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The final days of the Egyptian empire in Canaan saw an increase in inter-cultural influence. A lot of that involved exploitation and slavery. But what was slavery like in those days, and how did the races feel about each other? 

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The Merneptah Stele has the first recorded mention of Israel, in 1207 BCE. But the God of the Israelites was already mentioned earlier. What does that mean? Who were the Israelites and where did they come from? We look at the biblical narrative, Egyptian texts, and archaeological evidence. 

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The highlands of the Judean hills were a lawless land, which even the Egyptians preferred to avoid. Instead, the kings of Shechem and Jerusalem battled for domination, using the local nomadic tribes as political tools. It was in this chaos that the Israelites first emerged. 

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The Land of Israel had long been in contention between Egypt and its great power rivals. But now, a group of nomadic tribes outmaneuvered all the powers to create their own kingdom. How did that happen, and what does a nomadic kingdom look like?

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The saga of Thutmose III's endless quest to defeat Mitanni and its pesky allies ends in this episode. But who gets the upper hand? We also have a dramatic wedding and tragic death. And an impressive array of war crimes. So much drama! 

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Thutmose III had pacified the city-states of Lebanon and Canaan. But in the process, Egypt threatened the lands of Mitanni, the local power. To secure his power in Lebanon and Syria, Thutmose III would have to cross the Euphrates. The final frontier. Would he succeed? 

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Thutmose III took his final steps to subdue and humiliate the kings of Canaan. But now, he was ready to move on to the next conquest. Lebanon. But with long supply lines, mountainous terrain, and treacherous enemies, it would prove a far harder nut to crack. In order to triumph there, Thutmose would have to reinvent warfare. 

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Egypt had no sooner established its dominance in Canaan than it faced its first challenge in the form of a new and threatening empire in the north. Who would end up as the dominant force? And what happened to Canaanite culture as it faced imperial subjugation? 

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Egypt had recovered from years of weakness and was poised to take revenge on Canaan for years of Hyksos conquest. But a plucky Canaanite king organized a spirited defense of the land. Who would triumph?

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We are used to hearing the Jewish version of the Egyptian Exodus story. But there is also an ancient Egyptian one, where the Jews are the villains. That story played a significant role in the development of antisemitism. 

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