The Pharaoh of the Exodus

the king of Egypt

Who was The Pharaoh of the Exodus?

King of Egypt in the time of Moses. The Bible does not say which pharaoh he was or what his name was. Exodus 5:1-4
Moses and Aaron asked him to let Israel go. He answered that he did not know the Lord. Exodus 5:1-2
After the plagues, he let the people go. Then he changed his mind and pursued them to the sea. Exodus 12:31; Exodus 14:5-9

The Bible does not say which pharaoh he was. The king who tried to kill Moses when he was young had died earlier (Ex 2, 15.23).

The name: “Pharaoh” is not a name: it was the title of the king of Egypt. The Bible does not say what this one was called. Exodus 5:1-4
Also called: The king of Egypt Exodus 5:4
From: From Egypt Exodus 5:4
Occupation: King of Egypt Exodus 5:4

The Pharaoh of the Exodus, an artistic recreation

What the Bible says

Exodus 5:1-4

¹After these things Moses and Aaron went in, and said to Pharao: Thus saith the Lord God of Israel: Let my people go that they may sacrifice to me in the desert. ²But he answered: Who is the Lord, that I should hear his voice, and let Israel go? I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go. ³And they said: The God of the Hebrews hath called us, to go three days’ journey into the wilderness and to sacrifice to the Lord our God: lest a pestilence or the sword fall upon us. ⁴The king of Egypt said to them: Why do you Moses and Aaron draw off the people from their works? Get you gone to your burdens.

Exodus 5:1-2

¹After these things Moses and Aaron went in, and said to Pharao: Thus saith the Lord God of Israel: Let my people go that they may sacrifice to me in the desert. ²But he answered: Who is the Lord, that I should hear his voice, and let Israel go? I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go.

Exodus 12:31; Exodus 14:5-9

And Pharao calling Moses and Aaron, in the night, said: Arise and go forth from among my people, you and the children of Israel: go, sacrifice to the Lord as you say.

Douay-Rheims Bible (Challoner revision), public domain.

The path of The Pharaoh of the Exodus

Before Jesus. An earlier king had set the Israelites to work as slaves. That king died, and the slavery went on. Exodus 1:8-11; Exodus 2:23
Before Jesus. Moses and Aaron asked him to let the people go to celebrate a feast to the Lord. He answered that he did not know the Lord. Exodus 5:1-2
Before Jesus. That same day he ordered that the Israelites gather their own straw and still make the same number of bricks. Exodus 5:6-8
With Jesus. God sent plagues on Egypt. Several times Pharaoh promised to let the people go, and then changed his mind. Exodus 8:24-28
With Jesus. Twice he admitted that he had sinned, and asked Moses and Aaron to pray to the Lord for him. Exodus 9:27-28; Exodus 10:16-17
With Jesus. His own servants asked him to let the Israelites go, because Egypt was being ruined. Exodus 10:7
With Jesus. On the night of the last plague, he called Moses and Aaron and told them to leave with their flocks. Exodus 12:30-32
Afterward. Then he changed his mind and pursued them with his army. The sea flowed back and covered his chariots and his horsemen. Exodus 14:5-9, 28

Words of The Pharaoh of the Exodus

“Who is the Lord, that I should hear his voice, and let Israel go? I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go.” Exodus 5:2

When Moses and Aaron first asked him to let the people go.

“I have sinned this time also; the Lord is just: I and my people are wicked.” Exodus 9:27

During the plague of hail, when he sent for Moses and Aaron.

“I have sinned against the Lord your God, and against you. But now forgive me my sin this time also, and pray to the Lord your God, that he take away from me this death.” Exodus 10:16-17

During the plague of locusts.

“Arise and go forth from among my people, you and the children of Israel: go, sacrifice to the Lord as you say. Your sheep and herds take along with you, as you demanded, and departing, bless me.” Exodus 12:31-32

On the night of the last plague, when the firstborn sons of Egypt died.

What they were like

Obstinate: many times he refused to listen to Moses and Aaron. Exodus 7:13; Exodus 8:28
He kept changing his mind: he would promise to let the people go and then refuse. Exodus 8:24-28

Not to be confused with

The pharaoh who made Joseph, the son of Jacob, governor was a different king, from much earlier. Later a king came who did not know Joseph. Genesis 41:41; Exodus 1:8
That order was given by an earlier king. The Bible tells that a king of Egypt died while Moses was living in Midian. Exodus 1:22; Exodus 2:23

What people ask

What was the name of the pharaoh of the Exodus?

The Bible does not say. “Pharaoh” was the title of the king of Egypt, not his name. Exodus 5:1-4

Did God harden Pharaoh’s heart?

The Bible says both things: that Pharaoh became obstinate and that the Lord made him obstinate. A NAB note explains that God allowed Pharaoh to resist. Exodus 8:11; Exodus 9:12; NAB note on Ex 4, 21

Did Pharaoh drown in the sea?

Exodus tells that the water covered the chariots and horsemen of his army. A psalm says that God swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea. Exodus 14:28; Psalms 136:15

Why wouldn’t he let Israel go?

At first he said he did not know the Lord. He also said that the Israelites were lazy and that he would not let them rest. Exodus 5:2, 5, 8

What does the New Testament say about Pharaoh?

Saint Paul quotes what God said to him: he raised him up to show his power in him. That way his name would be known in all the earth. Romans 9:17

His hardness He said he did not know the Lord and that he would not let Israel go. Exodus 5:2 He made the Israelites’ work harder: they had to find…

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Who The Pharaoh of the Exodus is connected to

Moses · face to face
Aaron · the staff before Pharaoh

More people

All the people of the Bible · The Twelve Apostles · Women of the Bible

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