The great pyramids of Egypt were built by the kings of the fourth dynasty, during the third millennium 33.c. The Hebrews, or children of Israel, are the descendants of the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, or Israel, who lived in the early part of the second millennium B.C. It was under Jacob that the Israelites went into Egypt, a number of centuries after the building of the pyramids. So it will be seen that Israel could have had no part in the building of the pyramids, but instead these structures were already old upon their arrival in Egypt.
The Bible declares that the Israelites "built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses." Ex. I :II. This took place about the middle of the second millenium B.C., and had no connection with the building of the pyramids.
The Scriptural record states that Solomon began the construction of the Temple in the fourth year of his reign, in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt." r Kings 6 :T. The founding of the Temple took place in the year 966 B.C., which would give us the date 1446 B.C. as the year of the Exodus, or fifteen centuries before the crucifixion (The Great Controversy, p. 399). It was 430 years before the time that Abraham entered the land of Canaan, or 1876 B.C. (Ex. 12:40; Gal. 3:16, 17.) Four centuries before the Exodus, God gave Abraham a vision of Israel's coming oppression in Egypt's furnace of affliction. (Gen. 15:13; Patriarchs and Prophets, pp. 267, 282.)
Jacob lived in Palestine seventeen centuries before Christ (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 204), and according to the chronology of Genesis, went down into Egypt to sojourn 215 years after Abraham's entry into Canaan, or 1661 B.C. This would give us the dates 1661- 1446 B.C. as the period of Israel's sojourn in Egypt.
EDWIN R. THIELE. [Dean, Department of Religion, E.M.C.]
