The Bible makes reference to various pharaohs of Egypt. These include unnamed pharaohs in the legends of the Israelite settlement in Egypt, the subsequent oppression of the Israelites, and the period of the Exodus. They also include several later rulers, some of whom can be identified with historical pharaohs.
The passages narrate how Abraham moves to Egypt to escape a period of famine in Canaan. The unnamed pharaoh, through his princes, hears of the beauty of Abraham's wife Sarah who is summoned to meet him. Because of her, Abraham rises in the Pharaoh's favor and acquires livestock and servants. After discovering Sarah's true relationship to Abraham, the pharaoh chooses not to take her as his own wife. He releases her and Abraham and orders them to take their goods and to leave Egypt. The last chapters of the Book of Genesis tell how Joseph, son of Jacob/Israel, is first sold by his brothers into Egyptian slavery but is promoted by the unnamed pharaoh to vizier of Egypt and is given permission to bring his father, his brothers, and their families into Egypt to live in the Land of Goshen.
In the Book of Exodus, the Israelites, the descendants of Jacob's sons, are living in the Land of Goshen, under a new pharaoh. This pharaoh has forgotten all of Joseph's contributions and seeks to oppress the Hebrews. He forces them to work long hours without breaks and issues a decree to kill their newborn male offspring in order to reduce their numbers after concerns are raised by those guarding the Israelite's that their numbers are becoming too great. Moses, a Levite, is saved from this slaughter by his mother who instructs his sister Miriam to keep watch over him after he is placed in a reed basket and floated off on the river Nile. He is discovered and adopted by the Pharaoh's daughter. Miriam approaches the princess and asks if she would like her to fetch an Israelite woman to help nurse the child. She is instructed to do so and subsequently returns with Moses's own mother, who thereby now has the protection of the royal household when raising her own child protecting him from the decree issued by the Pharaoh to kill all newborn male offspring. During his infant years, he is instructed by his natural mother about the customs and history of his people, the Israelites, and is taught all about Jehovah, the God of the Hebrews. Later Moses is returned to Pharaoh's daughter and is from then on raised in the Pharaoh's house according to the Egyptian way of life. Throughout Moses's life as an Egyptian prince, he is aware of his Israelite origins. Possible suggestions for a historical counterpart to Pharaoh include:
Ahmose I : Most ancient writers considered Ahmose I to be the pharaoh of the Exodus.
Akhenaten. In his book Moses and MonotheismSigmund Freud argued that Moses had been an Atenist priest forced to leave Egypt with his followers after Akhenaten's death.
Ramesses II : Also known as Ramesses the Great, he is the most commonly imagined figure in popular culture, being one of the most long standing rulers at the height of Egyptian power, but, as with all other Pharaohs, there is no documentary or archaeological evidence that he chased any slaves fleeing Egypt. Ramesses II's late 13th century BCstela in Beth Shan mentions two conquered peoples who came to "make obeisance to him" in his city of Raameses or Pi-Ramesses but mentions neither the building of the city nor, as some have written, the Israelites or Hapiru. Additionally, the historical Pithom was built in the 7th century BC, during the Saite period.
In, it is narrated that to seal an alliance, the pharaoh of Egypt gave a daughter in marriage to Solomon. The same ruler later captured the city of Gezer and gave it to Solomon as well. No name is given for the pharaoh, and some hypotheses have been proposed:
Siamun : is the most commonly proposed candidate for this role.
Shoshenq I : Edward Lipiński dated the destruction of Gezer to the late 10th century rather than earlier, and suggested that its conqueror was Shoshenq I of the 22nd Dynasty.
and sqq. tell of an invasion of Israel by Shishak, and a subsequent raid of Jerusalem and the Temple of Solomon. He is generally identified with Shoshenq I. says that king Hoshea sent letters to "So, King of Egypt". No pharaoh of this name is known for the time of Hoshea, during which Egypt had three dynasties ruling contemporaneously: 22nd at Tanis, 23rd at Leontopolis, and 24th at Sais. Nevertheless, this ruler is commonly identified with Osorkon IV who ruled from Tanis, though it is possible that the biblical writer has mistaken the king with his city and equated So with Sais, at this time ruled by Tefnakht.
Historical pharaohs: Taharqa, Necho and Apries/Hophra
and mention a Tirhakah, king of Ethiopia, who the Bible says waged war against Sennacherib during the reign of King Hezekiah of Judah. Some scholars have identified him as the pharaoh Taharqa. The events in the biblical account are believed to have taken place in 701 BC, whereas Taharqa came to the throne some ten years later. A number of explanations have been proposed: one being that the title of king in the Biblical text refers to his future royal title, when at the time of this account he was likely only a military commander. Necho II is most likely the pharaoh mentioned in several books of the Bible. mentions his successor Apries or Hophra.
