Tell el Amarna and the Bible

by Charles F. Pfeiffer

The Triumph of Aton

Aton became the only object of worship tolerated by the Pharaoh, and his domain was extended beyond the boundaries of Egypt. Not only was the Egyptian capital moved to a city dedicated to Aton, but other cities were dedicated to him in Nubia and in Asia. The Hymn to the Aton expresses the same type of universalism, envisioning Aton (the sun) as the god who blesses all people everywhere. While the Nile might have served as a god to unite all Egyptians, the sun was a deity who might unite all men in a common brotherhood. This, at any rate, seems to have been Akhenaton’s dream.

There remained, however, illogical elements in the monotheism of Akhenaton. The Pharaoh himself was still a god, and Akhenaton had no doubt that he was the divine son of Aton. While Akhenaton and the royal family paid homage to Aton, others stood in awe before the Pharaoh. There were elements in the Amarna faith which militated against this, particularly the realism which enabled the citizens of Akhetaton to caricature their king, but the concept of a divine Pharaoh persisted in the Aton cult.

No image represented Aton in human shape, as the “thousand gods” of Egypt had been represented. Instead, worship was directed toward the disk of the sun which exerts a life-giving influence through its rays which produce a brilliance and warmth that no man can fail to experience. The symbol of the god Aton was a solar disk from which rays of light descended, terminating in human hands, some of which hold the Egyptian sign of life (ankh). In this symbolism, the sun graciously bestows life upon the worshiper of Aton. Sometimes the royal uraeus, symbol of kingship, hangs from the sun disk, and often it rises from the bottom of the disk toward the center. Aton is thus depicted as ruler as well as deity of all upon whom he shines.

While the Aton temple was not basically different from other shrines of ancient Egypt, it boasted no image and conducted its most solemn rites in the open, under the direct rays of the sun. This formed a distinct contrast to the cult of Amon who was called “the hidden one,” and who had his shrine in the innermost and darkest part of the temple. If Amonism stressed the mysterious in religion, Atonism spoke of the deity’s nearness and presence in the affairs of daily life. Atonism had no dark courts or mysterious rites. Its ritual was quite simple, with hymns sung by the temple choir and the presentation of gifts of meat and drink by worshipers. The odors of perfume and the presence of flowers added aesthetic qualities to the simple acts of worship. On the occasion of royal visits, which must have been quite frequent, the king personally consecrated the offerings.

The Beneficent Aton. The sun disk is depicted with rays extended toward Akhenaton and his wife Nofretete. From the tomb of Ramose.

Atonism never became the popular faith of Egypt, but it did spread beyond the confines of Akhetaton. Memphis had an Aton temple, and Aton reliefs have been found at Heliopolis. Modern students of religion sometimes charge that the Aton faith was devoid of ethical content, but this is an argument from silence. All of its literary remains consist of devotional literature—hymns extolling the glories of Aton and tomb inscriptions which describe the piety of his faithful worshipers. Whether or not Atonism was self consciously pacifist in orientation may be debated. A universal faith minimizes the differences among men, and Akhenaton’s failure to intervene in the affairs of his Asiatic subjects may indicate that he hoped that a peaceful policy would resolve international tensions. Perhaps we should conclude that Akhenaton chose to devote himself to religious matters, and that the chaos in Asia was a result of neglect rather than self-conscious policy.

The Amarna tomb inscriptions give extravagant praise to Aton and his son, the Pharaoh:

How prosperous is he who hears thy doctrine of life and is sated with beholding thee, and unceasingly his eyes look upon Aton every day.

Thou art my great servant who hears my doctrine. My heart is content with every commission thou performest and I give thee the office in order that thou mayest eat the victuals of Pharaoh, the lord in the house of Aton.[9]