How many Jews did not leave with Moses?

Answer 1

4/5 did not leave Egypt.

Shemot (Exodus) 13:18

So God led the people around [by] way of the desert [to] the Red Sea, and the children of Israel were armed when they went up out of Egypt.

The word for "armed" in the Torah is "חמשים" which can also translate as "one out of five" from the root word "חמש" meaning 5. In other words, only 1/5 of the Israelites departed from Egypt, and the other 4/5 died in Egypt during the 3 days of Darkness.

For more info on the matter (as I am not a Rabbi) watch the Related Link. At 14:10, Rabbi Brody could explain it better than I could.

Answer 2

This question can be answered from a biblical or a historical/scholarly persective, with potentially different answers in each case.

From a biblical persective, all the Israelites followed Moses out of Israel. The Bible does not talk of any choosing to remain behind.

From a historical/scholarly perspective, there was no Exodus as described in the Bible. The story of the Exodus was written long after the Hebrew people had forgotten their real origins, and provides a glorious past and fulfils a covenant with God. Modern scholars say that the Israelites were originally Canaanite peasants who migrated peacefully into the hitherto sparsely populated interior and eventually built a new state.

F. S. Frick says that scholars have evaluated the options of the biblical invasion, peaceful Immigration, internal revolt and peaceful emergence as the descriptions of the process whereby Israel made its appearance in Palestine. Studies have resulted in the 'immigration' model being largely abandoned, and suggest 'emergence' or 'evolution' as the origin of the Israelites, although the 'revolt' model still has its adherents. The notion of a biblical Exodus under Moses no longer has serious critical support, and therefore it can not be said that any of the Hebrews remained behind in Egypt.

Answer 3

Tradition states that no fewer than four-fifths of the Israelite community were uninterested in participating in the Exodus, and God had them die during the Plagues (Rashi commentary, Exodus 13:18, based upon midrash Tanchuma). That would put the number of those who did not leave Egypt at 600,000 times four (men).

More about the Exodus:

In the Exodus, Moses brought the Israelites out of the Egyptian slavery under the guidance of God, after God brought plagues upon the Egyptians (Exodus ch.1-12).

After the Israelites left, Egypt was in turmoil for decades. Though Israel was later harassed (Judges ch.3,6 and 10) by its smaller neighbors (Ammon, Moab, Midian), not a peep was heard from Egypt for four hundred years.

Egypt's turmoil is also borne out by the Ipuwer papyrus ("Pestilence is throughout the land....the river is blood") (Professor John van Seters, Journal of Egyptian Archaeology no. 50). The plagues were also described by ancient historians, including Herodotus and Diodorus. The Exodus is mentioned by Strabo, Berosus, Artapanus, Numenius, Justin, and Tacitus.

See also:

Archaeology and the Hebrew Bible

Answer 4

There weren't Jews in the time of Moses. Those were Israelites from the Hebrew line and it was about a million.

Answer 5

Over two million, since the men alone numbered 600,000 besides women and children (Exodus ch.12).