In other words, they loaded the ship within twenty-four hours of receiving Yahweh’s command to depart, a parallel with their hasty departure from the valley of Lemuel after the marriages. Their ability to comply provides evidence that they have been collecting provisions for some time, since they could not have gathered sufficient provisions for the entire journey in a single day. Most of the provisions would have to be preserved in some fashion, probably by drying. Any preservation technique that would allow food to remain edible over long periods of time had to have required more than the twenty-four hours noted before they set sail.
Each person brings items into the ship “according to his age.” This phrase indicates that both responsibility and provisions were assigned ahead of time, suggesting long-range organization. Furthermore, young children would need less food, while parents would need enough to care for their own needs and those of their dependent children.
Culture: Reynolds and Sjodahl suggest: “The ‘honey in abundance’ may have been both the product of the bee, and the syrup made of dates, which the Hebrews called ‘honey’ (‘debash,’ Gen. 43:11).”
Variant: Skousen suggests that “with all our loading and our seeds” might have been “with all our lading and our seeds.” The word lading makes more sense in this context. The similarity in sound could have led the scribe to substitute the more common word for the less common lading. Nevertheless, Skousen notes that loading is correct and ultimately suggests retaining loading as the original word.