480 Years From Exodus to Temple?

Creation vs. Evolution: 480 Years From Exodus to Temple? · Φιλολoγικά / Philologica: Against a Late Date of the Exodus · A Reason Against Egyptian Records

I'll give you three lines from Exodus to death of King David, with Bible verses.

In each case, I will repeat the number of years in the verse, and I will after the first in each after the number in the verse give also the cumulating total.

A mainly Old Testament. But citing Saul's reign after NT, Acts 13

Exodus to Joshua 40
Joshua 30 70
Juda's war ?
"And all that generation was gathered to their fathers: and there arose others that knew not the Lord, and the works which he had done for Israel." ?
"And the Lord being angry with Israel, delivered them into the hands of Chusan Rasathaim king of Mesopotamia, and they served him eight years." 8 78
Othoniel 40 118
Eglon of Moab 18 136
"And Moab was humbled that day under the hand of Israel: and the land rested eighty years." 80 216
After Sisera: " And the land rested for forty years." 40 256
"And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the Lord: and he delivered them into the hand of Madian seven years." 7 263
"But Madian was humbled before the children of Israel, neither could they any more lift up their beads: but the land rested for forty years, while Gedeon presided." 40 303
"And he judged Israel three and twenty years, and he died and was buried in Samir." 23 326
"To him succeeded Jair the Galaadite, who judged Israel for two and twenty years." 22 348
"And they were afflicted, and grievously oppressed for eighteen years, all they that dwelt beyond the Jordan in the land of the Amorrhite, who is in Galaad:" 18 366
"And Jephte the Galaadite judged Israel six years: and he died, and was buried in his city of Galaad." 6 372
"He had thirty sons, and as many daughters, whom he sent abroad, and gave to husbands, and took wives for his sons of the same number, bringing them into his house. And he judged Israel seven years:" 7 379
"To him succeeded Ahialon a Zabulonite: and he judged Israel ten years:" 10 389
"And he had forty sons, and of them thirty grandsons, mounted upon seventy ass colts, and he judged Israel eight years:" 8 397
"And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord: and he delivered them into the hands of the Philistines forty years." 40 437
"And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years." 20 not added, still 437
"And his brethren and all his kindred, going down took his body, and buried it between Saraa and Esthaol in the buryingplace of his father Manue: and he judged Israel twenty years." 20 457
"And it came to pass, that from the day the ark of the Lord abode in Cariathiarim days were multiplied, (for it was now the twentieth year,) and all the house of Israel rested following the Lord." 20 477
"And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life:" ?
"And after that they desired a king: and God gave them Saul the son of Cis, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, forty years." 40 527
David 40 567

Note the incapacity to add some of the years, as they are not given.

B, alternatively Old Testament only, citing Saul's reign after I Kings (I Samuel) 13 (and prior years are as in previous)

"Saul was a child of one year when he began to reign, and he reigned two years over Israel." 2 479
David 40 519

BUT, against this is Challoner:

[1] "Of one year": That is, he was good and like an innocent child, and for two years continued in that innocency.

C, summary from NT

Acts 13
"And for the space of forty years endured their manners in the desert." 40
"As it were, after four hundred and fifty years: and after these things, he gave unto them judges, until Samuel the prophet." 450 490
"And after that they desired a king: and God gave them Saul the son of Cis, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, forty years." 40 530
[David not mentioned, but as we know 40 570]

Conclusion

First two Bible verses with their comments:

III Kings (I Kings) 6:1

And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel came out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of the reign of Solomon over Israel, in the month Zio (the same is the second month), he began to build a house to the Lord.

Ellopos:
And it came to pass in the four hundred and fortieth year after the departure of the children of Israel out of Egypt, in the fourth year and second month of the reign of king Solomon over Israel

Here is the Haydock Comment:

Ver. 1. Eightieth year. This chronology meets with the approbation of most people. See Usher. C. xii. Some, however, find a difficulty in reconciling it with Acts xiii. 20, which seems to attribute 450 years to the government of the judges. C.

Sept. have 440; Josephus 592, though Ruffin neglects the 90 in his version; Petau 520; Severus 582; Clem.Alex. 566; Vossius 380; Cano 590; Serarius 680.

Houbigant would read 350 in the Acts. But Capellus would add 200 here, &c. H.

Second of the sacred year, corresponding with our April. Syr. Chaldee styles it "of the splendour of flowers." M.

The Hurons, and other nations of America, call this "the moon of plants;" the Flemings, "the month for mowing," Grasmaand. Our Saxon ancestors gave descriptive names to the months. See Verstegan. H.

At first, the Hebrews only described the months by their order; "first, second," &c. In Solomon's time we begin to find other names, taken from the Phenicians, (Scalig.) Chaldees, (Grot.) or Egyptians. Hardouin, A. 2993.

After the captivity, at least, the Chaldee names were adopted; (H.) 1. Nisan; 2. Jar; 3. Sivan; 4. Tammus; 5. Ab; 6. Elul; 7. Tisri; 8. Marshevan; 9. Casleu; 10. Thebet; 11. Schebet; 12. Adar; (C.) 13. Veadar, the intercalary month, when requisite, according to the lunar system, which was not perhaps yet adopted. Each of these months generally corresponded with two of ours; Nisan with the end of March and the beginning of April, &c. Sept. here take no notice of Zio, though they do, v. 37. H.

The temple was begun on Monday, May 21, A. 2992. Usher.

It was finished A. 3000, or in the following year, when it was solemnly dedicated. Button.

Now, what about Acts 13, again?

Ver. 20. Chronology only gives about 350 years from the entrance into the land of promise to the end of Samuel's judicial government, who was the last of the judges. V.

Well, I don't see how they get that result.

My practical conclusion is, I accept the work of St. Jerome, preserved in Historia Scholastica, which has the anointing of King David in 1032 BC and the Exodus in 1510 BC.

The IX table, see New Tables, from Fall of Troy to Temple, was built on presuming the number of years in III Kings 6:1 correct, and presuming the temple completed 50 years after the coronation of King David, that is, with an Exodus in 1510, the temple should be ready in 1032 (as Syncellus had it) and King David anointed in 1082. But with archaeological material from beams found in the temple mound (I think I lost the article that was my reference), dated to 960 BC, this was a key to pmC being above 100 in 1032.

However, it seems I was simply wrong to take 480 at face value. I should have accepted King David anointed in 1032, temple completed in 982 and the distance in years being 528.

Perhaps the solution could be that 528 years are counted as 480, if the subservience to Chusan Rasathaim (8 years) and to Philistines (40 years) are not counted, like years in which one could not celebrate Pesakh not counting as real years or even not allowing Cohanim to sit down and count another year.

Hans Georg Lundahl
Paris
St. Tatiana of Rome
12.I.2023

Romae sanctae Tatianae Martyris, quae, sub Alexandro Imperatore, uncis atque pectinibus laniata, bestiis exposita et in ignem missa, sed nil laesa, demum, gladio percussa, migravit in caelum.