The “late date” theory perceives the 480 years as a symbolic number that represents 12 generations (i.e., 12 x 40 years). However, the advocates of the “late date” theory assert that one generation is actually only about 25 to 30 years. Accordingly, 12 generations would not amount to 480 years. The original Hebrew text of 1 Kings 6:1 makes no mention of 12 generations. Therefore, the “late date” theory holds little credibility.
(2) The “early date” theory agrees with Judges 11:26
Judges 11:26 states, “While Israel lived in Heshbon and its villages, and in Aroer and its villages, and in all the cities that are on the banks of the Arnon, three hundred years, why did you not recover them within that time?”
Thus, 300 years passed from the beginning of the Canaan conquest until the time of Jephthah’s reign. The period of the judges, which came after the conquest of Canaan, can be considered to be 340 years because the time from the end of Jephthah’s rule and the beginning of King Saul’s reign, which includes the prophet Samuel’s ministry, is considered to be 56 years.3 Then, adding to this 84 years and 6 months (the sum of 40 years of King Saul’s reign [Acts 13:21], 40 years and 6 months of King David’s reign [2 Sam 5:4–5], and four years of Solomon’s reign [1 Kgs 6:1]) would make the time between the conquest of Canaan and the construction of the temple of Solomon at least 424 years and 6 months.
The wilderness journey (Num 14:33–34) and the period of the Canaan conquest generally are viewed as 40 years and 16 years respectively (refer to p. 236–37, The Duration of the Conquest of Canaan, in Chapter 14, The Conquest of Canaan). Thus, adding 40 years and 16 years to 424 years and 6 months yields approximately 480 years.
According to this calculation, therefore, it took 480 years from the time of the exodus until the construction of the temple of Solomon; hence, the year of the exodus becomes 1446 BC (480 years + 966 BC, the fourth year of Solomon’s reign) and demonstrates that the “early date” theory is in agreement with the overall biblical standpoint.
2. The Calculation of the Time of Ratification
(1) The Israelites entered Egypt in 1876 BC
Adding 430 years (the duration of the Israelites’ dwelling in Egypt [Exod 12:40–41; Gal 3:17]) to the year of the exodus results in 1876 BC as the year the Israelites entered Egypt.
1446 BC (year of the exodus) + 430 years = 1876 BC
(2) Jacob was born in 2006 BC
Jacob was 130 years old when he entered Egypt (Gen 47:9).
1876 BC + 130 years = 2006 BC
(3) Isaac was born in 2066 BC
Isaac was 60 years old when he became the father of Jacob (Gen 25:26).
2006 BC + 60 years = 2066 BC
Incidentally, at the time of Isaac’s birth (2066 BC), Abraham was 100 years old (Gen 21:5).
(4) The covenant of the torch was ratified in 2082 BC
Abraham took Hagar after having dwelled in Canaan for ten years, when he was 85 years old (Gen 12:4; 16:3). Abraham was 86 years old when Ishmael was born to him through Hagar (Gen 16:16). Therefore, the covenant of the torch was ratified when Abraham was 84 years old, before taking Hagar as his wife. This was 16 years before Isaac’s birth (100 – 84 = 16). Therefore, it can be deduced that 2082 BC was the year for the ratification of the covenant of the torch.
2066 BC + 16 years = 2082 BC
Chapter 5
The Meaning of the Prophecy “In the Fourth Generation They Will Return”
Genesis 15:13–16 And God said to Abram, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed 400 years. 14But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve; and afterward they will come out with many possessions. 15And as for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried at a good old age. 16Then in the fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”
God said that the period of the Israelites’ enslavement in a foreign land would be 400 years (Gen 15:13). Afterwards, in Genesis 15:16, He said that Abraham’s descendants would return to the land of Canaan in the fourth generation.
There are a few different theological perspectives on this matter. The majority of theologians, commentators, and pastors wrongly interpret the 400 years in Genesis 15:13 as being the same as the four generations in Genesis 15:16. In this view, one generation is equivalent to 100 years, which means 400 years would be four generations. They assert that although the 400 years and the four generations refer to the same amount of time, it was expressed differently for emphasis. This argument construes one generation as “the entire lifespan of a person,” approximating that the average lifespan is about 100 years. In this way, the 400 years and four generations are in agreement, and there would be no need to give further consideration about the time of its fulfillment.
2. Are 400 Years Equivalent to Four Generations?
As is evident from the previous excerpts, many theologians and pastors view the 400 years and the four generations as interchangeable time periods expressed differently. However, there are problems that arise from this interpretation.
First, the average lifespan of the patriarchs who lived in the ten generations prior to Abraham far exceeded 100 years. The lifespan of the patriarchs during that time were as follows: Noah lived 950 years (Gen 9:29); Shem, 600 years; Arpachshad, 438 years; Shelah, 433 years; and Eber, 464 years (Gen 11:10–17). Without question, the general lifespan was drastically shortened after the Tower of Babel; however, Peleg still lived 239 years; Reu, 239 years; Serug, 230 years; Nahor, 148 years; and Terah, 205 years (Gen 11:18–25, 32).
If God had equated 100 years to one generation and accordingly, 400 years to four generations, then the average lifespan of the patriarchs contemporaneous to Abraham would have been about 100 years. However, the average lifespan at that time far exceeded 100 years.
This argument is also valid for the generations that came after Abraham. The average lifespan exceeded 140 years even for some of the main figures in the Bible, such as Abraham, who lived to the age of 175 (Gen 25:7); Isaac, 180 (Gen 35:28–29); Jacob, 147 (Gen 47:28); Joseph, 110 (Gen 50:22); and Moses, 120 (Deut 34:7).
Even among the 20 immediate descendants of Adam down to Abraham, there was not one person who died around the age of 100. Thus, calculating 100 years as one generation and interpreting 400 years of slavery as four generations is unpersuasive.
Second, the 400 years and four generations are measured differently altogether. We must ponder deeply as to why God has distinctively described the time of the fulfillment of the covenant of the torch as “400 years” in Genesis 15:13 and the “fourth generation” in Genesis 15:16. The “400 years” refer to the length of time that it would take for the fulfillment of the covenant, while the “fourth generation” refers to the number of generations or number of people. Thus, different units are used in calculating the 400 years and the four generations.
In particular, the word generation in the phrase “in the fourth generation” is