Exodus 12:37-39

The record of Israel’s sojourn in the wilderness really begins here.

"Rameses" is probably the same city as "Raamses," also called Avaris (Exodus 12:37; cf. Exodus 1:11). Many critical scholars date the Exodus in the thirteenth century because of this reference to Rameses. Rameses II ruled Egypt at that time. However, "Rameses" may very well be a later name for this site, similar to the reference to the city of Dan in Genesis 14:14. This may be another instance of later scribal updating.

Rameses was the city from which the Israelites left Egypt, and it lay somewhere east of the Nile delta in the land of Goshen. Archaeologists have not identified Succoth certainly either. However from the context it seems that Succoth was only a few miles from Rameses. It may have been a district rather than a town. [Note: Edward Naville, The Store-City of Pithom and the Route of the Exodus, p. 23; Kaiser, "Exodus," p. 379.] Perhaps Cassuto was right when he wrote the following.

"Succoth was a border town named in Egyptian Tkw. Here the name appears in a Hebrew or Hebraized form. Apparently it was situated at the tell called by the Egyptians today Tell el-Maskhuta." [Note: Cassuto, 147.]

Many commentators concluded that, since there were about 600,000 Israelite males, the total number of Israelites must have been about two million. Though the Hebrew word translated "thousand" (eleph) can also mean "family," "clan," "military unit," or something else, most translators have preferred "thousand" (cf. Exodus 38:26; Numbers 1:45-47). In view of the incongruities posed by such a large number (cf. Exodus 13:17; Exodus 14:21-31; Exodus 16:3-4; Exodus 17:8-13; Exodus 18:14-16; Exodus 23:29-30; Numbers 14; Deuteronomy 7:7; Deuteronomy 7:22; Joshua 7:5; et al.), eleph may have meant "hundred" or "unit of ten" or some other number smaller than "thousand," though the evidence to support this theory is presently weak, in my opinion.

Moses referred to the "mixed multitude" often in the account of the wilderness wanderings that follows. This group probably included Egyptian pagans and God-fearers (Exodus 12:38; cf. Exodus 9:20) and an assortment of other people including other enslaved Semites. For one reason or another these people took this opportunity to leave or escape from Egypt with the Israelites. This group proved to be a source of trouble in Israel and led the Israelites in complaining and opposing Moses (e.g., Numbers 11:4).