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nature. As instances of thistendency among Israel, we remember the worship of the
golden calf, (Exodus 32) the warningagainst sacrificing unto the "he-goat," (Leviticus
17:7) and the express admonition, even of Joshua(24:14), to "put away the strange
gods" which their "fathers served on the other side of the flood."To the same effect is
the retrospect in Ezekiel 20:5-8, in Amos 5:26, and in the address of Stephenbefore
the Jewish council. (Acts 7:43) Yet it is remarkable that, although the forms of
idolatry herereferred to were all practiced in Egypt, there is good reason for believing
that they were not, so tospeak, strictly Egyptian in their origin, but rather foreign rites
imported, probably from thePhoenicians. Such then was the political, social, and
religious state of Israel, when, their longpeace was suddenly interrupted by tidings that
Aahmes I. was successfully making war against theforeign dynasty of the Hyksos.
Advancing victoriously, he at last took Avaris, the great strongholdand capital of the
Shepherd kings, and expelled them and their adherents from the country. He
thencontinued his progress to the borders of Canaan, taking many cities by storm. The
memorials of thedisastrous rule of the Shepherds were speedily removed; the worship
which they had introduced wasabolished, and the old Egyptian forms were restored. A
reign of great prosperity now ensued.
Although there is difference of opinion on the subject, yet every likelihood (as shown
in the previouschapter) seems to attach to the belief that the accession of this new
dynasty was the period when the"king arose who knew not Joseph."7 For reasons
already explained, one of the first and mostimportant measures of his internal
administration would necessarily be to weaken the power of theforeign settlers, who
were in such vast majority in the border province of Goshen. He dreaded lest,in case
of foreign war, they might join the enemy, "and get them up out of the land." The
latterapprehension also shows that the king must have known the circumstances under
which they had atfirst settled in the land. Again, from the monuments of Egypt, it
appears to have been at all times thepolicy of the Pharaohs to bring an immense
number of captives into Egypt, and to retain them therein servitude for forced labors.
A somewhat similar policy was now pursued towards Israel. Althoughallowed to
retain their flocks and fields, they were set to hard labor for the king.
Egyptian"taskmasters" were appointed over them, who "made the children of Israel
serve with rigor," and did"afflict them with their burdens." A remarkable illustration
of this is seen in one of the Egyptianmonuments. Laborers, who are evidently
foreigners, and supposed to represent Israelites, areengaged in the various stages of
brickmaking, under the superintendence of four Egyptians, two ofwhom are
apparently superior officers, while the other two are overseers armed with heavy
lashes,who cry out, "Work without fainting!" The work in which the Israelites were
employed consisted ofbrickmaking, artificial irrigation of the land, including,
probably, also the digging or restoring ofcanals, and the building, or restoring and
enlarging of the two "magazine-cities"8 of Pithom andRaamses, whose localities have
been traced in Goshen, and which served as depots both forcommerce and for the
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