The campaign of Shishak, Pharaoh of Egypt, into Judah stands as one of the most significant synchronisms between the biblical record and Egyptian inscriptions. This event is recorded in 1 Kings 14:25–28 and 2 Chronicles 12:1–12, describing a military incursion into the Southern Kingdom during the reign of Rehoboam, son of Solomon. The attack occurred in the fifth year of Rehoboam’s reign, which, based on literal Bible chronology, took place in 926 B.C.E. This historical episode marks the first explicitly documented intersection between the biblical narrative of the divided monarchy and Egyptian monumental records, notably the reliefs and inscriptions at the Karnak Temple of Amun in Thebes. By examining the biblical account, the Egyptian inscriptions, and archaeological data, we can confirm the historical reality of this campaign and evaluate its implications for the political and military landscape of the early Iron Age II period.

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1. Biblical Chronology and Historical Context
According to the literal Bible chronology, Solomon began to reign in 1037 B.C.E. and ruled for forty years (1 Kings 11:42), ending in 997 B.C.E. Rehoboam, his son, ascended the throne immediately thereafter. The kingdom divided in the first year of Rehoboam’s reign (997 B.C.E.) when Jeroboam I, an official under Solomon, took ten tribes and established the Northern Kingdom of Israel (1 Kings 12:16–20). Rehoboam retained Judah, Benjamin, and the Levites who remained faithful to temple worship in Jerusalem.

The fifth year of Rehoboam’s reign (1 Kings 14:25) corresponds to 926 B.C.E. In this year, Shishak (identified with Pharaoh Shoshenq I of Egypt’s 22nd Dynasty) invaded Judah with a massive force. The biblical account emphasizes that this invasion was a direct judgment from Jehovah for the unfaithfulness of Rehoboam and the people, who had forsaken the Law (2 Chronicles 12:1–2).

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2. Biblical Account of Shishak’s Campaign
The Scriptures describe the campaign with notable brevity in Kings and more detail in Chronicles. 1 Kings 14:25–26 records:

“In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem. He took away the treasures of the house of Jehovah and the treasures of the king’s house. He took everything. He also took all the shields of gold that Solomon had made.”

2 Chronicles 12:2–4 elaborates:

“In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, because they had been unfaithful to Jehovah, Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem with 1,200 chariots and 60,000 horsemen. The people who came with him from Egypt were innumerable—Libyans, Sukkiim, and Ethiopians. And he captured the fortified cities of Judah and came as far as Jerusalem.”

These passages highlight several important elements:
First, the massive scale of the army. The mention of 1,200 chariots and 60,000 horsemen underscores the military capacity of Egypt during the early 22nd Dynasty. The inclusion of Libyans, Sukkiim (possibly an African tribe or mercenaries), and Cushites (Ethiopians) demonstrates that the Egyptian military was a coalition of ethnic contingents drawn from subject peoples and allies.
Second, the systematic subjugation of Judah’s fortified towns before approaching Jerusalem, a detail which matches the Egyptian practice of campaigning against fortified points before moving toward a political center.
Third, the removal of treasures from the Temple and the royal palace, including Solomon’s gold shields, symbolized Judah’s humiliation and the loss of political prestige.

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3. The Egyptian Record: Karnak Temple Inscription
The Egyptian record of Shishak’s campaign is preserved on the south wall of the Temple of Amun at Karnak in Thebes. This monumental relief depicts Pharaoh Shoshenq I smiting enemies before the god Amun, accompanied by a long list of over 150 place-names representing towns and regions captured during the campaign. The list includes sites located in the northern kingdom of Israel as well as Judah, suggesting that the campaign was not limited to Rehoboam’s territory but was a broader military operation into the Levant.

Although Jerusalem is not explicitly named in the surviving list (likely due to its surrender without destruction, or because the biblical account focuses on tribute rather than a violent capture), numerous Judean sites appear. Towns such as Aijalon, Beth-shean, Megiddo, and Gibeon are identifiable. This distribution supports the biblical statement that Shishak’s forces overran the fortified cities of Judah before reaching Jerusalem.

The Karnak inscriptions, in conjunction with the biblical narrative, confirm the military incursion into the southern Levant in the late 10th century B.C.E. The exact sequence of events, however, can be more precisely determined by harmonizing the two records: the Egyptians conducted a campaign through both Israel and Judah, likely exploiting political instability after the division of the united monarchy.

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4. Archaeological Corroboration from Judah and Israel
Excavations at several sites named in the Karnak list provide archaeological evidence for destruction layers dating to the late 10th century B.C.E., consistent with the time of Shishak’s invasion. At Megiddo, for instance, monumental architecture shows destruction followed by Egyptian-style rebuilding, likely reflecting Shishak’s intervention. Beth-shean, under Egyptian control in earlier centuries, also shows evidence of activity in this period.

In Judah, while Jerusalem itself has not yielded clear destruction evidence from this campaign—likely due to the city’s surrender and payment of tribute—several fortified towns in the Shephelah and the highlands show 10th century destruction layers. This aligns with 2 Chronicles 12:4’s statement that Shishak “captured the fortified cities of Judah.”

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5. Political and Military Motives of Shishak’s Campaign
The biblical and Egyptian evidence together point to Shishak’s campaign as a calculated attempt to reassert Egyptian influence in the Levant. Egypt had lost much of its imperial control after the collapse of the New Kingdom in the late 12th century B.C.E. The political fragmentation of the Levant following Solomon’s death presented an opportunity for expansion.

From a biblical perspective, however, the campaign was more than geopolitical—it was divine judgment. The Chronicler explicitly states that Jehovah sent Shishak because Judah had abandoned His law. Only after Rehoboam and the leaders humbled themselves before Jehovah was total destruction averted (2 Chronicles 12:5–7).

Shishak’s motives were thus secular—wealth acquisition, territorial control, and the display of power—while the biblical record frames the event within the theological cause-and-effect principle central to Israel’s covenant relationship with God.

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6. Theological Significance in the Biblical Narrative
Theologically, the invasion serves as an early example of covenant discipline in the era of the divided monarchy. Solomon’s apostasy had already demonstrated that deviation from exclusive worship of Jehovah would bring political instability (1 Kings 11:9–11). Rehoboam’s unfaithfulness brought swift retribution, illustrating the immediate application of covenant curses outlined in Deuteronomy 28:25, 36, 47–48.

The replacement of Solomon’s gold shields with bronze (1 Kings 14:27–28) symbolizes Judah’s diminished status. Gold, the emblem of wealth and glory, was replaced with bronze—a metal still valuable but representing a lowered condition. This small but vivid detail captures the shift from the splendor of Solomon’s reign to the vulnerability of Rehoboam’s.

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7. Synchronizing the Biblical and Egyptian Chronologies
From a literal biblical chronology perspective, Shishak’s invasion occurred in 926 B.C.E., the fifth year of Rehoboam’s reign. Egyptian chronology traditionally places Shoshenq I’s reign at c. 945–924 B.C.E. This overlap is fully consistent with identifying Shishak as Shoshenq I. The campaign likely took place toward the latter part of Shoshenq’s reign.

The convergence of biblical and Egyptian records here is one of the strongest synchronisms in the history of the ancient Near East. It demonstrates that the biblical record preserves an accurate historical memory of 10th century events, uniting theological interpretation with historical fact.

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8. Conclusion: Shishak’s Campaign as a Historical Anchor
The campaign of Shishak into Judah in 926 B.C.E. is a firmly established historical event, supported by both the inerrant biblical text and external Egyptian monumental evidence. The biblical account provides theological meaning and moral cause, while the Egyptian inscription supplies a complementary political and military perspective. Together, they form one of the clearest points of contact between Scripture and the archaeological record in the early Iron Age II period.

This synchronism provides not only a fixed chronological anchor for biblical history but also an enduring testimony to the accuracy of the biblical narrative when interpreted according to the historical-grammatical method. Rehoboam’s experience serves as a vivid demonstration that national unfaithfulness invites divine judgment, and that political fortunes rise or fall according to obedience to Jehovah’s covenant.

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