Exodus timing and routes

918 Views | 9 Replies | Last: 1 hr ago by KingofHazor
japantiger
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12:02p, 12/12/25
S
Has there been a recent discussion on this forum regarding the latest scholarship and views on the route and timing of the Exodus? Looking for some of the best scholarship/books on the topic.

Thanks
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BusterAg
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1:37p, 12/13/25
AG
Man, I studied hard on this 25 years ago. I would be interested if there is anything new.

I don't have any books to reference at the moment, but one of the theories that I have read that has some weight was that the exodus was less about the Jews leaving Egypt and more about the Canaanite Bedouins in the regions hill country kicking the Egyptian vassals out of the cities of Canaan.

The architecture of the time was very distinct between the hill country shepherds and the mostly-Egyptian ruled cities in the region. Lots of evidence that there were two very distinct cultures in the area around the time of Egypt.

The other thing I remember is the argument that the crossing at the Red Sea was actually the Sea of Reeds. Several locations are identified as that possible location. Imagine if the drowning of the Red Sea was actually the Egyptian Army and their chariots finding themselves in the middle of a massive tidal swell due to the stars aligning perfectly with a coming storm surge, and finding themselves in the middle of a muddy delta bog that was about 5 feet deep with no dry land for around 40 miles in any direction. The entire army would drown.

Count me as one that isn't hung up on the historicity of the OT being 100% accurate to believe it contains 100% truth. I don't think the historicity matters all that much one way or the other, honestly.

Best of luck. Keep an open mind. In my opinion, trying to prove anything one way or the other based on the historicity or non-historicity of the OT is a bog that never gets anyone anywhere. Due to the lack of solid information and everyone's innate confirmation bias, such arguments never go anywhere. But, learning of the different interpretations of the story are extremely interesting.
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Silent For Too Long
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2:51p, 12/13/25
I think a 13th century BC, Ramses II time period makes the most sense for the historical backdrop of the Biblical story. Bronze age collapse, shrinking of Egyptian, Hittitite, and Assyrian sphere of influence. Isreal pops up in the archeological record in 1208 BC on the Merneptah Stele.

I also think there is something to what Buster is hinting at with the Bedouin people of Canaan. I think the Apiru or Shassu from the city dwelling Canaanite's perspective can be overlapped with the people who would eventually identify as the 12 tribes of Isreal.

I think something came from Egypt during the reign of Ramses Ii, something Semitic, maybe something that considered itself descendent of Abraham and used the Aleph-bet system of writing, and came to Canaan and rejoined with its distant cousins, who also considered themselves descendants of Abraham and used the Aleph-bet system of writing.

They agreed to a tribal confederation of sorts, synchronized their back stories, and became the dominant culture of the Levant.
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japantiger
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1:55p, 12/14/25
S
I am familiar with multiple interpretations/theories on the emergence of Hebrews into the region= and the Merneptah Stele. Looking for any recent "rigorous" scholarship on the routes of the Exodus. Sea of Reeds and a more central Sinai cross seems more likely given where they were supposedly living at the time and from the locations referred to in the texts and the Moses exile period and Exodus references to Midian. I really struggle with the Southern or more traditional Mt Sinai references. Been to the region and I find it hard to reconcile with the texts.

So looking to see what has been discovered recently....archeology and/or textual interpretations.
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KingofHazor
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9:26a, 12/16/25
How recent are you looking for? Most of what I've seen focuses more on the Israelites path out of Egypt and then abandons them at that point because of a lack of hard archaeological evidence and uncertainty as to the meaning of the Biblical geographical references (I think).

James Hoffmeier who is a conservative and Christian Egyptologist and well-respected in secular circles wrote a contribution to a book published in 2012 entitled "Ancient Israel in Egypt and the Exodus." Hoffmeier's chapter in the book is entitled "Out of Egypt". Hoffmeier may have more on the topic in an earlier book he wrote, published in 1997, entitled "Israel in Egypt: The Evidence for the Authenticity of the Exodus Tradition."

There are also multiple scholarly and semi-scholarly articles on the topic in journals such as the Biblical Archaeological Review and Bible and Spade. A few examples of such articles include:

My guess is that many other relevant articles also exist in those journals.

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japantiger
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In reply to KingofHazor • 10:35a, 12/16/25
S
THANKS! for these
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BusterAg
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In reply to KingofHazor • 11:42a, 12/17/25
AG
Blue Star Hazor. Many of these are younger than my most recent study here.

Thank you.
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BusterAg
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In reply to Silent For Too Long • 11:45a, 12/17/25
AG
Silent For Too Long said:
They agreed to a tribal confederation of sorts, synchronized their back stories, and became the dominant culture of the Levant.

This is a little supported by the different references of God (Elohim and Yahweh), which is a completely different bog in and of itself.

Might be two different cultures mixing, might just be two different ways to reference God (one being a name, and one being descriptive).

Also, two different holy mountains as the location of the most holy mountain of God. I think that the meshing of two cultures into one in some form or fashion is pretty well argued from the evidence in the OT.

Appreciate your comment.
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japantiger
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In reply to KingofHazor • 10:35a, 12/18/25
S
KingofHazor said:
How recent are you looking for? Most of what I've seen focuses more on the Israelites path out of Egypt and then abandons them at that point because of a lack of hard archaeological evidence and uncertainty as to the meaning of the Biblical geographical references (I think).

James Hoffmeier who is a conservative and Christian Egyptologist and well-respected in secular circles wrote a contribution to a book published in 2012 entitled "Ancient Israel in Egypt and the Exodus." Hoffmeier's chapter in the book is entitled "Out of Egypt". Hoffmeier may have more on the topic in an earlier book he wrote, published in 1997, entitled "Israel in Egypt: The Evidence for the Authenticity of the Exodus Tradition."

There are also multiple scholarly and semi-scholarly articles on the topic in journals such as the Biblical Archaeological Review and Bible and Spade. A few examples of such articles include:

My guess is that many other relevant articles also exist in those journals.


These are great! Thanks for taking the time to prepare this. The historical references to "Arabia" was very helpful
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KingofHazor
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In reply to BusterAg • 9:11a
Umberto Cassuto was a Jewish scholar who gave a series of lectures in the 1940s-1950s in Rome on the different references to El/Elohim vs. Yahweh in the Pentateuch. His lectures were published in 2006 as a book entitled "The Documentary Hypothesis and the Composition of the Pentateuch".

In his lectures, Cassuto convincingly shows that the use of both El/Elohim and Yahweh shows, not multiple authors, but rather different theological perspectives. Moses used El/Elohim when referring to God in his universal role (such as Creator or Judge, or when dealing with all creation and all nations) and Yahweh when referring to God in his personal, covenantal role with Israel.

I've always been highly skeptical of source criticism (the basis for concluding that there were multiple major authors of the Pentateuch and that it was not compiled until 1000+ years after Moses) for at least the following reasons:

  • Source criticism is not subject to falsification
  • Source criticism conclusions cannot be confirmed or verified
  • Source criticism is highly subjective as demonstrated by the fact that no two "experts" in it can agree as to their conclusions
  • Proponents of source criticism ignore all evidence that contradicts their theories and conclusions (e.g., there is much in the Pentateuch that supports a single, very ancient author)
  • Source criticism actually began with other ancient classics and has been largely abandoned in that field
  • The main motive behind source criticism appears to be, not a search for truth, but an attack on the credibility and reliability of the Pentateuch.
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