The Wilderness Journey

                 THE EXODUS OF ISRAEL FROM EGYPT

                             THE WILDERNESS JOURNEY

The following narrative is a recapitulation of the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt, under the leadership of Moses. This has been taken out of the Authorized King James version of the Bible, and covers the events from Genesis chapter 46 to the start of the book of Joshua.

After 215 years of living in Egypt, God using his servant Moses led the people of Israel out of their bondage, just as God had promised Abraham, and would give unto them a land flowing with milk and honey.

When Jacob first came into Egypt because of the famine in the land, there were only 70 of them and after the 215 years, the 70 grew into a great nation of more than 600,000 men not counting the women and children. This exodus from Egypt happened about 1491 BC.

After traveling for almost two months, the people started to murmur against Moses and Aaron because they were hungry and had nothing to eat. When they first left Egypt, they brought with them many flocks of sheep and herds of cattle but now after only a little more than one month they had nothing to eat and said it would have been better for them to have stayed in Egypt, at least there they did eat well and would not have starved like they were doing in the wilderness.

Then the Lord told the people that He would rain bread from heaven for them to eat. Every day they were to prepare only that bread they needed for the day for it would not keep overnight but on the sixth day they were to prepare enough bread for two days for the seventh day being the Sabbath, no new bread would be provided. But the people did not obey God and some of them tried to keep bread over for the second day and some of them searched for new bread on the seventh day and this displeased the Lord.

After journeying on for a distance, the people started complaining because they had no water to drink. They said to Moses, Agive us some water, for we thirst, is this why you brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children.

And Moses cried to the Lord and said, “What shall I do”? The people are about to stone me. God told Moses to go to the rock in Horeb and smite the rock and water shall come from it. Then Moses did as the Lord commanded and water was provided for the people. They called the name of the place where the rock was, Meribah.

Amalek and his armies then came against Israel to fight with them; this was the first battle the people were to fight. Moses told Joshua to lead the people to battle while he stood on top of a hill with the rod of God in his hand. As long as Moses held the rod up Israel prevailed but when Moses let the rod fall, Amalek prevailed, so Aaron and Hur held the hand of Moses up which held the rod and the people prevailed in the battle.

In the third month after leaving Egypt, Jethro, a priest of Midian, who was the father-in-law to Moses, along with the wife of Moses, Zipporah and her two sons, then came to where the people were at the mountain of Sinai.

Jethro convinced Moses that it was too much for him alone to daily judge the people for all their problems and he should appoint leaders over the people to help with the minor problems, and this Moses did.

Moses then went up into the mountain to talk with God and God said that he would speak to Moses so the people could hear him from the mountain and they would have no doubt that Moses was sent by God to be their leader. So God did speak to Moses and Aaron on the mountain and the people heard.

After God had spoken to Moses and given him the ten commandments, and certain judgments and laws for the people, the people told Moses that they were afraid to hear the voice of God and wanted Moses only to hear God, then come and tell them what God said. Moses then told the people all that God had commanded and the people all said they would obey God's words.

Then the Lord called for Moses to come up into the mountain and said he would give him tables of stone with his commandments written on them. So Moses did as the Lord commanded and went up and was in the mount for seven days before the Lord spoke to him.

After Moses had been in the mountain for 40 days and God had given him many laws and commandments and two tablets of stone which were written on with the finger of God, God told Moses to get down to the people for they had corrupted themselves and started worshiping an idol. For Aaron had given in to the desires of the people and had made them a molten calf out of gold for the people to worship.

And God said to Moses that he would completely destroy the people for their transgressions and make a new nation of the seed of Moses. But Moses pleaded for the people and God repented of the evil he thought to do to the people.

And when Moses returned from the mountain, he saw the golden calf and the people dancing and he was so very angry with the people that he threw the tablets of stones down and broke them. Then Moses took the golden calf and melted it in the fire and had about three thousand of the people executed for the sins they did before God.

The next day Moses returned unto the mount to plead with God to forgive the people for their sins. And Moses said to God, if you won't forgive them, then blot my name out of your book which you have written. But God told Moses that the only names that would be blotted out would be those that have sinned against him.

Then the next day Moses returned to the mountain of God with two new tablets of stone that he had made and God again wrote his commandments on them. Again Moses was in the mount for another 40 days and 40 nights and when he returned to the camp his face shined because he had talked to God face to face. Then Moses repeated all the laws and commandments again to the people that God had given him.

The people of Israel spent the next year building the tabernacle, the altar, the arc of the testimony and making the clothes for the priests to wear when they performed their duty as God had commanded them.

In the second month of the second year after they had left Egypt, the Lord told Moses to count the number of men there were in the camp from 20 years old and upward, able to go to war, except for the tribe of Levi. And Moses did as the Lord commanded and counted 603550 men.

After a period of time the people started complaining to Moses because they were tired of eating nothing but manna, the bread that God sent them from heaven. They said while they were in Egypt they ate fish, cucumbers, melons, onions and garlic in abundance but now they eat nothing but bread and they were tired of it and wanted some meat for a change. This displeased Moses and made the Lord very angry.

Moses said to the Lord, "what am I to do, the people want meat to eat and I have none to give them. And the Lord said to Moses that he would give the people meat to eat for a whole month until it comes out of their nostrils and becomes loathsome to them. Moses said to the Lord, where will you get that much meat? Shall the flocks and the herds be slain for them or will you take all the fish out of the sea?

And the Lord said to Moses, is there anything I can't do? Then the Lord caused quails from the sea to come in and fall near the camp, for several miles on each side of the camp and they were three to four feet deep and the people gathered quails for two days. And because the people displeased the Lord, he caused a great plague to come on them and many died.

Some time after this, Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron her brother, spoke against Moses because he had taken an Ethiopian woman for his wife. And the Lord was angry toward them for speaking against Moses for he was a prophet and the Lord chastised them for doing that.

The people then traveled to the wilderness of Paran and set up their camp there. Then the Lord told Moses to send out twelve men, one man from each tribe to spy on the land of Canaan and see what they could find. To find out something about the people in the land, how they lived and if the land was fruitful or not.

This was the land they were to take possession of according to the promise that God gave to Abraham. And the men returned after forty days and ten of them said that the people were very strong and the walls of the cities were very great and there were giants in the country.

But two of the men, Caleb of the tribe of Judah and Joshua the son of Nun of the tribe of Ephraim, rebuked the other men and said to Moses, let us go up at once and possess it, for we are well able to overcome them. But the other ten men said these people are stronger than us, and we cannot defeat them.

After hearing this report, the people cried all night and again murmured against Moses and Aaron and said it would have been better to have died in the land of Egypt rather than in this wilderness. They wanted to make themselves another leader and return to Egypt.

Joshua and Caleb tried to convince the people that with the Lord's help they could conquer the land and possess it, for it truly was a land flowing with milk and honey. But the people wanted to stone Joshua and Caleb for what they were saying.

And the Lord was very angry with the people for this and said to Moses, How long will these people provoke me? How long will it be before they believe me after all the signs which I have showed them? The Lord said to Moses that he would smite the people and make a greater people out of Moses' seed. But Moses pleaded with the Lord and said the people of the lands would say that the Lord was not able to bring his people into the land and make fun of him.

So the Lord repented once again for the sake of Moses but said because the people have tempted him ten times thus far and have not obeyed his voice, they will not see the land which he promised for his people. And the Lord said that he would cause the people to wander in the wilderness for 40 years, one year for every day they spied out the land, until every person that left Egypt from 20 years old and upward, except Caleb and Joshua, died in the wilderness.

On one occasion while the people were in the wilderness, a man was found to be gathering sticks on the Sabbath day and they brought him to Moses to be judged. The Lord said he was to be stoned to death for doing that on the Sabbath day.

On another occasion, Korah a son of Levi, caused a rebellion against Moses and Aaron because they said that God was not only with them but with the whole congregation. Because of this, the Lord was going to consume the whole people but again Moses pleaded with him not to punish all the people because a few had sinned. So again the Lord repented and punished only those that rebelled by causing an earthquake and the ground opened up and covered Korah and his followers.

Then the children of Israel came into the desert of Zin and while they were there near Kadesh, Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron, died and was buried.

And once again there was no water for the people and they went to Moses and Aaron complaining about it and saying it would have been better for them to have stayed in Egypt. Then Moses and Aaron prayed to God for his help.

The Lord told Moses to take his rod, gather the people together and speak to the rock that it might give forth water once again for the people. And Moses said to the people, "Must we fetch you water out of this rock?".

And Moses took the rod and hit the rock twice and the water came out. And the Lord said unto Moses and Aaron, "Because you didn't believe me, to sanctify me in the eyes of the people, you shall not take this people into the land I have given them.

Since the people were afraid to enter the land of Canaan, Moses sent messengers to the king of Edom asking permission for them to travel through their land and the king refused them and threatened to go to war if they entered his land.

As the people traveled on bypassing Edom, they arrived at Mount Hor, near the coast of the sea by Edom. The Lord here said to Moses and Aaron that Aaron could not enter the promised land because he rebelled against the Lord at the waters of Meribah. So Aaron turned over his office of a priest to his son Eleazar and died in Mount Hor being one hundred twenty-three years old.

At that time, Arad, the king of the Canaanites, heard that the people of Israel were on his land, knowing that they had sent spies into his land, he went to war against them but the Israelites defeated his army.

As the people traveled on they began to complain against Moses once again because of the amount of rough traveling they had endured. They complained about not having any bread or water and said they were tired of the manna that God was providing. And this angered the Lord so he sent fiery serpents against them which caused many of the people to be bitten and die.

Then the people repented for what they had done and asked Moses to pray the Lord to take away the serpents. The Lord told Moses to make a serpent of brass and put it upon a pole and if the people were bitten they could look at the serpent and live. Moses did as the Lord commanded and the brazen serpent saved the people.

Then Israel sent messengers to Sihon, king of the Amorites, asking if they could pass through their land. But Sihon was very wrought with them and went out to war against them. The Amorites were defeated by Israel and the people took over all the cities of the Amorites. Then the people turned against the country of Bashan and the Lord delivered that country into their hands also.

Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of the Moabites, sent a message to Balaam the son of Beor and said he was joining the people of Midian to go against the Israelites and defeat them. But God spoke to Balaam and told him not to go to war with the Israelites for they were people blessed of God. But Balak persisted to get Balaam to assist him by cursing the Israelites and Balaam sought the Lord the second time about it. This time the Lord told him to go ahead with the Moabites.

So Balaam saddled his Donkey and went with the Moabites and God's anger was kindled against him because he went. As he was riding an angel of the Lord stood in his way, which he saw not but his Donkey saw the angel with a sword in his hand and the Donkey turned aside out of the way. But Balaam struck the Donkey to turn her back to the direction he wanted to go. The same thing happened two more times and Balaam continued to whip the Donkey.

When Balaam struck the Donkey the third time, the Lord caused the Donkey to speak to Balaam and ask him why he was hitting her, then the Lord opened the eyes of Balaam and he saw the angel standing in his way. Then Balaam fell down and asked forgiveness. The angel told Balaam if it not had been for the Donkey turning aside, he would be dead now.

Balaam continued on with the Moabites and Balak persisted several times to get Balaam to curse the Israelites but Balaam continued to tell him that he could not curse what the Lord had blessed. So Balak gave up and decided not to go to war against the people of Israel.

Then the people of Israel began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab and began to worship their idols. Then the Lord commanded Moses to execute all those who were guilty and that day twenty four thousand of them died.

Then the Lord told Moses to count the number of the people again, those from twenty years old and above and the number came to 601730 men, none of which were numbered the first time in the wilderness of Sinai, for all of those except Caleb and Joshua died in the wilderness.

Then the Lord took Moses up into Mount Abarim and let him see the land he was giving to the people but he told Moses because he rebelled against him at the waters of Meribah, he could not enter the land.

Then Moses asked the Lord to choose a man to take his place, leading the people into the promise land and the Lord chose Joshua the son of Nun. Then Moses took Joshua and laid his hands on him before the people and the priest and gave him charge over them.

Then after Moses rehearsed some of the laws and offerings before the people, the Lord told him to avenge the children of Israel against the Midianites for the sins they caused the people to commit. Then Moses sent out twelve thousand men and defeated the Midianites and took all their possessions.

Then by the river Jordan near Jericho, in the plains of Moab, Moses rehearsed all the divisions of the lands for inheritances for the people when they would enter the land.

The Israelites have wandered in the wilderness for 40 years, their clothes and shoes lasted the whole time, and they did not eat bread or drink any wine or strong drink.

Then the Lord commanded Moses to go up on mount Nebo in the land of Moab and die there. And Moses, being one hundred and twenty years old did as the Lord commanded.

Then Joshua, the son of Nun, being about 78 years old, proceeded to lead the children of Israel into the Promised Land, about the year 1451BC.

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