimalism trend can now be vigorously challenged on many fronts, due to ongoing discoveries. In this article I will attempt to summarise why the biblical accounts and dates for Israel s time in Egypt and their exodus from Egypt, can be taken seriously. Israelites go down to Egypt Studies of glaciers on Mount Kilimanjaro have given up secrets that relate to events recorded in the Bible account of why the small Israelite family moved from Canaan to Egypt. On left: One glacier on Mount Kilimanjaro (A photo I took while climbing the mountain in July 1999). In the distance we are looking down on the clouds. We read in the Bible: And all the countries came to Egypt to buy grain from Joseph, because the famine was severe in all the world. Even after Jacob s sons had made two journeys to Egypt to buy food, the famine still persisted (Genesis 41:57).

2 2. Ice cores drilled into glaciers on Mt Kilimanjaro reveal periods of catastrophic drought, including one that started about 1997 BC and lasted for about 300 years (Thomson 2002). Also, Whitehouse reports that, Using a new computer simulation of the earth s climate, German scientists say that the Sahara underwent a brutal climate change about 4000 years ago. Over a very short time-scale possibly as short as 300 years it went from grasslands with low shrubs to the desert we are familiar with today (Whitehouse (1999). Since this major dry period started about 2000 BC, it is not surprising that the Bible account refers to a drought affecting all the nations (of the known world of the time). By 1876 BC, when the Bible says the Israelites moved to Egypt to escape this drought, the relatively dry period had already lasted for about 121 years. We may ask how Egypt managed to grow bumper crops for seven years during a generally dry period, as mentioned in Genesis chapter 41. We read, The seven years of abundance in Egypt came to an end, and the seven years of famine began, just as Joseph had said. There was famine in all the other lands, but in the whole land of Egypt there was food. Since Egypt s agriculture was based on the Nile it is possible that the headwaters of the Nile, in Uganda and Ethiopia, experienced good rainfall during the seven years of agricultural abundance in Egypt. Regarding Joseph, the Bible account says that his Israelite brothers had sold him to Egypt as a slave but he had risen to be second in charge over Egypt, due to his interpretation of Pharaoh s dream about the coming famine. We read that Pharaoh gave Joseph the Egyptian name of Zaphenath Paneah and his wife was Asenath, daughter of Potiphera. These names place the events within Egypt since they are Egyptian names, not Hebrew ones. Clearly, scientific discoveries show that the Bible explanations for the Israelite move to Egypt are in harmony with real historical events and realistic contexts. Another interesting historical link comes from studies of Egyptian Dynasties. In 1876 BC when the Israelites moved to Egypt, this was during the 17 th dynasty of the Hyskos rulers. However, about 300 years later Ahmose, son of Kamose became Pharaoh. He expelled the Hyskos rulers and ushered in the 18 th dynasty. This event is clearly recorded in the biblical account. We read, Then a new king, who did not know about Joseph, came to power in Egypt. Look, he said to his people, The Israelites have become much too numerous for us. Come, we must deal shrewdly with them or they will become even more numerous and, if war breaks out, will join our enemies, fight against us and leave the country. So they put slave masters over them to oppress them with forced labour (Exodus 1: 8-11). The well preserved mummy of Ahmose (on left) bc. So it was that the Israelite people were now enslaved by the new Pharaoh and forced to work on building projects. According to the Bible account they made sun dried mud bricks mixed with straw. Archaeology has confirmed that such bricks were used for many building projects during the 18 th dynasty in Egypt.

3 Use of clay bricks during this time 3. There is abundant evidence that many buildings and grain storage areas were constructed with sun dried mud bricks containing straw, as recorded in the Bible. The manufacture of bricks is vividly depicted in paintings in the 18 th dynasty tomb of Rekhmire. (Strouhal 1992). He was the vizier to Thutmoses III. Amongst the paintings are Semitic foreigners (like the Israelites) engaged in brick-making, with the hieroglyphic text having them say He supplies us with bread, beer, and every good thing while they get a stern warning from the task-master: The rod is in my hand; be not idle (Unger 1966: pg 333) The history of the biblical Moses The Bible account states that Pharaoh gave instructions to kill all newborn Israelite boys because the Egyptians feared that the Israelites were becoming too numerous. We have the account of how the mother of Moses put him in a reed basket and left him on the Nile River. Pharaoh s daughter found him and adopted him as her son. He was raised as a prince of Egypt. If Moses was born in 1526 BC, according to the Bible chronology, this was either shortly before the death of Ahmose I or soon after it. There is some uncertainty about the exact dates of Ahmose s reign. He was followed by Amenhotep I and it is interesting that archaeology suggests that Amenhotep left no male heir and the next Pharaoh after him seems to have been related to the royal family only through marriage. This lack of a male heir would have been important to Pharaoh Amenhotep since it was normal for Pharaoh s to be men. This sheds light on the Bible narrative, regarding the royal princess deciding to adopt Moses, with the intention of raising him as a Royal Prince. In the absence of any male heirs amongst Amenhotep s children, this would seem to be a possible solution. It is very significant that this Israelite baby was called Moses by Pharaoh s daughter. We notice that several of the Pharaoh s of this time had names ending in moses. We have Thutmoses I, Thutmoses II and Thutmoses III. This is another indication that the biblical account is based within real history at this time and that Pharaoh s daughter wanted him to be very much part of royalty. Archaeologists and researchers into Ancient Egyptian history are divided into two groups, regarding the dates when the various Pharaoh s reigned. A papyrus from Amenhotep I s reign describes an astronomical happening that could be used to give a very precise date. However to do this we need to know the latitude where the observation was made and this is not recorded. As a result it could have been taken at two likely places. Depending upon which place it was recorded, the dates of the Pharaoh s differ by 25 years. For instance, according to the so-called Low Chronology of Ancient Egypt the reign of Thutmosis III was from 1479 to 1425 BC (Campbell 1994), but according to the socalled High Chronology of Egypt his reign was 1504 to 1450 BC (Lipinska 2001).

4 4. There is no way at present to finally decide which of these dates is correct but the High Chronology fits the best into the Bible dates. I will therefore use these dates but will comment on the possible alternative dates where relevant. We read that Moses was educated as a prince of Egypt but at the age of 40 he had to flee for his life when he started identifying with the Israelites and killed an Egyptian slave master he saw mistreating one of the Israelite slaves. Moses fled into the desert and spent another 40 years as a refugee. This means that, working backwards from the Bible exodus date of 1446 BC, he fled in 1486 BC, during the reign of Pharaoh Thutmoses I. This Pharaoh was succeeded by Queen Hatshepsut while the young Thutmoses II played a secondary role. She was Thutmoses II s step sister. Thutmoses II was the youngest son of Thutmoses I and he married Hatshepsut who was the oldest daughter of Thutmoses I through a different mother. Hatshepsut was almost certainly considerably older than her half brother. Clearly, both of them would have known Moses before he fled Egypt in 1486 BC because they started to reign only four years later. Thutmoses II died in 1479 BC and then Hatshepsut (at left) reigned with the young Thutmoses III, who was the son of Thutmoses II and another woman called Iset. Hatshepsut played the dominant role as ruler until her death in 1483 BC. Once Thutmoses III became the only ruler he proved to be a very energetic and aggressive Pharaoh. It is recorded that he made 16 military raids in 20 years. He is sometimes called Egypt s greatest conqueror or the Napoleon of Egypt (Breasted 1914). When Moses came back to Egypt Thutmoses III was the Pharaoh. The Bible account correctly states that there was now a different Pharaoh from when Moses fled into the wilderness. We read, During that long period (of exile), the king of Egypt died (Bible: Exodus 2:23) Thutmoses III was also a vindictive man, as is shown by his actions after Queen Hatshepsut died. He defaced her statues and wiped out mention of her on many ancient buildings. The statue shown above was only partially destroyed. It was only in the last years of his reign that Thutmoses III demonstrated his anger against his dead stepmother Hatshepsut by destroying as much of her memory as possible. One of the most affected monuments was her temple at Deir el-bahari. There Thutmoses III destroyed her reliefs and smashed numerous statues into a quarry just in front of the temple. These historically confirmed characteristics of Thutmoses III show an aggressiveness and energy that seem to fit the description of this pharaoh given in the Bible account. When we read the Bible account of Moses going into the presence of Thutmoses III, we may wonder why the Pharaoh received him. We can better understand this when we realise that Moses knew all the customs of Egypt s court and the procedures to be followed in order to gain an audience. He seemed to have been treated like an ambassador from another nation. Furthermore, there would still have been those in the palace who knew Moses during the 40 years that he was a Prince of Egypt. In addition, since his father Thutmoses II and previous co-regent Hatshepsut had both known

5 5. Moses before he fled from Egypt, they may well have told the young Thutmoses about him. We can also speculate that Thutmoses III probably respected bravery, as shown by Moses, since he was very much a man of war. Thutmoses III in Luxor museum Bible date for the exodus from Egypt The biblical date for the exodus from Egypt is based on the Bible book (1 Kings 6:1). It states that King Solomon of Israel began building the temple in Jerusalem in his fourth year of reign (966 BC) and that this was 480 years after the exodus. Since the dates of Solomon s reign are known from archaeological evidence we can use this information to date the exodus event. This brings us to a date of approximately 1446 BC This biblical date for the Israelites leaving Egypt was during the reign of Pharaoh Thutmoses III. Archaeologists differ on precise dates of his reign. According to the so-called Low Chronology of Ancient Egypt, Thutmoses III reigned from 1479 BC to 1425 BC. However, according to other Egyptologists he reigned from 1504 BC to 1450 BC. The latter date fits best into the Bible chronology. This biblical date for the exodus is in contrast to suggestions made by some scholars who have concluded that the exodus took place much later, during the reign of Pharaoh Ramesses II. This confusion is due to one Bible passage that reads, So they put slave masters over them to oppress them with forced labour, and they built Pithom and Rameses as store cities for Pharaoh (Exodus 1:11). Archaeology has so far not found towns with this name during the 18 th dynasty reigns of the Thutmoses pharaohs. It was therefore concluded by some that the exodus must have taken place much later. This conclusion caused still more confusion because a later exodus during the reign of Ramesses has no support from any archaeological studies or other events during Israel s later history. This in turn has added ammunition for those who say that the Bible is not historically reliable. Although literary studies point to the first five books of the Bible having been largely written by Moses, there is also evidence that additions were made later in order to clarify things for readers who lived long after the recorded events. For instance, the account of the death of Moses must have been added later. Of even greater significance are additions designed to update readers on how town names have changed since the recorded events. For instance, in Genesis 14:14 Abraham is said to have pursued the enemy coalition of kings to a city called Dan. But from Joshua 19:47 and Judges 18:29 we learn that the early name of the city was Laish or Leshem, and only after the conquest of Canaan, half a millennium later than Abraham, and also some time after the death of Moses, was it given the name Dan. In similar manner it is likely that the original reference to Ramesses spoke of a town called Avaris. Only after this name had gone out of general use did Hebrew scribes substitute the new name Ramesses for the localities in question.

6 6. It is also clear from the Bible account that there was a district (not a town) called Rameses. This existed at the time that the Israelites first moved to Egypt at the insistence of Joseph. We read, So Joseph settled his father and his brothers in Egypt and gave them property in the best part of the land, in the district of Rameses, as Pharaoh directed (Genesis 47:11). With regard to the mention of Pithom, as a site where the Israelite slaves were building, the ancient Egyptians referred to Pithom as Per Atum House of the god Atum. However, it has been pointed out that the Egyptian use of per can be wider, referring to an administrative context as a large region, under the control of the temple of a particular god (Schulman 2008). Evidence for the Plagues of Egypt, mentioned in the Bible The Bible account records plagues that took place when God instructed Moses to confront Egypt with his demand to let the Israelites go. These events mainly involved natural things, such as frogs, gnats, sickness, hail, locusts. The miraculous was seen in the intensity of these events and because they happened when Moses said they would take place and ended when he said they would end. Most of these events left no archaeological evidence. However, one of the plagues did leave evidence, namely the darkness that could be felt. We read, Then the Lord said to Moses, Stretch out your hand towards the sky so that darkness will spread over Egypt darkness that can be felt So Moses stretched out his hand towards the sky, and total darkness covered all Egypt for three days. No one could see anyone else or leave his place for three days. Yet all the Israelites had light in the places where they lived (Exodus 10:21-23). A darkness that can be felt sounds very much like a cloud of volcanic ash from a volcanic eruption. A report in the scientific journal NATURE (Stanley & Sheng 2013) says that sediment cores drilled down in the eastern Nile Delta have revealed an ash layer corresponding to the mineral characteristics of the Santorini (Thera) volcano situated in the Aegean Sea, between Greece and Turkey. The ash composition and the calculated age of this deposit coincide with the probable date of the cataclysmic eruption of Santorini. This shows that ash from an eruption in the northern Mediterranean Sea can be blown as far south as Egypt. However, the C-14 dating of this core deposit suggests it was deposited somewhere between 1595 and 1512 BC (Anon 1986). This ash deposit in the Nile Delta does not seem to correspond with the Bible date for the exodus from Egypt. However, the sediment core was drilled in the eastern Nile Delta. The Bible account states that the Israelites lived in Goshen which is situated in this eastern Nile Delta. Therefore, if there was another ash cloud that covered Egypt just before the exodus date of 1446 BC, we will not expect this to be present in the sediment core. The Bible account specifically states that the darkness did not cover the Goshen region. However, other studies of volcanic eruptions in the northern Mediterranean Sea show that ash deposits from three volcanoes are all dated to about 1370 BC, with an accepted margin of error of 80 years (Vogel et al: 1990). In other words, 1370 plus 80 = 1450 BC. It is therefore very probable that the ash cloud that covered Egypt in about 1446 BC did originate from one

7 7. of these volcanoes. It will be fascinating to drill another sediment core in the western Nile Delta. It is very likely that a core will show both the Santorini ash and a later 1446 BC ash. We may ask how an ash cloud blown across the Mediterranean Sea to Egypt could cover all of Egypt except the North-Eastern Goshen area. This is easy to understand when patterns of ash dispersion are studied. A strong wind can blow a column before it like a river of ash, but on either side of this river any observer would be in sunlight. Crossing the Red Sea? This Bible reference to a darkness that could be felt, is a good example of many other accounts where the writer described events without understanding their cause. We read things like I saw what looked like This example and its scientific explanation in no way reduces its miraculous nature. The miracle was in the timing, the intensity and the fact that it only affected part of Egypt, not Goshen. The scientific explanation also helps us accept the Bible time-line for when the Israelites left Egypt. Many Christians have been influenced by misinformation about the Israelites crossing the sea on dry land. This misinformation is mainly twofold: 1. A wrong translation of the original Hebrew, where the words used are better translated as Reed Sea or sea of Reeds. In Exodus 13:18, Joshua 2:10 and Psalm 136:13 and 15, the Hebrew words used are Yam Suph. This is correctly translated as Sea of Reeds or Reed Sea, NOT Red Sea. 2. By Videos and DVD s made by a man called Ron Wyatt (now dead) It is unfortunately necessary for me to join the ranks of other scientists, including some who are Christians, in concluding that Ron Wyatt was a fraud. His videos about a supposed crossing of the Red Sea, with pictures of chariot wheels under the sea and other so-called evidence has no independent verification and all so-called evidence has conveniently disappeared. His claims have been dismissed by scientists, historians, biblical scholars and even by leaders of his own Seventh-day Adventist church, but his work continues to have a following amongst some Christians and his videos are still being sold by several organisations. See a report on him in Wikipedia Also documentation by Snelling (2000) including letters from people he claimed to work with but who deny that they did so, or deny making the claims attributed to them. Since he was responsible for unsubstantiated claims about crossing the Red Sea I take this opportunity to list some of the other videos he produced. Discovering Noah s Ark Anchor stones used by Noah on the Ark

8 8. The post-flood house, grave markers and tombs of Noah and his wife The location of Sodom and Gomorrah and other cities of the plain Sulphur/brimstone balls from the ashen remains of Sodom and Gomorrah The Tower of Babel site (in southern Turkey) How the Egyptians may have built the pyramids The site of the Israelites crossing the Red Sea (located in the Gulf of Aqaba) Chariot wheels and other relics of the army of Pharaoh under the sea The site of the biblical Mt Sinai (in Saudi Arabia at Jabal al Lawz) A chamber at the end of a maze of tunnels under Jerusalem containing artefacts from Solomon s Temple. The site of the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ s blood, dripped onto the Mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant, situated beneath the crucifixion site. Burial pots off the coast of Ashkelon. Regarding his claims of discovering the Jewish Ark of the Covenant under the crucifixion site of Jesus, a letter from Joe Zias, Curator of Anthropology/Archaeology, Israel Antiquities Authority, states: Mr Ron Wyatt is neither an archaeologist nor has he ever carried out a legally licensed excavation in Israel or Jerusalem. In order to excavate one must have at least a BA in archaeology which he does not possess despite his claims to the contrary. We are aware of his claims which border on the absurd as they have no scientific basis whatsoever nor have they ever been published in a professional journal. They fall into the category of trash which one finds in tabloids such as the National Enquirer, Sun, etc. It s amazing that anyone would believe them. Furthermore, he has been thoroughly discredited by various Christian organisations such as Creation Research in Calif. For the latest on his discoveries I suggest going into WWW (use Vista) someone called Tentmaker ( decided to do an expose of his various claims. Here you will find the truth, which is more amazing than his (RW) fictions. (This was signed by Joe Zias in correspondence dated 8 August 1996.) On the basis of this documentation, as a sample of other documentation, I have personally relegated all of Ron Wyatt s productions to a category of, to say the least, highly suspect. Route taken by the Israelites If we now look at the possible routes taken by the Israelites leaving Egypt, the most likely route took them through an extensive body of water known as the Sea of Reeds. On the map the most prominent dashed line gives one possible route. Starting from the Land of Goshen in the North East of the Nile Delta, they then went south to near Migdol and then miraculously crossed the Sea of Reeds. However, It is possible that Migdol is further north than shown on the map. The Bible account reads, Then the Lord said to Moses, Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. They are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal Zephon

9 9. Archaeologist and biblical scholar James Hoffmeir places Migdol of Egypt s New Kingdom period near Magdolum. Pi-hahiroth is thought to mean mouth of the canal (s). The Pelusiac branch of the Nile was used in ancient times as a canal for transportation and irrigation, as were smaller channels passing near Migdol itself (Drews 2011). This places Migdol closer to the Mediterranean than shown on the map above. Further support for this crossing site comes from a Major-General Sir Alexander B. Tulloch. He served in the British army in He witnessed an event that reminded him of the Bible account. He wrote, One day, when so employed (surveying) between Port Said and Kantarah, a gale of wind from the eastward set in and became so strong that I had to cease work. Next morning on going out I found that Lake Monzaleh, which is situated on the west side of the (suez) canal, had totally disappeared, the effect of the high wind on the shallow water having actually driven it away beyond the horizon, and the natives were walking about on the mud where the day before the fishing-boats, now grounded, had been floating. When noticing this extraordinary dynamical effect of wind on shallow water, it suddenly flashed across my mind that I was witnessing a similar event to what had taken place between three and four thousand years ago, at the time of the passage of the so-called Red Sea by the Israelites (Drews 2011). This scenario has now been scientifically tested, as reported in NEW SCIENTIST scientific journal (McAlpine: 2010). This is also reported by Drews and Han (2010). The scientific study, reported in New Scientist journal, created computer simulations of the area that may have been the site of the Bible account. They found that a strong wind from the east, blowing for 12 hours, could have exposed a five kilometre wide mud flat that could enable a few hundred thousand Israelites to cross. A 100 km per hour wind would have needed a little over 8 hours to blow water in the Lake of Tanis westward and back up into the Pelusiac branch of the Nile, parting the waters around the peninsula from which it is assumed the crossing would have started. When the wind stopped the water would flow back in.

10 10. It should be noted that this Reed Sea is not a body of water that could be crossed on foot. Furthermore, the evidence suggests that it was almost certainly deeper 1,500 years back and has slowly become shallower due to silt deposits over time. So we can again conclude that the Bible account can be based in realistic history. The importance of a strong east wind was also mentioned in the Bible account. We read, Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground with a wall of water on their right and on their left (Exodus 14: 21-22). This crossing of the Reed Sea is in no way less miraculous than it would have been anywhere else. The miraculous is seen in God s timing, his leading Moses to an exact place at an exact time and causing the east wind to blow for a precise time while the Israelites crossed over. Then causing the Egyptian army to be drowned immediately after the Israelites had finished crossing over. The death of Thutmoses III The Bible account in the book of Exodus says that the Egyptian army pursued the Israelites as they crossed the sea, but it does not specifically state that Pharaoh was with them in the sea when the waters rushed back. It is only in one of the Psalms that the suggestion is made that Pharaoh was also killed (Psalm 136:13-15). It should be noted that this psalm is a praise song and maybe poetic licence should be allowed. Certainly, in the original account of the incident no mention is made of Pharaoh also dying in the sea. This may be significant because, although one major group of archaeological researchers places the death of Thutmoses very close to the Bible date of the exodus, we have found his mummy. The one possible archaeological date of his death is about 1450 BC, compared with the Bible exodus date of about 1446 BC. This is a remarkably close date and may well refer to his death by drowning in the sea. We should remember that these dates are approximate ones and so it is possible that Thutmoses III did die with his army in the Sea of Reeds. However, if he did drown in the sea then his body must have been retrieved from amongst the drowned Egyptians because archaeologists have found his mummy. In the Bible account the Israelites saw the bodies of the Egyptians dead on the shore. We read, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore (Exodus 14:30). Since the Egyptian bodies were lying on the shores, it is very possible that Pharaoh s body was retrieved by the Egyptians and mummified. It is also very unlikely that the Egyptians would have written about such a humiliating event. Evidence from excavations at Jericho The Bible states that, after the Israelites left Egypt in about 1446 BC they spent 40 years wandering in the wilderness. Then around 1406 BC they crossed the Jordan River and attacked the walled city of Jericho. Various archaeologists have excavated parts of Jericho s ruins (on left) Although there is still a lot of debate about precise dating of a major destruction of the city and a following period of some 300 years

11 11. when it was uninhabited, there is nevertheless agreement on some details. There were dwellings built right up against the mud brick wall, as described in the Bible account. It was after the wall collapsed that the city burnt with an intense fire, as described in the Bible. The fall took place in early spring, just after the harvest, since grain storage jars were full. This also agrees with the Bible account. Regarding the date when Jericho fell, there is still debate about various C-14 datings of samples from the ruins and the relevance of pottery originating from surrounding areas. One archaeologist called Kathlene Kenyon concluded that the destruction took place around 1550 BC. However, the British archaeologist John Garstang derived a date of around 1400 BC. For analysis of this debate about Jericho see also Garstang based his conclusions on comparison of pottery that could be dated from other sites, a radical decrease in the use of Jericho s cemetery after 1400 BC and a lack of Mycenaean pottery which flourished in the 14 th century BC but not in the 15 th century BC. In 1995 Bruins and van der Plicht published results of C-14 dating of grain samples from Jericho, suggesting a date of 3306 years BP (before present). This BP designation needs explanation because some scientists have decided (amazing to me) that all C-14 dates should be recorded as BP. However, to make things even more complex they decided that these BP dates must all relate to the Year Therefore, since we have to take this strange decision seriously, the grain samples mentioned above are actually dated as 3306 minus 1950 = 1356 BC. Before we get too excited about these C-14 dates it is important to note the limitations of this dating method. It is true that C-14 dating is a wonderful tool to obtain approximate dates of ancient objects. However, C-14 dating relies on assumptions: 1. The sample must have remained chemically and physically within a closed system since it was buried and this is not easy to determine with certainty. 2. The assumption is made that the atmosphere concentration of C-14, at the time the organism lived, is the same as now or was at a level determined by some other means, such as ice core analysis. Regarding the last point, we know that the ratio of C-14 to C-12 in the atmosphere has changed over time. For instance during the 1950 s and 1960 s the C-14 to C-12 ratio in the atmosphere nearly doubled due to nuclear weapons tests. It is also known that this ratio is influenced by the amount of cosmic radiation striking the upper atmosphere. The primary source of C-14 is cosmic rays acting on Nitrogen in the high atmosphere. Other potential influences on this, in addition to nuclear explosions, are anything that tends to block or reduce the number of cosmic rays entering the atmosphere. Within this category could be massive volcanic eruptions that throw fine ash high into the atmosphere. In other words, many of the archaeological samples that date back thousands of years may have unknown margins of error, due to our lack of precise knowledge about C-14 to C-12 ratios at the time. Also, results from different laboratories can vary. In 1989 Britain s Science and Engineering Research Council (SERC) did a trial that compared the accuracy with which 38 laboratories around the world

12 12. dated artefacts of known age. Of the 38, only seven produced results that the organisers of the trial considered to be satisfactory. All 38 participants had to date samples of independently known age, made from wood, peat and carbonate. The laboratories involved were on average two to three times less accurate than implied by the range of error they stated (Coghlan 1989), and some laboratories were up to 250 years out. Clearly, C-14 dates published before 1989 should be accepted with caution and with the realisation that the margin of error can be considerable. With this information in mind, we look at the various dates suggested for the destruction of Jericho and realise that the known limitations of the C-14 aging method allow us to conclude that the biblical date for the conquest of Jericho by the Israelites could be accurate, especially since some competent archaeologists obtained a date very close to the biblical one of 1406 BC. Conclusions I hope this summary of scientifically based studies of ancient Egypt and the relevance of the Bible accounts relating to Israel, helps restore your confidence in the historicity of the Bible. It is time for theologians to re-establish the reliability of the Bible as a document that is based in real history. It is time to move theology away from the so-called Biblical Minimalism that doubts the historical relevance of the Bible and the reliability of Israel s history. Some of my previous update articles have covered other aspects relating to the reliability of the early books of the Bible. In this regard I can draw your attention specifically to the following articles from my webpage: 1. Update article 10: Reconciling the Bible creation account with science (go to Free Downloads and then to updates ) 2. Update article 9: Evidence AGAINST a world-wide flood 3. The Garden of Eden (covered in chapter 9 and 10 of the free download book: Big Bang Christianity ) References Anon Dust from Santorini and darkness over Egypt. NEW SCIENTIST. 15 May. Breasted, J.H Ancient times: A history of the Early World; an introduction to the study of ancient history and the career of early man. In Outlines of European History 1. Boston: Ginn and Company. Bruins & van der Plicht Tell es-sultan (Jericho): Radiocarbon Results of short-lived cereal and multiyear charcoal samples from the end of the Middle Bronze Age. RADIOCARBON 37:2 Campbell, E.F. jr The Chronology of the Amara Letters with special reference to the hypothetical coregency of Amenophis III and Akenaten. John Hopkins Press.

13 Coghlan, A Unexpected errors affect dating techniques. NEW SCIENTIST: 30 September: 26. Drews, C Could wind have parted the Red Sea? February2011/red-sea-full.html Drews, C & Weighing Han Dynamics of wind setdown at Suez and the Eastern Nile Delta. ( Lipinska, J In: The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt (Ed. Donald Redford. Vol 3) pp Oxford University Press. McAlpine. K How wind may have parted the sea for Moses. NEW SCIENTIST 22 September Schulman, R Pithom. ENCYCLOPAEDIA JUDAICA. Snelling, A.A Wyatt Archaeological Research Fraud Documentation. Stanley, D.J & Sheng, H Volcanic shards from Santorini (Upper Minoan ash) in the Nile Delta, Egypt. NATURE: 14 July Strouhal, E Life of ancient Egyptians. University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN X Thompson Africa s ice core analysis revealed catastrophic drought, shrinking ice fields and civilisation shifts. SCIENCE October 7. Unger, M.F Unger s Bible Dictionary. Moody Press, Chicago, IL. Vogel, J.S. et al Vesuvius Avellino, one possible source of Seventeenth century BC climate disturbances. NATURE : 5 April: Whitehouse. D Sahara desert born 4,000 years ago. BBC News July Dr Michael Jarvis (20 July 2013) Revised slightly on 24 July 2013, with reference to the section on crossing the Reed Sea ) PhD (zoology) From the University of Cape Town Webpage: Mike@factandfaith.co.za Telephone: (27) (21) Please consider forwarding this article to people on your list