The Exodus, Three Days' Journey


(Exo 15:22 KJV) So Moses brought Israel from the Red sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water.


(Num 33:8 KJV)  And they departed from before Pihahiroth, and passed through the midst of the sea into the wilderness, and went three days' journey in the wilderness of Etham, and pitched in Marah.

What is a Days Journey?

How far did the children of Israel   Walk in a day?

(Num 33:5 KJV)  And the children of Israel removed from Rameses, and pitched in Succoth.

IVP Bible Background Commentary

 
route of journey.   It is approximately one day’s journey from Rameses to Succoth.

Rameses to Succoth about 23 miles


(Jonah 3:3 KJV)  So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city of three days' journey.  



Archaeologists tell us that the circumference of the city

and its suburbs was sixty miles.

WARREN WIERSBE’S “BE SERIES”

 

“Three days’ journey” means either that it would take three days to get through the  city and its suburbs or three days to go around them.


Holman Bible Dictionary and 

The New Unger’s bible Dictionary

 
 DAY’S JOURNEY The customary though inexact measure of distance traveled in a day. The distance varied with the terrain and with the circumstances of the traveler. The typical day’s journey of the Jews was between 20 and 30 miles, though groups generally traveled only 10 miles per day. (See Gen. 30:36; 31:23; Ex. 3:18; 8:27; Deut. 1:2; Luke 2:44).

walking.about.com

 
Is this person going to walk for eight hours day after day, such as on a walk across the continent? Those who have done this have plenty of blister trouble the first couple of weeks, but then either drop out or go on covering 20 miles or more each day. The western pioneers usually covered 20 miles a day with the wagon trains, most of them walking rather than riding. I would definitely class them as trained walkers.



(Deu 8:4 KJV) 

Thy raiment waxed not old upon thee,

neither did thy foot swell, these forty years.

 

(Deu 8:4 NLT)

 For all these forty years your clothes didn't wear out,

 and your feet didn't blister or swell

 

Robinson observed that “the usual day’s march of the best appointed armies, both in ancient and modern times, is not estimated higher than fourteen English, or twelve geographical miles, and it cannot be supposed that the Israelites with women and children and flocks, would be able to accomplish more” (1977:75).

One should remember Thutmose III’s army averaged only 15 miles per day across the sandy northern Sinai. The conditions would be very similar.


Question Would they ?

 

(Deu 1:2 KJV)  (There are eleven days' journey from Horeb by the way of mount Seir unto Kadeshbarnea.)  

Horeb to Kadeshbarnea 

is about 200 miles,

 200 / 11 = 18 miles a day.

The children of Israel had 20 camps in between Horeb and Kadeshbarnea,

 Deu 1:2 is not telling us it toke them that many days,

God is telling us a days journey.


What is a Days Journey?  

About 20 miles

 

How far did the children of Israel  walk in a day?  
  
        10, 20, 30 miles


Jacob's departure from Haran

The New John Gill Exposition of the Entire Bible

 

(Genesis 22:20-24)  and pursued after him seven days' journey;

which must be reckoned, not from Jacob's departure from Haran, but from Laban's; for Laban being three days' journey from thence, whither he had to return, after he received the news of Jacob being gone; Jacob must have travelled six days before Laban set out with his brethren from Haran; so that this was, as Ben Gerson conjectures, the thirteenth day of Jacob's travel; for Laban not having cattle to drive as Jacob, could travel as fast again as he, and do that in seven days which took up Jacob thirteen: and they overtook him in the mount Gilead;

said to be three hundred and eighty miles from Haran   

three hundred and eighty miles from Haran

the thirteenth day of Jacob's travel

 Laban seven days' journey

380 miles   /  13  =  29 miles

29 miles a day Jacob made with his family and live stock.

 380 miles   /   7  =   54 miles

Laban traveled 54 miles a day most likely on horse back.

Here we can see that Journey dos not always  stand for a set amount of miles.   We also see that live stock can travel 29 miles in a day.