What happened in Egypt after Moses left?

Answer 1

The Bible tells us that 600,000 fighting men were among the Israelites who left Egypt, that they took much of Egypt's precious metals, 'borrowed' from their masters, and that an entire army of Egyptians was destroyed in pursuit of the Israelites. Having lost so much of its productive capacity, military power and wealth, Egypt should have faced enormous economic and social strains. Yet, the detailed records available to us for the centuries before and after the time of the Exodus show Egypt continuing to enjoy a period a unprecedented prosperity and in full control of Palestine as the occupying power until around 1200 BCE.

Some claim that the Ipuwer Papyrus is evidence of the problems portrayed in Exodus, most notably because of its statement that "the river is blood" and its frequent references to servants running away, but the Ipuwer Papyrus is far too early, having been written no earlier than the late Twelfth Dynasty (c.1991-1803 BCE). The arguments ignore the many points on which Ipuwercontradicts Exodus, including that its Asiatics are arriving in Egypt rather than leaving.

On the best information available, nothing of note happened to Egypt following the Exodus. In fact, Israel Finkelstein says that over 90 per cent of scholars believe there never was an Exodus from Egypt as described in the Bible.

Answer 2

In the Exodus, Moses brought the Israelites out of the Egyptian slavery under the guidance of God, after God brought plagues upon the Egyptians (Exodus ch.1-12).

After the Israelites left, Egypt was in turmoil for decades. Though Israel was later harassed (Judges ch.3,6 and 10) by its smaller neighbors (Ammon, Moab, Midian), not a peep was heard from Egypt for four hundred years.

Egypt's turmoil is also borne out by the Ipuwer papyrus ("Pestilence is throughout the land....the river is blood") (Professor John van Seters, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology no. 50). The plagues were also described by ancient historians, including Herodotus and Diodorus. The Exodus is mentioned by Strabo, Berosus, Artapanus, Numenius, Justin, and Tacitus.

See also:

Archaeology and the Hebrew Bible

Refuting Bible-criticism