Unlocking the Mysteries of Ancient Egypt: Discoveries in Archaeology and Jewish Tradition

The Torah often provides only the broad strokes of its stories, but crucial details have been preserved with accuracy, passed down through generations, and finally documented in the Midrashim during the late Second Temple period. Some stories were recorded straightforwardly, while others were layered with allegory and deeper meaning.

Midrashic texts illuminate many stories found in the Torah, expanding upon them with additional depth and context. Our past understanding of ancient Egypt was quite limited, but since the deciphering of Egyptian script by Champollion, researchers have been able to unlock an abundance of information from the widespread hieroglyphs across the land.

It's fascinating to see how the accounts preserved in Jewish tradition and later recorded in the Midrash shed light on archaeological findings only discovered in the last century. For example, the Torah mentions, 'Go unto Pharaoh in the morning; behold, he goes out to the water' (Exodus 7:15). The Midrash explains Pharaoh was going to the Nile because he pretended to be divine and claimed not to have bodily functions as humans do. Hashem revealed this to Moses, so he would confront Pharaoh at a vulnerable moment, stripped of his divine facade.

Both the Book of Ezekiel (Chapter 25) and secular records affirm the notion that Pharaohs saw themselves as gods. The ancient Egyptian kings, called Pharaohs, were considered 'gods' living among humans, supposedly the children of 'Ra,' the sun god—hence the name Ramses, meaning 'son of Ra.'

In ancient Egyptian art, we see ceremonial depictions of the king bathing in the river. The king leaves his palace, doors closing behind him, proceeds to a 'sacred pool' connected to the Nile, bathes, and then returns majestically to the palace, crowned anew. However, as uncovered by the renowned researcher Gardiner, this depiction was not of the daily ritual but rather a special ceremony reserved for significant events.

Pharaoh's daily morning excursions to the water were intended for personal needs, remaining secret and hidden from the public. But what about the grand outputs to the pool linked to the Nile? It's connected to Genesis, where Jacob blesses Pharaoh, 'And Jacob blessed Pharaoh' (Genesis 47:10). The Midrash Tanchuma explains this blessing as causing the Nile to rise before Pharaoh. Subsequently, Pharaoh would visit the Nile, which would rise to greet him. This spectacular sign became a desired phenomenon for future Pharaohs who lacked Jacob's blessing, and they sought ways to emulate it.

An ingenious solution was found using 'the law of communicating vessels,' where the Nile's periodic rise would overflow channels, watering distant fields. Within the pool Pharaoh used, a channel was discovered, linking it directly to the Nile. According to this principle, when the Nile rose, so did the pool's waters. During such occurrences, Egyptian sages would conduct the 'Pharaoh bathing ceremony,' much to the delight of the assembled crowds, who watched the water level rise 'in honor of the king.'

The library of Pharaoh further illustrates his unfamiliarity with Hashem. When Moses demanded the Israelites' release, Pharaoh's response was, 'I know not Hashem' (Exodus). This remark, seemingly defiant, might reflect his inundation with names of countless 'gods,' leaving him unaware of Hashem. Not even the Israelites knew this name until Moses' revelation, having only been familiar with 'God Almighty.' Egyptian sources reveal that Pharaoh sometimes reviewed a compendium of 'gods' within a 'House of Life,' akin to an ancient academy. There, magicians, dream interpreters, and physicians cataloged and corresponded with neighboring nations about their deities and attributes. Remarkably, the Midrash describes this process in detail.

The Midrash (Exodus Rabbah 5:14) includes, 'I know not Hashem, nor will I release Israel. He told them to wait while he searched his records, returning to his palace library to peruse each nation's gods. 'I sought his name in my archives and did not find it,' he declared. He gathered the sages (from their 'academy'), asking, 'Have you heard the name of these people's god?' The Midrash continues, recounting the Egyptian sages' analysis of this enigmatic new deity. Once again, Midrashic narratives reveal themselves as more than mere folklore; they are detailed, accurate portrayals of historical events on the fringes of the biblical narrative—stories preserved through meticulous transmission from sage to student over millennia until chronicled by the authors of the Midrash.