Egypt and the Bible - Part 2: Old Kingdom Egypt

Egypt has one of the longest and most ancient periods of civilization in the entire world. Even though there are remains in Egypt that date earlier than 3000 BC, the Old Kingdom of Egypt represents the first major period in Egyptian history. This period extends from approximately 2650 BC to 2150 BC. The most prominent remains from this period are the famous pyramids that are still present even until this day.

The very first Bible verse that mentions Egypt is Genesis 12:20: “Now there was a famine in the land; so Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there, for the famine was severe in the land.” The main character in this verse is Abram, later called Abraham. There are differences of opinion on the exact time that Abraham lived, but even the earliest date of Abraham at around 2000 BC was several hundred years later than the date that the large famous pyramids in Egypt were built. That is, Abraham would have seen the pyramids that still remain today!

Today the largest of the pyramids that we see in Giza, Egypt is about 480 feet (147 meters) high. This pyramid remained as the highest man-made structure in the world for several thousand years until modern times. The large pyramid shown below was built by the pharaoh Cheops (or Khufu) at around 2560 BC.

This pyramid was essentially built as a magnificent tomb for the pharaoh. Even today, one can go inside the pyramid and walk up a ramp as shown below. After ascending to the top of the ramp, there is an inner chamber showing what is believed to be the tomb of the pharaoh, also shown below.

A remarkable discovery of a boat was recently made near this pyramid. The parts of a wooden boat were found buried next to this pyramid and reassembled together as shown below. It is believed that the purpose of this boat was to accompany the pharaoh in his journey in the afterlife. But what is remarkable is that this boat was made of wood over 4,500 years old that has survived to this day!

The second largest pyramid was built by Cheops’ son Chephren (or Khafre). This pyramid is slightly smaller than than the pyramid of Cheops, but it is the only pyramid that still retains the original smooth covering of white limestone that covered all of the pyramids at this time. This smooth covering can be seen at the top of the pyramid of Chephren shown below.

The famous large Sphinx nearby was also built by Chephren, as if to guard the area of pyramids and to glorify Chephren who built it. The sphinx was a mythical creature with the body of an animal (usually a lion) and the face of a man, here believed to be Chephren himself.

Apart from Abraham’s visit to Egypt, there is not a lot of interaction between the Old Kingdom of Egypt and the Bible. The following post will continue with the Middle Kingdom of Egypt which does play a significant role with the life of Joseph.