Did the Hebrew people ever reach Canaan?, W. wonders. Oh, they reached it, alright, if that means merely crossing a line, crossing the Jordan. They arrived there after forty years of struggle.
Moses decided to remain in the desert until those born in the Egyptian captivity died. Only the young were to arrive in Canaan. Only those who no longer knew the bondage of their people at first hand.
Maimonides: 'It is not in the nature of man that, after having been brought up in slavish service he should of a sudden wash off from his hands the dirt of slavery'.
We're slaves, slaves, W. says. Look at us, my God. We'll do anything they tell us! Anything! – 'Especially you', he says. 'My God, you're the worse, dancing in your chains'. How far will we have to walk to wash slavery from our hands?
Lars Iyer's Blog 