The area known as Goshen, where the Israelites lived, was approximately 20 miles wide and about 15 miles long. The city of Rameses, located at the upper edge of Goshen, was a treasure city of Egypt built by Israelite labor and served as the starting point of the exodus. From Rameses, the Israelites marched towards Succoth, a location 32 miles to the southeast. Assembling in Rameses, around 2.5 million people, including children, the elderly, and possibly some handicapped, along with their baggage, personal possessions, spoils from the Egyptians, and large herds of livestock, prepared to depart. The challenge was to move this massive group out of Rameses within a tight timeframe of 5 hours, from 1 a.m. to 6 a.m., under the cover of night as specified in scripture. However, even with a column 1 mile wide and 10 miles long, moving at an optimistic pace of 1 mile per hour, it would take 10 hours for the last person to leave Rameses, well past sunrise. This demonstrates the physical impossibility of the entire group departing Rameses by night within the proposed timeframe.

Goshen, the area where the Israelites resided, spans approximately 30 miles in width and 15 miles in length. Within this region lies the city of Rameses, constructed through Israelite labor as one of Egypt's treasure cities. From Rameses, the children of Israel embarked on their journey to Succoth, located about 25 miles to the southeast. The challenge of mobilizing 2.5 million people, including children, the elderly, the disabled, along with baggage, the riches of Egypt, and herds of livestock, to assemble in Rameses and march out in order was immense, especially without modern conveniences. The logistics of such a movement, particularly under the constraint of a five-hour window between 1 AM and 6 AM, as suggested by some understandings, raise significant doubts about its feasibility. Exodus 12:37 clearly indicates that the Israelites departed from Rameses, not directly from their homes, further complicating the scenario of a rapid nighttime exodus.

Goshen, the region in Egypt where the Israelites resided, spans approximately 30 miles in width and 15 miles in length. Within this area lies the city of Rameses, constructed through Israelite labor as one of Egypt's treasure cities. From Rameses, the children of Israel embarked on their journey to Succoth, located about 25 miles to the southeast. This exodus involved 2.5 million people, including children, the elderly, and the disabled, along with their baggage, the riches of Egypt, and vast herds of livestock, all moving on foot without modern conveniences. The challenge of assembling in Rameses and marching out in order, as described, raises significant logistical concerns, especially under the constraint of a mere five-hour window between 1 am and 6 am, during which they were to depart at night. Even with the urgency of the Egyptians pressing them to leave and their adrenaline high, the Israelites, burdened by their diverse group and possessions, could likely only manage an average speed of one mile per hour in the darkness. Given a column a mile wide stretching at least ten miles long, the time required for the last person to cross the starting point from Rameses would exceed ten hours, pushing their departure well past sunrise.

The Israelites' homes during the time of the Passover were located in Goshen, not assembled in Rameses, as repeatedly shown in the book of Exodus. They stayed in their houses in Goshen on the night of the fourteenth, adhering to the command not to leave until morning. Moses, following God's directive, remained in Goshen as well, receiving Pharaoh's message there through servants who braved the night after the Death Angel passed. The journey from their houses in Goshen to Rameses, a distance of about 15-20 miles, occurred during the daylight of the fourteenth, taking approximately 7 to 9 hours at a pace of about 2 miles per hour, allowing them to arrive around 2-3:00 in the afternoon to continue preparations for departure.

The children of Israel were located in the land of Goshen during the time of the first Passover, as established in Genesis 47:5-6, where Pharaoh instructed Joseph to have his family dwell in the best of the land, specifically in Goshen, in the northern portion of the Nile Delta, known as Lower Egypt. This area, large enough to support a significant population and livestock, was where their houses were situated, distinct from the city of Rameses, which was located within Goshen at its south-central end and served as a treasure city built by Israelite slave labor. The Israelites were not crowded into a single metropolis but were spread out over a considerable area, with their houses in Goshen being the setting for the Passover observance, as repeatedly emphasized in Exodus 12 with the Hebrew word bayith used thirteen times to denote their dwellings. During the plagues, as described in Exodus 8:20-22, 9:4, 9:26, 10:4-6, 10:15, and 10:21-23, God made a clear distinction between His people in Goshen and the Egyptians, protecting the Israelites from afflictions such as flies, livestock death, hail, locusts, and darkness, while the Egyptians suffered in their own houses. For the Passover, Exodus 12:7, 12:21-24, and 12:28 confirm that the Israelites were commanded to remain in their houses in Goshen, applying blood to the doorposts and lintels, and not to leave until morning, ensuring the Death Angel passed over them at midnight on the fourteenth day. There is no scriptural record of them assembling in Rameses or dwelling in tents prior to the Passover; they observed the ordinance in their houses scattered across Goshen, as God commanded, staying there through the night of the fourteenth until morning, in obedience and fear of His power.