Seder Olam: C19b- Joseph
- Albert Benhamou
- Mar 24
- 17 min read
Updated: Mar 26
BIBLICAL CHRONOLOGY
Hebrew years 2160 to 2280 (1600-1480 BCE)
Year 2229 – 1531 BCE – Joseph becomes Viceroy of Egypt
When he arrived in Egypt in Hebrew year 2216 (1544 BCE), Joseph was sold as slave to Potiphar’s house, but he quickly became an important member of the staff. Joseph was also very good-looking, and his master’s wife asked him to sleep with her. He refused on several occasions when she tried again and again.
It was told of Joseph the virtuous that the wife of Potiphar every day endeavored to entice him with words. The garments she put on for him in the morning, she did not wear in the evening, those she had put on in the evening, she did not wear in the morning. She said to him: “Yield to me!” He said: “No.” She said: “I shall have you imprisoned.” He said: “The Lord releases the bound." (Psalms 146:7) She said: “I shall bend your proud stature.” He replied: “The Lord raises those who are bowed down.” (Psalms 146:8) She said: “I shall blind your eyes.” He replied: “The Lord opens the eyes of the blind.” (Psalms 146:8) She offered him a thousand talents of silver to make him yield to her, to lie with her, to be near her (Genesis 39:10), but he would not listen to her; not to ‘lie with her’ in this world, not ‘to be with her’ in the world to come. (Talmud, Yoma, 35b)
Out of revenge, she finally accused him of attempting to seduce her and Potiphar had him thrown in jail after one year of service. After he had been 10 years in jail, he came to meet two chamberlains of Pharaoh’s kitchens who were also put in custody at this time. As they each had a dream, he explained it to them, and the dreams were realized.
Two years after the dreams of the chamberlains, Pharaoh himself had a dream that none of his court could understand. He heard about Joseph from one of the chamberlains who had been restored to his function and had him brought out of jail, where Joseph had already spent 12 years. Joseph explained to Pharaoh that there will be 7 years of abundance followed by years of famine in the land of Egypt. Joseph told Pharaoh that he must prepare for this to happen:
Pharaoh said to his servants: "Could we find a man like this who has the spirit of God in him?"
Then Pharaoh said to Joseph: "After that God informed you about all this, there is no wiser and more intelligent man like you.
You will be responsible for my house, and by your command shall all my people be sustained; only the throne will be above you."
Pharaoh said to Joseph: "See, I have given you all the land of Egypt."
And Pharaoh removed a ring from his hand and gave it to the hand of Joseph, and he dressed him in fine clothes, and put a golden chain upon his neck.
He had also him ride on his second chariot and they proclaimed him "Avrech" [the Blessed One], and he gave him all the land of Egypt. (Genesis 41:38-43)
Pharaoh (Ahmose I) gave to Joseph an official name, Zafenath-Paneach, and made him viceroy of Egypt. It was customary in Egypt for princes of the royal household to have an official name in addition to a private name. The fact that Pharaoh gave an official name to Joseph meant that he embraced him as a prince of the royal household. In the British Museum is a statue of an official from the 19th Dynasty called Panehsy,: his role was “Overseer of the Treasury”. The names Paneach and Panehsy are close enough to show that they relate to role names. Furthermore, these names are the origin of the Hebrew name Pinehas, from the future tribe of priests who will have a key role in the Tabernacle and the Temple service.
It is also interesting to note the mention He had also him ride on his second chariot. Was this chariot worth a special mention in the Biblical text, after it follows other signs of royal honor? It was Pharaoh Ahmoses I who defeated the Hyksos invaders and expelled them out of Egypt. The Hyksos had brought chariots warfare into Egypt which was a technological advantage during more than 100 years of occupation. Over time, the Egyptians built chariots too and introduced them in their own army and were finally able to defeat the Hyksos. Chariots were therefore a symbol of power, thus well suited for one to be offered to a high official who would act in the name of Pharaoh. Hence the worthy mention.
Joseph was 30 years old when he stood in front of Pharaoh (Genesis 41:46), so it was Hebrew year 2229. Pharaoh then gave Asenath to Joseph as a wife. She was the daughter of Potiphar, who was promoted as the priest of On [Heliopolis]. She bore him two sons during the years of abundance before the famine had started: Manasseh and Ephraim.
Year 2236 – 1524 BCE – The famine strikes
Then, after 7 years of abundance, famine struck all the regions, but Egypt had plenty of grain thanks to the plan that Joseph had executed:
All the earth came to Egypt to count on Joseph because the famine had become severe in all the earth. (Genesis 41:57)
There is archaeological evidence that massive grain silos, able to feed many Egyptian troops, were built in Egypt during the reign of Ahmose I, thus adding confirmation to the Biblical narrative. Indeed, excavations at a site on the eastern part of the Nile delta has shown the presence of these "massive silos" dated from Ahmose's reign (for more information, read the article in Bible History Daily).
In addition, a stele has been found in Karnak around 1950 that contains the tale of a meteorological disaster that fell upon Egypt during the reign of Ahmose I: it has been named the Tempest Stele of Ahmose. Some people speculated that the disaster was so unusual in nature that it must have been caused by a one-time event such as the eruption of the volcano in the Greek island of Santorini (although the date of this eruption, which occurred before 1600 BCE, doesn't fit the accepted dating of the reign of Ahmose I). Regardless of what caused the disaster, it is interesting to note some details of the text of the stele (to read the text online, click here for the most recent translation dated April 2014):
Ahmose is described as living forever; this may suggest that he had recently died at the time of the disaster; indeed, the famine stroke in Hebrew year 2236, corresponding to 1524 BCE, and Ahmose is assumed to have died within the previous year, in 1525 BCE; because his heir and son Amenhotep I was too young to reign, his wife Nefertari was the regent
it is mentioned that Now His Majesty dwelt in the town of Sedjefatawy [in the district just to] the south of Dendera: obviously when Ahmose was alive, he dwelt in his new palace in Thebes, but Now, as he had died, he dwelt in another place. As for the south of Dendera, the “south” would actually mean “downstream” (the same as “Lower” Egypt is downstream); the location seems to point to the Pyramid of Ahmose which is so called because it is believed to be the pyramid where Ahmose was originally buried (this pyramid is however so destroyed that its original purpose is speculative); but, due to destructions in later times, his coffin had been moved to another location where it was discovered; this is not rare as it had been proven to have happened in other cases
the text is more specific about the fact that Ahmose had died: his body was united with this temple while his limbs were in joy; this temple may refer to his pyramid of burial
the text then mentions that the disaster was caused by a storm that caused a flood; this is compatible with the description of the dream of Pharaoh (Genesis 41), which took place in two occurrences: one with the cows that came up from the river and the other with the wind that blew the crops; water and wind are the two components of the disaster described in both the Tempest Stele and the Bible. For more details about this stele and its biblical importance, click here.
There is little doubt that a disaster of such nature would have destroyed cattle and crops (as described in Pharaoh's dream) and cause the start of a great famine.
Year 2238 – 1522 BCE – Jacob comes down to Egypt
After two years of famine, Jacob sent his 10 older sons (not Benjamin) to Egypt to buy supplies of grain. At the time, Judah had already come back to his father’s land. They went down at the end of the second year of famine (Hebrew year 2238, 1522 BCE);
The news was heard in Pharaoh’s house saying that the brothers of Joseph had come. And this was pleasing in Pharaoh’s eyes and in his servants’ eyes. And Pharaoh said to Joseph: "Say this to your brothers. ‘Do this, load up your animals and return to the land of Canaan. Take your father and your households and come to me, and I will give you the best from the land of Egypt, and you will eat the fat of the land. And you are commanded to say ‘Do this, take for you from the land of Egypt wagons for your small children and for your wives, transport your father and come. And don’t let your eyes take pity of your belongings, because the best of all the land of Egypt is for you." (Genesis 45:16-20)
Jacob and his children went down to Egypt. Joseph was 39 years old, because seven years of abundance followed by two years of famine had passed from the time when he stood in front of Pharaoh at the age of 30.
The Biblical text gives the count of the direct children and grandchildren of Jacob who settled down in Egypt as follows and referred to them as the "70 souls" (Genesis 46:27).
From Leah’s side, there were 33 people including Jacob (Genesis 46:15), according to the text, but the actual count only shows 32 people. Some commentators assumed that Jochebed was the 33rd person, as she did not leave Canaan, but the text mentions “daughters” from Leah (Genesis 46:15), so there must have been one daughter beside Dinah. So, the explanation is that Jochebed was born to her father Levi during the journey from Canaan to Egypt:
Reuben and his sons Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, Carmi
Simeon and his sons Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, Shaul (son of a Canaanite woman)
Levi and his sons Gershon, Kohath, Merari, and possibly Jochebed
Judah and his sons Shelah, Perez (with two sons Hezron, Hamul, who replaced the two souls who died, Er and Onan), Zerah
Issachar and his sons Tola, Puvah, Iov, Shimron
Zebulun and his sons Sered, Elon, Jahleel
Leah's only daughter, Dinah
From Zilpah’s side, they were 16 people:
Gad and his sons Ziphion, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arodi, Areli
Asher and his sons Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, Beriah (with sons Heber, Malchiel), and daughter Serah
From Rachel’s side, they were 14 people:
Joseph and his sons Manasseh, Ephraim, who were already in Egypt
Benjamin and his sons Bela, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Ehi, Rosh, Muppim, Huppim, Ard
From Bilah’s side, they were 7 people:
Dan and his son Hushim
Naphtali and his sons Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer, Shillem
Among the wives of Jacob, only Leah was buried with the ancestors in the Cave of Machpelah in Hebron. Rachel had previously died giving birth to Benjamin and was buried near Bethlehem, on the road to Hebron.
Jacob was reunited with his son Joseph after 22 years; from the time Joseph was sold by his brothers in Hebrew year 2216 until the arrival to Egypt in Hebrew year 2238. Jacob knew a boy of 17 years of age and now met the second most powerful person in Egypt, being 39 years of age, with spouse and children.
The Egyptian dynasty of this time was the 18th Dynasty. It became the most successful and best-known dynasty of Egypt, as it started the prosperous era of the New Kingdom after years of political instability because Lower Egypt had been under the rule of foreign invaders called the Hyksos for about 300 years. This period of trouble in Egypt favored the independence of the people of the land of Canaan, and the relative peace there in the times of the patriarchs. This 18th Dynasty started in the year 1550 BCE under Ahmose I. He expelled the Hyksos from Lower Egypt in the 18th or 19th year of his reign, so it was about 1532-1531 BCE.
Ahmose I was a Pharaoh who built many infrastructures across Egypt and who re-organized the country. He reigned for 25 years, from age 10 (1550 BCE) to age about 35 when he died (1525 BCE) just about the time when the years of abundance were coming to an end. Ahmose I met with Joseph was in year 1531 BCE, when Ahmose I had already been in power for 19 years and he was 29 years old at that time. Joseph was 30 years old, so they were in fact about the same age, if we allow some months up to one year discrepancy in the calculations. The close age between the two certainly helped their good relationship.
Ahmose’s wife was Nefertari, his sister or half-sister. She gave him an heir, Amenhotep I (also called Amenophis I) who succeeded his father and reigned over Egypt for about 21 years, from 1526 BCE to 1506 BCE. He was influenced by his mother who was regent when he reigned, and must have died at a rather young age, as all his representations show him as a young Pharaoh. This explains why, in the Bible, Joseph states that God made him father for Pharaoh (Genesis 45:8). As Joseph and Ahmose were of the same age, it probably helped Joseph appear as a fatherly figure and model for Amenhotep.
When Jacob and his clan arrived in Egypt, the ruler was Amenhotep I, a young pharaoh:
And Joseph brought his father Jacob, and he made him stand in front of Pharaoh. And Jacob blessed Pharaoh. Pharaoh asked Jacob: "How many days of years of your life?" Jacob said to Pharaoh: "The days of years of my sojourns have been a hundred and thirty years. Few and bad (מעט ורעים) have been the days of years of my life, and they have not achieved the days of years of life of my fathers, in the days of their sojourns." And Jacob blessed Pharaoh and left Pharaoh’s presence. (Genesis 47:7-10)
This passage is important for the chronology of the Bible. We now know that Jacob came down to Egypt in Hebrew year 2238, as he stated to be 130 years old at the time. Joseph was 30 years old when he became viceroy of Egypt, when the 7 years of abundance started. Then, he met his brothers and his father at the end of 2 years of famine, so he was then 39 years old. This is the same year when Jacob was presented to Pharaoh, so Joseph was born in the year 2238-39= 2199. It is with this calculation that the years of all the other events of the chronology can be derived. For example, when Joseph was sold to the Ishmaelites and arrived in Egypt, he was 17 years old, so it was Hebrew year 2216. When he became viceroy of Egypt, he was 30 years old, so it was Hebrew year 2229. In the initial period of 13 years when he has been in Egypt, he was one year at the service of Potiphar, then 12 years in jail. His meeting with Pharaoh occurred 2 years after his encounter in jail with the two kitchen chamberlains.
It is also worth noting that Jacob did not bow to Pharaoh, but Joseph made him stand. The historical context of the 18th Dynasty helps explain this meeting between Jacob and Amenhotep in the second year of the famine, in 1522 BCE. Amenhotep was still a boy, who had only been reigning for 3-4 years, and his mother was the regent. Joseph was honored as father for Pharaoh so Jacob, who was 130-year-old, was able to stand and not bow, as he was like a grandfather to Pharaoh. Jacob blessed him twice, as a grandfather and a grandson are two generations apart:
Then Joseph settled his father and his brothers and gave them a portion of the land of Egypt, in the best part of the land, in the land of Ramsses (בְּאֶרֶץ רַעְמְסֵס), as Pharaoh had commanded. (Genesis 47:11)
Joseph arranged that his family to settle in Goshen, in the Nile delta. Jacob had insisted for not mixing his clan with the Egyptians, probably by fear of assimilation. The region had been occupied by the Hyksos before Ahmose I and abandoned since their expulsion from Egypt. So, Goshen was emptied when Jacob of his family settled in Egypt. The former capital of the Hyksos was the city of Avaris, located in that region, which had been devastated during the war. Later, the Egyptians wanted to rebuild it, with the slavery of the Hebrews, and changed its name to Per-Ramessu (see Britannica entry about Per-Ramessu by clicking here).
During the 18th Dynasty, the most important government official was someone called “Ineni” which means “Here I am” in Hebrew (the word has been used by the patriarchs in their response to God’s calls). This person served all Pharaohs until the reign of Thutmose III. This is evidence that this person was Joseph himself because of the role described:
Hereditary prince, count, chief of all works in Karnak; the double silver-house was under his charge; the double gold-house was on his seal; sealer of all contracts in the House of Amon; Excellency, overseer of the double granary of Amon. (Boussac, Hyppolite, Mission archéologique française au Caire, volume XVIII, 1895) (cited in Breasted, James Henry, Ancient records of Egypt, Volume 2)
This Ineni was in charge of the granary and he had lived long enough to serve under six Pharaohs of the 18th Dynasty: Ahmose I, Amenhotep I, Thutmose I, Thutmose II, Hatshepsut (regent, wife of the former), and Thutmose III. Who else but Joseph could have held such important role in Egypt and for so many years of service?
In his role, Joseph greatly enriched the 18th Dynasty. How? After the initial years of famine, when the situation became severe, the Egyptian people sold all their possessions in exchange for grain, and Joseph collected this money for Pharaoh. Then when their possessions were over, and as the famine continued, the people sold their land, and then they sold themselves, as serfs, to Pharaoh:
Thus, Joseph acquired all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh, because the Egyptians sold the man and his field, because the famine was hard on them. And the land became Pharaoh’s. As for the people, he moved them between cities, from one end of Egypt to the other. Only the land of the priest he did not buy, because of an income from Pharaoh to the priests, and they ate from their income that Pharaoh gave them and therefore they did not sell their land. Joseph said to the people: "Look, I have acquired you this day and also your land for Pharaoh; here is a seed for you and sow them on the land; and at the harvests, you will give one fifth to Pharaoh, and the four fifths will be yours, as seed for the soil and food for you and for those in your house and to feed your young ones." And they said: "You saved our lives, may we find favor in your eyes, my lord, and we will be slaves for Pharaoh." So, Joseph made it a law until this day over the land of Egypt, for Pharaoh the fifth, only the soil of the priests alone was not for Pharaoh. (Genesis 47:20-26)
This text suggests that the tax system in Ancient Egypt, calculated as a 20% of the production of the land, was established by Joseph under the reign of Amenhotep I. It would make sense, timewise, because, before that period, the country was divided and partly under control of the Hyksos during the previous 300 years. Historians record the existence of tax systems only from the 18th Dynasty.
Year 2255 – 1506 BCE – Death of Jacob in Egypt
After 17 years in Egypt, Jacob died in year 2255 at the age of 147 years old. Before he died, he gave his blessing to each of the children and grandchildren who will deserve to become the 12 tribes of Israel. The order was as follows:
Reuben: strength and vigor, water-like impetuosity; but he laid with one of Jacob’s concubines
Simeon and Levi: accomplices (they murdered the people of Sichem because of Dinah)
Judah: a lion, his brothers will prostate to him: "The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until Shiloh (שילה) will arrive and to whom will assemble the nations" (Genesis 49:10); what does Shiloh mean? This mention is considered as the Torah's direct allusion to the Messiah who will gather the nations. The gematria of the words יָבֹא שִׁילֹה ("Shiloh will arrive") has the value of 679, which is identical to the gematria of the word משיח ("Messiah"). So, the phrase until Shiloh will arrive can also be read until Messiah.
Zebulon: on the seashores, until Sidon
Issachar: a “strong-boned donkey”, a hard worker
Dan: will revenge his people, unify the tribes of Israel (Dan is ancestor to Judge Samson)
Gad: will recruit a regiment and will retreat
Asher: richness
Naphtali: “a hind let loose who delivers beautiful things”
Joseph: a “charming son”
Benjamin: a “predatory wolf”
Before his death, Jacob asked his sons to bury him in the Cave of Machpelah, near his wife Leah (Genesis 49:33). Joseph took the following initiatives:
And Joseph commanded his servants, the physicians, to embalm his father. And the physicians embalmed Israel. (Genesis 50:2)
Joseph spoke to the house of Pharaoh, saying: "If, please, I found grace in your eyes, please speak to the ears of Pharaoh by saying." (Genesis 50:4)
But these verses raise two questions:
1- Why did Joseph embalm Jacob?
2- Why did Joseph not speak to Pharaoh directly?
When Jacob died, Amenhotep I who had been blessed by Jacob had recently died as well. The year of this Pharaoh's death is disputed: some chronology mentions 1503-4 BCE and others such as Manetho give 1506 BCE, which is the most agreed date. If he had been alive at the time of Jacob's death, there is no doubt that Joseph would have addressed himself to him directly and that the burial in Canaan would have probably been granted.
The reign of Amenhotep I had lasted for about 21 years, during which time he never campaigned against Canaan. His campaigns were limited to the south towards Nubia. His mummy was found and is now displayed at the Cairo Museum. But it is the only royal mummy that has never been unwrapped, due to its very exquisite face mask. The blessing Jacob gave him may have followed him after-life!
So, Jacob died during a change of rule, which is always a critical time with power struggles within royal courts. Joseph would have been uncertain about the dispositions of the new ruler. This explains why Joseph had his father embalmed in case of delay in the decision to grant departure for the burial in Canaan. And there was a delay.
Nefertari survived both her husband and her son Amenhotep I as she died later in 1495 BCE, around the age of 70, during the reign of her grandson Thutmose I. So, when Joseph asked the House of Pharaoh to grant him permission to go to Canaan to bury his father Jacob, he addressed himself to the ears of Pharaoh which was the queen mother, Nefertari, as only her could influence the new Pharaoh to grant permission.The request to leave Egypt for Canaan was however not granted at the time, because of the potential political crisis. Maybe Nefertari was afraid of having Joseph, the most important official, leave Egypt in these uncertain times.
Year 2265 – 1495 BCE – Burial of Jacob in Canaan
When Nefertari died in 1495 BCE, her grandson Thutmose I took over Egypt. Joseph then finally received approval, from Pharaoh himself, to go to Canaan to bury his father:
And Pharaoh said: "Go up, and bury your father, according as he made you swear." And Joseph went up to bury his father; and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his house, and all the elders of the land of Egypt, and all the house of Joseph, and his brethren, and his father's house; only their little ones, and their flocks, and their herds, they left in the land of Goshen. And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen; and it was a very great company. And they came to the threshing-floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, and there they wailed with a very great and sore wailing; and he made mourning for his father seven days. And when the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning in the floor of Atad, they said: "This is a grievous mourning to the Egyptians." Wherefore the name of it was called Abel-Mizraim, which is beyond the Jordan. And his sons did unto him according as he commanded them. For his sons carried him into the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, which Abraham bought with the field, for a possession of a burying-place, of Ephron the Hittite, in front of Mamre. (Genesis 50:6-13)
It is remarkable that the funeral procession to Canaan did not take a direct route, across the Negev desert, to directly head to Hebron, but passed instead to the other side of the Jordan River where they settled a large mourning camp before entering the land of Canaan. There they encountered the descendants of Esau, Jacob’s brother, who lived in that part of the region, called Seir or Edom.
In total, Jacob lived 147 years, but his body was returned to Canaan on his 157th year. The number of years he had lived outside Canaan was the 20 years he had spent in Charan + the 17 years he lived in Egypt (he arrived when he was 130 years old and died when he was 147 years old). So, Jacob lived 110 years in the promised land. In comparison Abraham lived in there 100 years because he left Charan when he was 75 years old and lived for 175 years (he spent less than a year in Egypt). As of Isaac, he was born in Canaan and had always lived there, so God blessed him with a longer life of 180 years.
Thutmose I reigned for about 13 years until 1493 BCE. He had two children whom he married one to another: his heir Thutmose II and his sister, or half-sister, Hatshepsut. Thutmose II reigned for about 14 years, but he had a disease towards the end of his reign, as testified by analysis made on his mummy.
To return to the list of chronological generations from Seder Olam Revisited, click here.
Albert Benhamou
Private Tour Guide in Israel
Adar 5785 - March 2025