Moses
The Patriarchal Age Pt. 5
Elementary Studies
Lesson 7
This lesson will cover very briefly part of the life of Moses. We will begin with Exodus, the first chapter and end with chapter twenty. Read this as you do your lessons and it will be much more enjoyable.
After Joseph and all his brothers, even all that generation died, there was a new king in Egypt that did not know Joseph. There were many Israelites [descendants of Jacob] and the king was afraid that if a war were to break out between the Egyptians and another nation, the Israelites would help the another nation defeat Egyptians [Exodus 1:10]
The king tried many ways to keep the Israelites from multiplying but failed. Finally he commanded that all the baby boys should be drowned.
This is where we meet Moses. We do not know much about the birth and death of many of the people in the Bible. But with Moses, we read about his birth, much of his life and of his death.
Moses’ mother loved him very much and she kept him at home from Pharaoh’s soldiers for while. As Moses grew older it was not safe anymore at home, so Moses’ mother put him in a little basket in the river.
When Pharaoh’s daughter came to take a bath in the river, she found Moses in the basket. When she saw how beautiful a baby he was, she loved him. She loved him so much that she brought him up as her own son. She even let Moses’ mother nurse him.
When Moses grew up, he loved his own people even though he was brought up as an Egyptian and in a king’s palace. When he saw the Hebrews [what the Israelites were sometimes called] being mistreated by the Egyptians he was very angry. He even killed one of the Egyptians that was beating a Hebrew.
After the Pharaoh found out about this he planned to kill Moses. Moses ran away to a place called Midian. He married a woman in that land and lived there for forty years.
The children of Israel cried out to God to bring them out of the land of Egypt and away from all the troubles that they were suffering. God heard their prayers and He chose Moses to lead them out of the hands of the wicked Pharaoh.
God talked to Moses out of a burning bush and told him to return to the land of Egypt and lead his people out of the land. Moses made several excuses but finally he realized God would help him. So he went to the land of Egypt to deliver God’s people out of their bondage [or trouble]. Moses [with God’s help] tried many ways to get Pharaoh to let the people leave but he would not let them go. God sends ten plagues upon the Egyptians [Exodus chapters 7 through 12] to try to persuade them to let the Israelites leave Egypt.
After the tenth plague the Pharaoh let the Israelites go. God caused the Red Sea to part and the Hebrews walked across into the wilderness.
The wanderings of the children of Israel in the wilderness are very interesting. Notice how God was always with them. Also notice how they complained and murmured at different things. Because of God’s great love for His people, he looked after them even when they were so unthankful.
This lesson begins with Exodus chapter one and ends with chapter nineteen. We recommend that you read these chapters from the Bible in order that you may understand this lesson better.
The next lesson will begin with the giving of the law on Mount Sinai, which is also the beginning of the next period of Bible history, the Mosaic age.