These are the names of the sons of Jacob (whose name God changed to Israel) that moved to Egypt with their father and their families: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Benjamin, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher. So the total number of descendants that traveled with Jacob to Egypt is certain. Still, the number differs within the Bible depending on how they are counted. I covered this in an earlier blog post, so I won't go through it again. Still, I will briefly summarize the different counting methods. One place says 66 people went with Jacob to Egypt. If you count Jacob, Joseph (who was already in Egypt), and Joseph's two sons that Jacob claimed as his own, you get a total of 70. But then Stephen, the first Christian martyr in the New Testament, says 75 went with Joseph. One possibility for this number is by adding the living daughters-in-law of Jacob to the 66 number. The other way to get to 75 is to count Joseph's grandchildren instead.
Regardless of which counting method one uses, Joseph eventually died and his brothers and that entire generation. In the same blog post I mentioned above, I stated that Joseph died just 64 years before Moses was born. But during the whole 215 years from the time Jacob first arrived in Egypt to the time Moses and Aaron will speak to Pharaoh about exiting from Egypt later in this study, the Israelites were fruitful and increased abundantly. They multiplied and became extremely strong, so much so that the land was filled with them. And eventually, a new Pharaoh arose over Egypt who did not know Joseph or the history of his accomplishments. The political attitude toward the Israelites living in Egypt changed from friendly and welcoming to suspicious and hostile. Israel’s struggle for existence led to one of the most dramatic and memorable interventions that God would make in human history.
The identity of this new Pharaoh has led to much debate. The 1446 B.C. date I mentioned earlier when talking about the authorship of Exodus would align Exodus’ early events with the time of Thutmose I or his father Amenhotep I, either of whom is considered capable of issuing a decree to murder infants. This dating would place Moses’ life in the same general timeframe as Hatshepsut, effectively a female Pharaoh, who may have been the one to adopt him from the Nile. Hatshepsut’s co-regent and eventual rival was Thutmose III, who apparently resented her influence and would have had good reason to banish Moses at the first opportunity. This would make Amenhotep II, seventh Pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty, the ruler, forced to let God’s people go. Egyptian history indicates a sudden lack of military action by Amenhotep II beginning in 1446 B.C., a fact that would be consistent with the loss of nearly the entire army at the Red Sea. Ancient records also claim Amenhotep’s successor, Thutmose IV, was not the “true” heir—which would be true if Amenhotep’s firstborn son and “legitimate” heir died during the 10th plague. Given all this information, Thutmose I, who reigned from 1525-1512 B.C., seems to be a logical choice for the Pharaoh that arose and didn't acknowledge Joseph or his accomplishments.
Thutmose I warned his people that the Israelites had become too many and too mighty because they outnumbered the Egyptians in population and strength. So Thutmose proposed to deal shrewdly with them so that the Israelites would not continue to multiply. He feared that the Israelites would join Egypt's enemies if a war happened, which would enable them to escape. So they set taskmaster over the Israelites to afflict and oppress them with hard labor and increased burdens. During this time, the Israelites built the cities that would later become known as Pithom and Raamses as storage cities for Pharaoh. But the more the Egyptians oppressed them, the more the Israelites multiplied and expanded. As a result, the Egyptians became even more annoyed, exasperated, and alarmed with dread because of the Israelites. The Egyptians forced the Israelites into severe slavery. The Egyptians made the Israelites' lives bitter with hard labor in mortar, brick, and all kinds of field work. All their labor was harsh and severe.
There were two particular Hebrew midwives during that time, Shiphrah (Beauty) and Puah (Splendor). Pharaoh told them that when they acted as midwives to the Hebrew women and saw them on the birthstool, he wanted them to kill all the baby boys and keep all the baby girls alive. But the midwives feared God with profound reverence. So they didn't do what the wicked Pharaoh commanded. Instead, they continued to allow the male babies to live. Eventually, he called for these two Hebrew midwives and asked them why they had continued to allow the male children to live. They lied and said Hebrew women were not like Egyptian women because they are more vigorous and give birth quicker than the midwives could get to them. Even though the Hebrew midwives lied to Pharaoh, God blessed them because they feared Him with profound reverence. So He established families and households for them of their very own. Meanwhile, the Israelites continued to multiply and become even stronger. Then Pharaoh repeated his command, saying that every Hebrew son had to be thrown into the Nile River. In contrast, every daughter had to be allowed to live. History has repeated itself in this way time after time. Whether Israel or the Christian church, whenever God's people are persecuted, they persevere to the point that they eventually thrive under the harsher conditions even more than they would have otherwise. That's why, even though I do not welcome persecution of Christians and Jews if the seeds that have been planted currently continue to grow, I trust that God will use it all for His good and for the good of those who genuinely love Him.
Is there in all human history a more fantastic spectacle than the exodus? First, a family of 70 immigrants grows into a people of slavery. Then, suddenly, according to God’s detailed and preannounced plan, they are seen flinging away the shackles of generations of slavery and emigrating to a new country and a new life, with miraculous deliverances rescuing them from destruction again and again. The marvel of the exodus grows in wonder when, after more than 3,000 years, we see that same race, often persecuted almost to extinction, carrying out in incredible detail God’s predictions for their amazing national revitalization and prominence in the last days.
SOURCES
- "Exodus" definition from Dictionary.com
- The Tim LaHaye Prophecy Study Bible introduction to Exodus
- Exodus 1
- My blog post from June 15, 2021, titled It depends on how we're counting
- Genesis 46:26-27
- Genesis 48:5
- Deuteronomy 10:22
- Acts 7:14
- 1 Chronicles 7:14-21
- How long were the Israelites in Egypt? by David Wright for Answers in Genesis on July 5, 2010
- Amplified Bible footnote for Exodus 1:8
- Who was the Pharaoh of the Exodus? by Got Questions
- Exodus 2:5-6
- Exodus 14:28
- Exodus 11:4-5
- Exodus 12:29
- Romans 8:28
- Amplified Bible footnote for Exodus 1:22
- Amplified Bible, Classic Edition footnote for Exodus 1:9
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