03.01.04 1876-1446 B.C. Sojourn in Egypt
In 1850 B.C., a severe famine came upon the land of Canaan. The descendants of Abraham traveled to Egypt, where they remained for the next 430 years. The reason they remained in Egypt for this extended period of time, after God promised both land and descendants, was for three reasons:
- To save them from the famine of Canaan.
- For them to grow in population.
- For them to grow in a cultural incubator, as they were isolated from both the Egyptians and Canaanites.
In Egypt they would grow as God’s Chosen people. The most significant character for the Israelites at this time was Joseph, who was responsible for bringing salvation to not only his extended family, but also to the nation of Egypt. For that reason, he too is seen today as a prophetic picture or “type and shadow” of Christ.[1]
At some point during their stay in Egypt, they became enslaved as the result of a change of monarchs. Later, God, through the leadership of Moses, delivered them out of Egyptian slavery in a miraculous walk through the Red Sea known as the Exodus. The celebration and remembrance of that historical event became known as Passover.
03.01.04.A. ILLUSTRATION FROM AN EGYPTIAN TOMB. Tilling and sowing, a mural from Thebes, Egypt. This shows one of two ways of sowing until the year 1701. Cain, “the tiller” (Gen. 4:2) was the ancestor of those who had livestock (Gen. 4:20).
[1]. See Appendies 2 and 26.