The Negative Confession (also known as The Declaration of Innocence) is a list of 42 sins which the soul of the deceased can honestly say it has never committed when it stands in judgment in the afterlife. The soul would recite these in the presence of the gods who weighed their truth in deciding one's fate.
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Definition
Timeline
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c. 1570 BCE - 1069 BCEThe Negative Confession is developed as part of the Egyptian Book of the Dead during the period of the New Kingdom.
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c. 1069 BCE - c. 392 CEThe Negative Confession continues in use throughout Egypt's later history until the rise of Christianity.
