How large an area did the children of Israel occupy when Moses led them in the wilderness?

Answer 1

One of the sages of the Talmud personally measured the place of the Israelites' encampment east of Jericho, whose location was still known in his time. The size was roughly three parsa (which is close to twelve kilometers) in length and three parsa (twelve kilometers) in width (Talmud, Berakhot 54b).

Answer 2

The Bible says that there were 600,000 fighting men that Moses led into the wilderness. Including women, children, the sick and elderly, as well as priests, this would mean that at least 2.5 million people left Egypt with Moses. In addition, they took livestock with them. They would also have needed some wagons to help carry tents and provisions. The Bible provides no clue as to the area required for the Israelite camps, but it is possible to make a rough estimate based on the numbers given.

If each fighting man led a family group that occupied just one hundred square feet while camped, with pathways equivalent to a further 100 square feet per family group, then the camps would have totalled around four square miles. Common areas such as kitchens, ablution areas, latrines and areas for prayer and sacrifice, would have occupied a similar area. Finally, the livestock would have occupied a substantial area. A reasonable estimate of the size of the encampment would be at least ten square miles. As there would have been burials on a daily basis, a burial area would have to be set aside somewhere outside each encampment, although archaeological evidence of these has never been found. It is simply inconceivable that such massive encampments were constructed and occupied over a period of forty years and yet no trace has ever been found, even though remains have been found from other periods in history.

For more information on the Book of Exodus, please visit:

http://christianity.answers.com/bible/the-book-of-exodus

For more information on Moses in history and tradition:

http://christianity.answers.com/theology/moses-in-history-and-tradition

For a short discussion on Archaeology and what it means for biblical literalism:

http://christianity.answers.com/theology/when-science-challenges-the-bible

Answer 3

The children of Israel occupied an area of about 9,700 square miles when Moses led them in the wilderness, which is roughly the size of New Jersey in the United States.