Hi Sophiee, Basic math for you Dougg: if the children of the first generation were born in Egypt (as the Torah describes) then they would have been 40+ years old when they entered Israel.

Okay, here is my math. The oldest of the children would have been 12 years old upon leaving Egypt. That would have made them 40 + 12 = 52 years old as the oldest of the second generation that entered the promised land.

The youngest of the children that were born in Egypt and left Egypt with their parents, that first generation, were infants, 1 day being the youngest. So let's say 40 + 0 = 40 years.

So the children of the first generation that were born in Egypt and left with their parents ranged from 40 - 60 years old when they entered the promised land.

More math. The parents of those children 40 -60 years, the youngest of them would be 40 + 17 (assuming the women were young had their children) = 57 years old. The women who gave birth when they 35 years old would have been 40 + 35 = 75 years old. That's the range of the mon's for the infants coming out of Egypt. 57 - 75 years old. For the 12 year old children, the mom's would have been 57+12 = 69 and 75+12 = 87. So overall the range would have been 57 for the youngest mom's of the first generation and 87 for the oldest mom's - at the time the second generation went into the promised land. As I said, most would have been quiet elderly.

What you are not getting, Sophiee, is the adults of the first generation had children who were born in Egypt and in the wilderness. Both groups combined are the second generation because they were the children of the first generation - regardless if they were born in Egypt or the wilderness. "Where" the next generation of any group is born makes no difference.

You are the next generation of your parents. If you had a sister borne in China a few years before you - it makes no difference - she is part of your generation, not your parents.

The parents of those Israelites who were children upon leaving Egypt were the first generation. And their children were the second generation, whether born in Egypt or in the wilderness.


Peace,

Doug L.