Daily Archives: October 19, 2009

Luxor was known as Thebes in Old Testament times. Both Jeremiah and Ezekiel prophesied the Lord’s judgment of the city. Jeremiah says,

“The LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, says, ‘Behold, I am going to punish Amon of Thebes, and Pharaoh, and Egypt along with her gods and her kings, even Pharaoh and those who trust in him’” (Jeremiah 46:25; see also Ezekiel 30:14-16)

A visit to the ruined and unoccupied temples of Karnak and Luxor, where Amon (or Amun) was worshiped as a great god, illustrates the fulfillment of this prophecy. Shortly after the time of Jeremiah (c. 586 BC), Egypt and Thebes began to decline as a world power.

This photo of the avenue of the ram-headed sphinxes leads to the first pylon of the great temple of the god Amon (or Amun). The first pylon was the last part of the temple constructed (about 700 BC) and remains unfinished. This photo is large enough to be used in teaching presentations. Click on the photo for a larger image. I hope you will enjoy using it.

The avenue of ram-headed sphinxes and the first pylon of the great temple of Amun at Karnak. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

In 663 BC the Assyrian king Ashurbanipal had already conquered Thebes (Hebrew, No Amon). The prophet Nahum, in prophesying the fall of Nineveh, calls attention to this event (3:8ff.).