Endnote 20 – Exodus Itinerary Confirmed by Egyptian Evidence

Judges 4:2 associates Jabin with Hazor, rather than with Kishon: At the beginning of the story, the Israelites have been oppressed by “Jabin, king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor.” This is doubtless a mistaken association introduced by the final editor of the passage, as indicated by the fact that Baraq, Deborah’s general, went to Qedesh (Judges 4:9, 10) rather than to Hazor to meet Jabin’s general Sisera. Qedesh is another name for Qishon, as is clear from the parallel lists of priestly cities in Issachar in 1 Chronicles 6:57–58 = Joshua 21:28–29: the former calls the city Qedesh, the latter calls it Qishion (that is, Qishon). The story in Judges 4 is of an Israelite military campaign against Qedesh/Qishon: “Deborah went with Baraq against Qedesh” (verse 9); “Baraq called out Zebulun and Naphtali against Qedesh” (verse 10). The possible reason why Jabin of Qedesh/Qishon is called “the king of Hazor” in the story may be because he was confused with an earlier (Middle Bronze Age) king of Hazor named Yabni-Hadda; on the latter, see Abraham Malamat, Mari and the Early Israelite Experience, Schweich Lectures (Oxford: British Academy, 1989), p. 58.