When Moses led the Hebrews out of Egypt, they wandered for 40 years before they reached the Promised Land, which was not all that far away. (They had created a golden calf and worshipped it while...

When Moses led the Hebrews out of Egypt, they wandered for 40 years before they reached the Promised Land, which was not all that far away. (They had created a golden calf and worshipped it while Moses was off getting the Ten Commandments, and God was punishing them.) Why 40 years? Why not 25 or 35? Because in those times, 40 years was a lifespan, ensuring that no one who left Egypt with Moses was still alive when they made it to the Promised Land. Only those who were born en route made it.