Second Sunday of Lent

Lent is our season of Exodus. The Hebrews spent 40 years in the desert with Moses before they could enter into the Promised Land. Jesus spent 40 days fasting in the desert before He entered into Holy Week - His Passion and death - and our redemption. We spend 40 days in penance in remembrance of our Lord and His 40 days of preparation for the jubilation of Palm Sunday, the trials of Holy Week and the glory of His Resurrection on Easter Sunday. 

The readings for the Second Sunday in Lent include the Transfiguration of our Lord. Jesus went up on the mountain with Peter, James and John and while there they were joined by Moses and Elijah, each of whom had their own Exodus as well. Of course we know of the Exodus of Moses from the Book of Exodus, which he wrote. When Moses went up on the mountain and saw God, the glory of God was reflected in his face that his face shown bright (Exodus 34:29-35) so bright that Aaron and the others could not look upon it. This radiance was just the reflection of God - but when Jesus went upon the mount and the Transfiguration took place, His face radiated and so did His clothes - not in reflection, but as the source of the Light (Luke 9:29). They saw Jesus speaking with Moses and Elijah and then a voice from Heaven stated, "This is My beloved Son, in Whom I am well pleased" (Luke 9:35). The Apostles with Him fell to the ground and when they looked up, Moses and Elijah were gone.  Elijah's Exodus was a bit different, as he did not experience death, but was just taken into Heaven (2 Kings 2:11). Moses was at the mount to represent the Law, Elijah was there to represent the Prophets. They were there with Jesus to show the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets in Jesus, the Christ. 

So as Lent proceeds we are reminded of this glorious event of Transfiguration - with God revealing Himself through His Son as a reminder that He is the Light of the World. As our struggles through this life proceed and as we travel through Lent offering up our little sacrifice(s) as a constant reminder through this season of what Jesus went through for us - we are assured of the Resurrection and the Promise.

This year the Feast of St. Patrick also falls on this Sunday, but his feast day is superseded by the Second Sunday of Lent. I will conclude this entry with an Irish prayer:

May God give you...
For every storm, a rainbow,
For every tear, a smile,
For every care, a promise,
And a blessing in each trial.
For every problem life sends,
A faithful friend to share,
For every sigh, a sweet song,
And an answer for each prayer.

Who Was Pharoah During Joseph's Day?

Donny Osmond playing Joseph and his coat of many colors.

The Egyptians were descendants of Noah's son, Ham.  The Hyksos family are direct descendents of Ham which may have led to the welcoming nature of the Hebrews when Joseph was empowered by Pharoah.[1] 

Exodus 1:8 speaks of a "new king, who did not know about Joseph" so that sounds like a new dynasty - which could be the Berbers, who came from the southern part of Egypt, the Upper Nile region.  Which was approximately 1700 BC, or about 150 years before the biblical account of Moses. [ibid]

The person who was most likely Joseph himself was known to the Egyptians as Imhotep, the "genius" and "architect" who brought Egypt through the great famine.  That, according to National Geographic, 1995.[2]

The "Ark Discovery" web site puts Imhotep at about 2600 BC, in the reign of Djoser.[ibid]

2293 BC - Noah leaves the Ark
1750 BC - The birth of Joseph
1711 BC - Jacob enters Egypt
1640 BC - Death of Joseph
1576 BC - Birth of Moses
1496 BC - Exodus from Egypt

So, according to this timeline, the Hebrews were only in Egypt for 135 years [3].  That being said, 135 is quite a long time especially when one considers that even in our own country (the USA) 135 years ago it was 1879.  In a time where putting a man on the moon is like "ancient history" to today's youth, in 1879 we didn't have planes, automobiles, public electricity or even indoor plumbing was not gaining in popularity until the mid 19th century - and "outhouses" were still commonplace in 1879. [4]  In 1879 the US population was a bit over 50 million [5] - in 2014 it is 317 million [6] - in 135 the US has increased over 6 fold - and that is with modern "birth control" efforts preventing literally millions of US citizens every year.  Now, imagine the 12 tribes of Jacob, all living in Egypt for 135 years - and no "birth control!"

Let's use a conservative number and say there were only 5 sons born to each family in the descendants of Jacob (and only Jacob)...

12 sons of Jacob x 5 sons = 60 grandsons
20 years
60 grandsons of Jacob x 5 sons = 300 great-grandsons
Now 40 years
300 great-grandsons of Jacob x 5 sons = 1500 great-great-grandsons
Now 80 years
1500 great-great-grandsons x 5 sons = 7500 great-great-great-grandsons
Now 100 years
7500 great-great-great-grandsons x 5 sons = 37500 great-great-great-great-grandsons
Now 120 years
37500 great-great-great-great-grandsons x 5 sons = 187500 great-great-great-great-great-grandsons
Now 140 years
187500  g-g-g-g-g-grandsons x 5 sons = 937500 g-g-g-g-g-g-grandsons

So, in approximately the same length of time from Jacob going to Egypt till the time of the Exodus of Moses, there are, conservatively, about one million Hebrew descendents.  Keep in mind, I only went with 5 sons and Jacob had 12 sons!  I did not account for the daughters and/or for those Hebrews who intermarried with the Egyptians.  Also keep in mind, by the time Jacob was brought into Egypt, his twelve sons were already prolific and he brought with him a small nation of what the Egyptians called "the Shepherd Kings" or "the Hyksos (whose migration to Egypt actually begins at least a couple hundred years before Joseph) [7].   Easily we can see it would have been well over a million, and considering the Hyksos, it would have been several million.

Some believe the Pharoah of Joseph's time (who would not have gone by the name "Pharoah," as was common in Moses' time - and it was Moses who wrote the Joseph account) would have been Sesostris II of Dynasty 12. [8]

Sources:
[1] http://committedtotruth.wordpress.com/2009/10/17/question-who-was-pharaoh-during-josephs-life/

[2] http://www.arkdiscovery.com/joseph.htm

[3] http://www.matthewmcgee.org/ottimlin.html

[4] http://www.plumbingsupply.com/pmamerica.html

[5] http://www.pbs.org/eakins/we_1879.htm

[6] http://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/robert-schlesinger/2013/12/31/us-population-2014-317-million-and-71-billion-in-the-world

[7] http://ahabiblemoments.com/hyksos_-_amu_-_shepherd_kings.html

[8] http://www.biblearchaeology.org/post/2010/03/15/Joseph-in-Egypt-Part-IV.aspx