Pharaoh Shoshenq I (r. ca. 931-910 B.C.) was the first pharaoh of the 22nd Dynasty and came from a long line of Libyan princes who came to rule over Egypt. He is called Shishak in the Hebrew rendering of his name and he played a major role in the history of both Egypt and the Old Testament.
During the fifth year of the reign of King Rehoboam I of Judah (922-915 B.C.), Pharaoh Shoshenq I invaded Syria-Palestine. The Egyptian conquest of various cities and towns throughout Judah and Israel is recorded in the Second Book of Kings and the Second Book Chronicles.
After his victorious Asiatic campaign, Pharaoh Shoshenq I carved a relief on the Bubastite Portal. The Bubasitite Portal is a doorway on the south wall of the first forecourt of the Karnak Temple in Thebes. The hieroglyphic inscriptions on the Bubastite Portal includes a list of 187 locations the pharaoh conquered throughout the Levant. The list begins with the Nine Bows - the traditional territories and enemies of the Egyptian Empire. The list then states all the cities captured by the Egyptian army. 43 of the 187 cities on the list are mentioned in the Old Testament and include Megiddo, Shechem, Gezer, Taanach, Penuel, and Mahanaim.
The Bubastite Portal correlates with the description of the pharaoh's military campaign against Judah and Israel as described in the Old Testament and provides a reference point shared by both Egyptian and Israelite history - c. 926 B.C. From this date, Egyptologists and biblical scholars can match up events in Israelite history based on the Old Testament and archaeological discoveries to the written history of the ancient Egyptians.
Music:
Curse of the Scarab - Kevin MacLeod
Works Cited:
The HarperCollins Study Bible (2006). New York: HarperCollins.
Hoffimeir, J.K. (2008). The Archaeology of the Bible. Oxford: Lion Books.
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