t,
according to the received chronology, when the kings of the 15th dynasty
reigned. These dynasties of ancient kings are difficult to be settled, and
rest upon traditions rather than well defined historical grounds,--or
rather on the authority of Manetho, an Egyptian priest, who lived nearly
300 years before Christ. His list of dynasties has been confirmed, to a
great extent, by the hieroglyphic inscriptions which are still to be found
on ancient monuments, but they give us only a barren catalogue of names
without any vital historical truths. Therefore these old dynasties, before
Abraham, are only interesting to antiquarians, and not satisfactory to
them, since so little is known or can be known. These, if correct, would
give a much greater antiquity to Egypt than can be reconciled with Mosaic
history. But all authorities agree in ascribing to Menes the commencement
of the first dynasty, 2712 years before Christ, according to Hales, but
3893 according to Lepsius, and 2700 according to Lane. Neither Menes nor
his successors of the first dynasty left any monuments. It is probable,
however, that Memphis was built by them, and possibly hieroglyphics were
invented during their reigns.

But here a chronological difficulty arises. The Scriptures ascribe ten
generations from Shem to Abram. Either the generations were made longer
than in our times, or the seventeen dynasties, usually supposed to have
reigned when Abram came to Egypt, could not have existed; for, according
to the received chronology, he was born 1996, B.C., and the Deluge took
place 2349, before Christ, leaving but 353 years from the Deluge to the
birth of Abraham. How could seventeen dynasties have reigned in Egypt in
that time, even supposing that Egypt was settled immediately after the
Flood, unless either more than ten generations existed from Noah to Abram,
or that these generations extended over seven or eight hundred years?
Until science shall reconcile the various chronologies with the one
usually received, there is but little satisfaction in the study of
Egyptian history prior to Abram. Nor is it easy to settle when the
Pyramids were constructed. If they existed in the time of Abram a most
rapid advance had been made in the arts, unless a much longer period
elapsed from Noah to Abraham than Scripture seems to represent.

(M71) Nothing of interest occurs in Egyptian history until the fourth
dynasty of kings, when the pyramids of Ghizeh, were supposed to