historical events vs biblical events

[Kalama]

I've been comparing historical events to biblical events and couldn't find a correlation.

For example: I was researching the 7 year famine in Egypt and found that there was a famine during 205 – 180 BC. However, according to the Jewish calendar, Joseph was purchased in the year 2216, which is 1544 BC. I couldn't find evidence of a famine during the days of Joseph.

Can anyone help?

[k-pappy]

Both sets of dates are incorrect.  It doesn't help that different Jewish Sects have different time lines and traditions.

Let's start by going with a commonly accepted time.  Most scholars, Jewish, Christian and secular figure that Thutmose II, who was pharaoh 1479–1425 BC, was the Pharaoh of the Exodus.  Counting back 430 years of slavery, and noting Joseph died in Egypt when he was 110 and was given his exalted position when he was 30, so add another 80 years and it looks like the famine could be between 1989 and 1935 B.C.

That being said, there famines at different periods of Egyptian history, so we would have to search for one that matches that era.

Keep in mind though, that scholars disagree and there are good arguments that put Joseph a hundred years later, from 1889 to 1843 BC and some that put him around 2600 BC.

[Proverbs11_9]

Hi Kalama,

I am actually reading a book called The History of the Ancient World From the Earliest Accounts to the Fall of Rome by Susan Bauer that talks about a 7-year family between the third and fourth dynasty in Egypt from 2686 to 2566. 

"According to later tradition, recorded in an inscription at Aswan, he dedicated some of this newly conquered land to the local deity Khnum, in gratitude for the ending of a seven-year famine " (78).  Apparently, the famine was having a negative effect on the image of the Pharaoh as a divine power so this was a significant event to commemorate and try to get some good PR. 

"Seven' may simply be a traditional expression of 'too long'; either way, this goes a long way to support the theory that diminished Nile floods had been causing difficulties for the Pharaoh's claim to divine power" (78). 

Therefore, it would seem that it is possible that there were frequent "seven" year famines in Egypt because the "seven-year famine" was trademarked.  However, this it is possible that the "seven-year famine was the result of some sort of environmental cycle that causes intermittent seven year famines in that part of the world, which is why it was trademarked and not because it is a figurative statement of something that was taking a long time to end. 

The book is not written with any priority to prove the Biblical account; however, she does objectively let the dice fall where they may, and when there does appear to be a connection to the Bible as a historical document, she will connect the dots.  Chapter Seventeen credits Abram as The First Monotheist of antiquity, and that is as far as I am in the book.  I have done some research on the subject elsewhere before.  However, I find that the subject of connecting historical events with the historical accounts in scripture, can be a controversial subject and becomes the subjective opinions of the researcher rather than objective research.  Therefore, it is important to know the quality of the research that you use for this subject.  Take care.   

[Wycliffes_Shillelagh]

This post seems relevant...

http://www.gracecentered.com/christian_forums/general-discussion-forum/can-someone-assist-with-this-(ancient-biblical-history)/msg1054969559/#msg1054969559

Jarrod

[Stranger]

I believe the Biblical events are historical events, unless Scripture indicates otherwise.

Stranger