Biblical Hebrew Forum

[JimStinehart AT aol.com]

Joel Salomon wrote:  “My guess would be that TLH is closer to “crucified”
or “gibbeted” than “hanged” (by the neck) or “impaled”.  Note also that
the Torah mandates the hanging (TLH) of the body after some executions.”

Genesis tells us that )PH was executed/TLH for some unspecified, terrible
crime.

)PH is sometimes found in the Bible as the spelling of an Egyptian measure
of grain, for example at Leviticus 5: 11.  The old-style, defective spelling
of )YPH would have been )PH in any event.  So )PH seems redolent of an
Egyptian measure of grain.

Joseph as a top Egyptian official is not literally called )PH, but Joseph
is clearly in charge of Egyptian grain.  “And he gathered up all the food of
the seven years which were in the land of Egypt, and laid up the food in the
cities;  the food of the field, which was round about every city, laid he
up in the same.  And Joseph laid up corn as the sand of the sea, very much,
until they left off numbering;  for it was without number.”  Genesis 41: 48-49

It seems clear that Joseph has replaced the old )PH [usually translated in
English as “Baker”, but in fact likely referring to the top Egyptian
official who was in charge of storing and distributing grain in Egypt].  )PH 
seems
to be Hebrew shorthand for the lengthy Egyptian official title (held
historically by Panehsy at Amarna):  “Overseer of the double granary”.

Note that before Joseph does anything at all regarding Egypt’s grain, and
before any aspect of Joseph’s interpretation of Pharaoh’s dreams has been
confirmed, Pharaoh grandly announces to one and all that Joseph, an unknown
Hebrew, is the ideal person to make decisions for Egypt on Pharaoh’s behalf:  
“
And the thing [DBR] was good in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of all
his servants.  And Pharaoh said unto his servants:  'Can we find such a one
as this, a man in whom the spirit of God is?'  And Pharaoh said unto
Joseph:  'Forasmuch as God hath shown thee all this, there is none so 
discreet and
wise as thou.  Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word
shall all my people be ruled;  only in the throne will I be greater than 
thou.'
 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph:  'See, I have set thee over all the land of
Egypt.'  And Pharaoh took off his signet ring from his hand, and put it upon
Joseph's hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold
chain about his neck.  [Putting a gold chain around the neck of a top Egyptian
official is a key trademark of this Pharaoh.]  And he made him to ride in
the second chariot which he had….”  [This Pharaoh’s main activity was
grandly riding his chariot through town on a daily basis.]  Genesis 41: 37-43

[This Pharaoh seems to have different religious views than all other
pharaohs in the Bible and in secular history.  The pharaoh of the Exodus 
says, not
surprisingly:  “I do not know YHWH….”  Exodus 5: 2  But this Pharaoh, by
sharp contrast, characterizes the Hebrew Joseph as being “a man in whom the
spirit of God is… there is none so discreet and wise as thou.”.  And this
Pharaoh later sends  a-l-l  his top Egyptian officials all the long way to
Canaan for the funeral of Hebrew Patriarch #3 Jacob/“Israel”.  Genesis 50: 7
The religious orientation of this Pharaoh seems totally different than that
of all other pharaohs.  No wonder )PH [the “Baker”] tried to assassinate
this iconoclastic Pharaoh!]

What is the “thing”/DBR that “was good in the eyes of Pharaoh”?  Note in
this connection what Pharaoh’s honest official had told Pharaoh about
Joseph:  “‘And there was with us there a young man, a Hebrew, servant to the
captain of the guard [+BX/killer/slaughterer/executioner, with the captain of
the guard, namely Joseph’s Egyptian master, possibly being the literal e
xecutioner of the Baker];  and we told him, and he interpreted to us our 
dreams;
to each man according to his dream he did interpret.  And it came to pass,
as he interpreted to us, so it was:  I was restored unto mine office, and he
[the Baker/)PH] was hanged [or:  “impaled”/gibbeted/crucified/TLH].'”
Genesis 41: 12-13

It seems to me that what Pharaoh really likes is the fact that Joseph had
correctly discerned the Baker’s nefarious deed.  In my view, the historical
reality [slightly disguised in the text] is that the first Hebrew had helped
uncover a terrible plot by the “Baker” Panehsy to assassinate Pharaoh.
T-h-a-t  is why (in my view) Pharaoh historically had such a high opinion of
the first Hebrew (for a short while).

If the Patriarchal narratives are accurate history (instead of being
fiction, as scholars would have it), and Pharaoh indeed had such a terribly 
high
opinion of either the first Hebrew (my view) or of Joseph (the traditional
view), then wouldn’t we rightly expect Pharaoh to commission a fine portrait
of this hitherto unknown Hebrew?

The historical accuracy of the Patriarchal narratives may be largely
confirmed by the magnificent portrait of an early Hebrew that was 
commissioned by
Pharaoh, and that (although unrecognized as such) is on public display at
the Cairo Museum.  Near the end of my prior post, I gave two links to pictures
on the Internet of that portrait.  [For anyone who happened to miss those
two links, I will set them forth again at the end of this post.]  If that is
indeed a positive portrait of an early Hebrew, then that is strong
corroboration of the historical accuracy of the Patriarchal narratives.  
Egyptians
usually had a very low opinion of Asiatics from Canaan or Syria!  As to
ordinary Egyptians (unlike this peculiar Pharaoh), here is their opinion of
tent-dwelling herders of sheep in Canaan:  “‘…every shepherd is an abomination
unto the Egyptians.'”  Genesis 46: 34  But the Patriarchal narratives are
telling us that an early Hebrew (who formerly was a tent-dwelling shepherd in
Canaan) performed great service for Pharaoh, and was for a time greatly
admired by Pharaoh.

One key to appreciating the stunning historical accuracy of the Patriarchal
narratives in a Late Bronze Age historical context is that the
aforementioned magnificent Egyptian portrait of an early Hebrew is fully 
consistent with
what chapter 41 of Genesis says.  Based on the text of the Patriarchal
narratives, we would fully expect Pharaoh to have commissioned a grand 
portrait
of that early Hebrew, and that indeed appears to be the case.  No other
Pharaoh would historically have had such a high opinion of an Asiatic, who had
been a tent-dwelling shepherd in Canaan.  And no polytheistic Pharaoh would
have so greatly admired not only the Hebrew Joseph, but also Hebrew Patriarch
#3 Jacob/“Israel” (or, less literally, the first Hebrew).  In 3,000 years
of pharaonic Egypt, no other Pharaoh was remotely like this Pharaoh!

[Here are the links again to what I see as being a magnificent, positive
Egyptian portrait of an early Hebrew (who in my controversial view is the
first Hebrew/the historical Hebrew founder of Judaism), per chapter 41 of
Genesis.]

_http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/enemies.htm_
(http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/enemies.htm)   [The second picture 
down, with the Hebrew
being the figure on the left.]

_http://www.ashmolean.museum/perl/gi-ca-qmakedeta.pl?sid=67.37.187.194-11197
19915&qno=1&dfnam=050uu-p0341_
(http://www.ashmolean.museum/perl/gi-ca-qmakedeta.pl?sid=67.37.187.194-1119719915&qno=1&dfnam=050uu-p0341)

Jim Stinehart
Evanston, Illinois