Israel Departs

 "The Israelites left Rameses for Succoth, about six hundred thousand of them on the march, counting the men only, and not the children.

A great number of other people of all descriptions went with them, as well as sheep and cattle in droves.

With the dough they had brought with them from Egypt, they made cakes of unleavened bread.  It had not risen, for when they were driven from Egypt they could not delay and had not even provided themselves with food.

The Israelites had been in Egypt for four hundred and thirty years.  It was at the end of these four hundred and thirty years to the very day that the armies of YAHWEH left Egypt.

This is the watch for YAHWEH who brought Israel out of Egypt.  This night is for YAHWEH, and all the Israelites are also to keep vigil on this night, year after year, for all time." - Exodus 12:37-42 

(People of all descriptions.  The wandering Israelites did not look like a holy people.  There were those who, for diverse reasons, had decided to leave with Moses.  The Savior catches all in HIS net and only with time, through the trials of the desert, will the good and the bad be separated.

Six hundred thousand.  In reality, those who left with Moses could not have been more than some two hundred persons, including wives and children.  Let us not forget that these were shepherds who could not survive with less than ten animals per person.  A group of two hundred persons required some two thousand sheep and donkeys.  The wells of Sinai and their oases did not permit the transit of more numerous flocks.  Maybe these exaggerations originated from a popular version of the events, but otherwise they were intentional.  The priests who wrote that paragraph were conscious that the people of Moses initiated the long march of GOD's people all along the history, and this is the message they wanted to transmit to us: Moses' departure was the beginning of a great venture.)

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