How long was it from the setting up of the tabernacle until God moved Israel to journey?
It was seven weeks. The tabernacle was set up on the first of April, and Numbers 10:11 says that on the twentieth day of the second month the cloud was taken up, signaling Israel to journey. The period was short, only seven weeks, not a long stay.
Les teaches that the chronology is often overlooked. The tabernacle had just been set up, the priesthood was set, and the sacrifices had begun. Many assume Israel camped a long time before God moved them, but Les points to Numbers 10:11: it came to pass on the twentieth day of the second month. He calculates that as seven weeks, which is not very long. In Exodus, the Shekinah glory filled the tabernacle until God moved it and said it was time to go. So the time from the setting up of the tabernacle until the journey was only seven weeks.
And it came to pass on the twentieth day of the second month, in the second year, that the cloud was taken up from off the tabernacle of the testimony.
More Questions
Why do people assume Israel camped a long time before God told them to move?
People naturally assume Israel camped a long time before God moved them because of practical concerns like the supply of grass for their multitudes of cattle, goats, and sheep.