Reflections of Readers
A reader questions the common identification of Ramses II as the pharaoh of the Exodus, noting that so powerful a ruler would hardly have tolerated Moses' effrontery, wondering where the departing Hebrews acquired weapons and military training, and observing that Egypt shows no sign of the upheaval that the destruction at the Sea of Reeds should have produced.
Writing from Jerusalem, Oscar Davies pushes back on the familiar assumption that Ramses II was the pharaoh Moses confronted. He points out that a ruler of that stature, with his long reign, military record, and building programs, would scarcely have endured the boldness Moses displays, and would more plausibly have executed him. He also asks how a slave population came to leave Egypt armed and capable of repelling Amalekite attacks, suggesting the Israelites may have been more formidable than usually assumed. Finally, he observes that Egypt’s dynastic continuity after the disaster at the Sea of Reeds points toward a far less consequential pharaoh.
Cite this article
Oscar Davies. "Reflections of Readers." Jewish Bible Quarterly 36, no. 4 (October – December 2008): 268.
Oscar Davies. "Reflections of Readers." Jewish Bible Quarterly, vol. 36, no. 4, 2008, pp. 268.