Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/5/84; site cbdkc1.UUCP
Path: utzoo!decvax!tektronix!uw-beaver!cornell!vax135!houxm!mhuxt!mhuxr!ulysses!burl!clyde!cbosgd!cbdkc1!ask
From: ask@cbdkc1.UUCP (A.S. Kamlet)
Newsgroups: net.religion
Subject: Re: Egyptian records of exodus?
Message-ID: <1187@cbdkc1.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 24-Oct-85 21:03:52 EDT
Article-I.D.: cbdkc1.1187
Posted: Thu Oct 24 21:03:52 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 26-Oct-85 08:48:10 EDT
References: <350@drutx.UUCP>
Reply-To: ask@cbdkc1.UUCP (A.S. Kamlet)
Distribution: na
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Columbus
Lines: 36

>>mikei@hammer.UUCP (Michael IsBell)
>>Doing some research on the Biblical exile of the Israelites
>>in Egypt I find a complete void of Egyptian sources which
>>mention the hebrews. 

> I am not a professional Egyptologist--but am interested in ancient
> Egypt and do a lot of reading on it.  There is a lot of disagreement
> on lots of Egyptian history--but on this one every source I've read
> agrees:
> 
> You won't find any such sources.  There is no mention of the
> Biblical events in any Egyptian source yet found.  Nor any mention in 
> any source of any group who could have been the Hebrew tribes.
> 
> The two obvious conclusions to draw are that, since the Egyptians were
> absolute fiends about writing down anything important, it never
> happened, or it happened and wasn't important.  If we take the
> second explanation, then it didn't happen like the Bible says.  (Surely the
> death of every first born son in Egypt would have been a big news
> event!)  That is, the Hebrews were slaves who escaped, but the plagues
> story was added at a later date to magnify the importance of the
> event.  That second explanation is the one most scholars go with,
> I believe.
:

I have often heard a third explanation, one which I find much more
plausible.  The Egyptians suffered a great loss and were loath to
have any record of it.  This explanation is that any records were
intentionally destroyed.   There are quite a few gaps in pre-biblical
Egyptian history, indicating that other periods of time existed where
records were either not taken or were deliberately wiped out.

I'm sorry I don't have a good reference to this explanation at my
fingertips, but perhaps someone can cite references to this explanation.
-- 
Art Kamlet  AT&T Bell Laboratories  Columbus {ihnp4 | cbosgd}!cbrma!ask