Biblical Hebrew Forum

[JimStinehart AT aol.com]

The two Egyptian officials in chapter 40 of Genesis whom Pharaoh suspects
of some terrible crime are the Chief Cupbearer and the Chief “Baker”/)PH.
The Chief Baker is then found guilty of some unspecified, terrible crime by
Pharaoh (just as Joseph had correctly predicted), and the “Baker” is
impaled/TLH.  Genesis 40:  20-22  [Robert Alter sees TLH as being properly
translated as “impaled” in this particular context.  “Genesis” at p. 232.]

Neither of these officials was involved with foreign affairs, so it is
unlikely that they were involved with treason, in the sense of dealing with 
Egypt
’s foreign enemies.  No, this must be a domestic situation.  But Egyptian
domestic officials were almost never impaled!  Heavens.  What’s going on
here?  Egyptian domestic officials might routinely be guilty of embezzlement,
but they would not get impaled for that.  No way.  And why would the Hebrew
author of the Patriarchal narratives be interested in a routine Egyptian
official embezzlement case anyway?  No, there’s something special going on 
here.
If we focus on the Hebrew words TLH and )PH [especially )PH], we may be
able to solve this age-old mystery.

The Egyptian officer who is exonerated bears the title “Cupbearer”.  That
title is no problem.  It is a well-known title for an officer of Pharaoh.
For example, Parennefer was Pharaoh’s Cupbearer.
_http://euler.slu.edu/~bart/egyptianhtml/kings%20and%20Queens/Akhenatenweb.h
tm_
(http://euler.slu.edu/~bart/egyptianhtml/kings%20and%20Queens/Akhenatenweb.htm)
   Parennefer seems to have a high position under a subsequent
pharaoh as well.  Certainly Parennefer did not try to assassinate Pharaoh.

But what about Pharaoh’s Chief “Baker”/)PH?  The English word “Baker” may
be a bit misleading here.  )PH can mean a cook or baker, who either bakes
bread or who bakes meat.  )PH is also an Egyptian measure of grain.  So
Pharaoh’s Chief “Baker” may be the official who was in charge of both the
granaries, and also Pharaoh’s cattle, which were used to provide Pharaoh with
baked meat.  [At Genesis 40: 19, quoted below, birds which had initially been
eating what the Baker produced then turn to eating the Baker’s own flesh.  KJV
sees this as implying, in context, that what the “Baker” produced for
Pharaoh was not only bread, but also “bakemeats”.  Genesis 40: 17 per KJV.]

Consider now Panehsy.  Panehsy was Pharaoh’s “Overseer of the double
granary” and Pharaoh’s “Overseer of cattle”.  [Same cite as above.]  In
Biblical Hebrew those titles might be abbreviated as )PH, especially if the 
Hebrew
author of the Patriarchal narratives is being a bit circumspect in
delicately referring, indirectly, to an attempted assassination of Pharaoh.

Historically, was Panehsy impaled for trying to assassinate Pharaoh?  Is
Panehsy the historical “Baker” in Genesis?  In secular history, this
particular Panehsy is never heard from again after Year 12 of Pharaoh’s reign 
(which
lasted to Year 17), even though Panehsy was one of Pharaoh’s highest, most
trusted, and most honored domestic officials through Year 12.  In secular
history, Pharaoh’s own publicly-proclaimed words in this regard are
circumspect, but they seem to suggest that something truly horrific had 
happened:  “it
was worse than those things heard by any kings who had ever assumed the
white crown [of Egypt]”.

Panehsy had previously been one of Pharaoh’s most trusted officials.  But
then suddenly, in Year 13, all work on all of the nobles’ rock tombs
(including but not limited to Panehsy’s rock tomb) was permanently stopped.
http://www.osirisnet.net/tombes/amarna/ay_amarna/e_ay_amarna.htm
Why?  Had something truly terrible happened?  Had one of Pharaoh’s most
trusted officials tried to kill Pharaoh?

As to Biblical implications, we should at this point ask:  Is the first
Hebrew portrayed in Panehsy’s rock tomb?  Did the first Hebrew discover 
Panehsy’
s diabolical plot to assassinate Pharaoh?  Is Joseph representing this
historical phenomenon in the Patriarchal narratives?

In Genesis, Pharaoh praises Joseph’s divinely-based insight to the hilt:  “
And Pharaoh said unto his servants:  “'Can we find such a one as this
[Joseph], a man in whom the spirit of God is?'”  Genesis 41: 38

But at this point, there is no proof yet that there will be 7 years of
feast, to be followed by 7 years of famine, as Joseph has just now predicted.
Rather, Pharaoh must in fact be reacting largely to Joseph’s ability to
discern that one of Pharaoh’s top two Egyptian domestic officers had been 
part of
a nefarious inside plot to assassinate Pharaoh:

“…[Joseph said to Pharaoh’s Chief Baker:  ]‘[W]ithin yet three days shall
Pharaoh lift up thy head from off thee, and shall hang thee on a tree [or,
per JPS1985:  “impale you on a pole”];  and the birds shall eat thy flesh
from off thee.'” Genesis 40: 19

Reading between the lines, the implication may be that, historically,
Pharaoh honored the first Hebrew for his ability to discern a terrible plot by
one of Pharaoh’s top two domestic Egyptian officers to assassinate Pharaoh.

Pharaoh puts a “gold chain about [Joseph’s’] neck” (Genesis 41: 42), just
as this Pharaoh is very famous for uniquely doing regarding his top
officials.
_http://www.planetware.com/egypt/sheikh-abd-el-qurna-tomb-of-ramose-egy-qena-tomram.htm_
(http://www.planetware.com/egypt/sheikh-abd-el-qurna-tomb-of-ramose-egy-qena-tomram.htm)
   Joseph’s main function then is that Joseph “
stored the grain in the cities” (Genesis 41: 48).  Of course, the title “
Baker”/)PH was now anathema to this Pharaoh.  But note that Joseph has
effectively taken over the office, vacant for the last two years, of 
“Overseer of
the double granary”.  Joseph has replaced the dastardly Baker!  It all makes
perfect sense, both within the context of the storyline of the Patriarchal
narratives, and based on secular history as well.

If the Patriarchal narratives are accurate secular history, rather than
being fiction, then in addition to any possible portrait of the first Hebrew 
in
Panehsy’s rock tomb (unfortunately not available on the Internet or other
public forum, but it’s there in that semi-inaccessible tomb to this very
day), we would rightly expect the above Pharaoh to have commissioned a fine
portrait of the first Hebrew, in honor of the first Hebrew’s help in 
thwarting a
terrible plot to assassinate Pharaoh.  Does there exist (though not
generally recognized as such) a magnificent pharaonic portrait of the first 
Hebrew,
perhaps on public display at the Cairo Museum?  If it’s at the Cairo Museum
(2nd floor, in a featured display case), it’s definitely on the Internet.
Shall we take a look at a magnificent, positive pharaonic portrait of what
may be the very first Hebrew, and decide for ourselves?  The Bible itself
tells us exactly what Hebrew wisemen looked like (especially in Leviticus), as
opposed to other Semitic peoples from Canaan.  Based on that specific
Biblical testimony, we should be able to come to our own judgment as to 
whether or
not this is an extremely rare pharaonic portrait of an early Hebrew (as
opposed to the commonplace Egyptian portraits of Amorite guestworkers or
non-Hebrew foreign captives from Canaan, who in fact are readily 
distinguishable
from Hebrews by appearance, if one knows what to look for, based on Biblical
testimony).

If we can understand the word )PH [as it applies to a top official of
Pharaoh], we can understand the Patriarchal narratives.  The contemporary
portrait of the first Hebrew (a magnificent, positive portrait commissioned by
Pharaoh himself) that we will see in my next post will help confirm this
analysis.

Jim Stinehart
Evanston, Illinois