Pharaoh

Narrator: Chris Genthree

Duration: 3min

• 2 min. read • grade level: 10

Pharoah—Abusimbel

This was the regal title of the kings of Egypt, so the mere appellation “Pharaoh” in no way intimates which king is alluded to. Some kings of Egypt are mentioned in scripture without this title, as Shishak, Necho, Hophra, So, and Tirhakah, the last two of whom were Ethiopians. Those specially referred to in the O.T. are:

1. The Pharaoh who took Abram’s wife, Sarai, into his house (about B.C. 1919) (Gen. 12:14-20¹⁴And it came to pass, that, when Abram was come into Egypt, the Egyptians beheld the woman that she was very fair. ¹⁵The princes also of Pharaoh saw her, and commended her before Pharaoh: and the woman was taken into Pharaoh's house. ¹⁶And he entreated Abram well for her sake: and he had sheep, and oxen, and he asses, and menservants, and maidservants, and she asses, and camels. ¹⁷And the Lord plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai Abram's wife. ¹⁸And Pharaoh called Abram, and said, What is this that thou hast done unto me? why didst thou not tell me that she was thy wife? ¹⁹Why saidst thou, She is my sister? so I might have taken her to me to wife: now therefore behold thy wife, take her, and go thy way. ²⁰And Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him: and they sent him away, and his wife, and all that he had. (Genesis 12:14‑20)).

2. The Pharaoh who promoted Joseph (about B.C. 1715), and received into Egypt Jacob and his sons and their families (Gen. 40-50; Acts 7:10, 13¹⁰And delivered him out of all his afflictions, and gave him favor and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house. (Acts 7:10)
¹³And at the second time Joseph was made known to his brethren; and Joseph's kindred was made known unto Pharaoh. (Acts 7:13)).

3. The Pharaoh who knew not Joseph (about B.C. 1635), he oppressed the Israelites, and ordered the male children to be killed, under whom Moses was born; and whose daughter adopted him as her son (Ex. 1:4⁴Dan, and Naphtali, Gad, and Asher. (Exodus 1:4)).

4. The Pharaoh from whom Moses fled when he was grown up (about B.C. 1531) (Ex. 2).

5. The Pharaoh of the Exodus (about B.C. 1491). See EGYPT and PLAGUES.

After a period of about 500 years scripture refers to

6. The Pharaoh whose daughter Bithiah was married to Mered, of the tribe of Judah (1 Chron. 4:18¹⁸And his wife Jehudijah bare Jered the father of Gedor, and Heber the father of Socho, and Jekuthiel the father of Zanoah. And these are the sons of Bithiah the daughter of Pharaoh, which Mered took. (1 Chronicles 4:18)).

7. The Pharaoh whose daughter was married to Solomon (about B.C. 1014) (1 Kings 3:1; 7:8¹And Solomon made affinity with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh's daughter, and brought her into the city of David, until he had made an end of building his own house, and the house of the Lord, and the wall of Jerusalem round about. (1 Kings 3:1)
⁸And his house where he dwelt had another court within the porch, which was of the like work. Solomon made also an house for Pharaoh's daughter, whom he had taken to wife, like unto this porch. (1 Kings 7:8)). This Pharaoh captured and burnt the city of Gezer in Canaan, and gave the site to his daughter (1 Kings 9:16¹⁶For Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up, and taken Gezer, and burnt it with fire, and slain the Canaanites that dwelt in the city, and given it for a present unto his daughter, Solomon's wife. (1 Kings 9:16)).

8. The Pharaoh who received Hadad when he fled from Solomon, and gave him his sister-in-law to wife (about A.D. 984) (1 Kings 11:14-22¹⁴And the Lord stirred up an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite: he was of the king's seed in Edom. ¹⁵For it came to pass, when David was in Edom, and Joab the captain of the host was gone up to bury the slain, after he had smitten every male in Edom; ¹⁶(For six months did Joab remain there with all Israel, until he had cut off every male in Edom:) ¹⁷That Hadad fled, he and certain Edomites of his father's servants with him, to go into Egypt; Hadad being yet a little child. ¹⁸And they arose out of Midian, and came to Paran: and they took men with them out of Paran, and they came to Egypt, unto Pharaoh king of Egypt; which gave him an house, and appointed him victuals, and gave him land. ¹⁹And Hadad found great favor in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him to wife the sister of his own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen. ²⁰And the sister of Tahpenes bare him Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh's house: and Genubath was in Pharaoh's household among the sons of Pharaoh. ²¹And when Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the host was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, Let me depart, that I may go to mine own country. ²²Then Pharaoh said unto him, But what hast thou lacked with me, that, behold, thou seekest to go to thine own country? And he answered, Nothing: howbeit let me go in any wise. (1 Kings 11:14‑22)).

The title “Pharaoh” is judged by Professor Sayce to signify “Great House” [in which all men live], or somewhat similar to the “Sublime Porte,” or Gate. Each king had a title of honor as well as his personal name: the titles were such as “The Sun, Lord of Glory”; “The Sun, Lord of Truth,” and so forth. Pharaoh Necho’s name is found on the monuments as here given.

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