Journal: Conservative Theological Journal
Volume: CTJ 02:5 (Jun 1998)
Article: The Biblical Impact of the Revised Egyptian History
Author: Thomas S. McCall

CTJ 2:5 (June 1998) p. 157

The Biblical Impact of
the Revised Egyptian History

Thomas S. McCall

Professor of Biblical Studies
Bullard, TX

Introduction

In 1995, a book entitled A Test of Time: The Bible—From Myth to History [Century Publishers, London, 1995] was published in England by David Rohl, which should have great impact on the study of both Egypt and the Bible. This same book is scheduled to be published by Random House in July under the title Pharaohs and Kings. It is replete with documentary evidence, photos, and numerous footnotes. The scholarly weight of the book appears undeniable. It has, however, been systematically ignored.

My colleague and friend, Dr. David Reagan, who has also studied this book and corresponded with the author, reports that the few reviews of Pharaohs and Kings that have appeared do not deal with the issues Rohl raises, but rather attack him personally because of his lack of academic standing in the field of Egyptology. This article, then, will take the form of a review of the book, with a view to emphasizing those things that are of importance to Biblical scholars. I would like very much to examine the responses of those who disagree with Rohl, but, unfortunately, no significant Egyptologist has made such a response, as far as I can tell. Because of this, I have no footnotes in this article, because almost all of the material included here can easily be found by referring to the sections in which they are discussed in Rohl’s book. I would encourage the reader to study Pharaohs and Kings for himself, and evaluate the impact that this research might have on his own understanding of the infallible and inerrant Word of God.

The Fictional View of Bible History

Most of the intelligentsia in the historical and even in the theological arenas do not believe in the historicity of the Bible, especially the early accounts of Israel before the Babylonian Captivity. Thus, to them, neither Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Saul, David, Solomon nor the kings of

CTJ 2:5 (June 1998) p. 158

the divided monarchy ever lived. They are fictional heroes created by the minds of “pious frauds” who lived after the Jewish people returned from Babylon. These priests and teachers felt that they needed national heroes, and developed legends about the patriarchs of the nation, much as the Greeks invented stories about Hercules. Such is the predominant view among the faculties in the ancient history departments of the major universities and the major theological seminaries of America and Europe.

The Biblical View of Early Egyptologists

It was not always so. In the last century, many of the world’s leading scholar...