LESSON OVERVIEW FOR ADULTS
In Exodus 1:1-2:10, we find God’s people living in Egypt under harsh conditions. Four hundred years had passed since Joseph brought his family to Egypt as honored guests, but now the Israelites had grown numerous and the new Pharaoh feared their strength. He enslaved them and forced them into brutal labor, treating them with cruelty. Despite their suffering, the Israelite population continued to grow, which alarmed Pharaoh even more. In his fear, he issued a horrific decree that all Hebrew baby boys must be thrown into the Nile River to die.
Into this dangerous world, Moses was born to Jochebed and Amram, who already had two children: Miriam and Aaron. This family demonstrated extraordinary love and courage in protecting their newborn son. For three months, they hid Moses, but when they could no longer conceal him, Jochebed made a waterproof basket and placed him among the reeds by the riverbank. Miriam bravely watched over her baby brother from a distance. When Pharaoh’s daughter discovered Moses and decided to adopt him, Miriam courageously approached and arranged for their own mother to nurse the baby. Through this family’s love, protection, and quick thinking, God preserved Moses’ life so he could later become the deliverer of his people. This story beautifully illustrates how families work together to love and protect one another, even in the most difficult circumstances.
OPENING ACTIVITY 6:00-6:15 | Baby Moses Basket Craft
Items Needed:
- Basket & Baby Moses (Print on Cardstock)
- Crayons
- Glue
Precut out the basket pieces and baby Moses. Have kids color the basket and baby. Help them assemble their basket.
Note: You can leave the handle off the basket to make it more realistic, or use 2 brads to fasten the handle to the basket so the kids can carry it.
BIBLE STORY 6:15-6:25
Question 1: Where is this found in the Bible? Exodus
Question 2: Is this in the Old Testament or New Testament? Old Testament
Boys and girls, today we’re going to hear about a special baby named Moses! Can you say “Moses”?
A long, long time ago, God’s people lived in a place called Egypt. Can you say “Egypt”? But there was a problem. The king of Egypt was named Pharoh, and he did NOT like God’s people.
So Pharaoh made God’s people work very, very hard. [Pretend to wipe sweat from forehead] Can you pretend to work hard? [Let children make working motions] They worked and worked and worked!
But God’s people kept having more and more babies! And Pharaoh got even MORE angry! [Stomp foot] He made a very bad, very sad rule. He said that all the baby BOYS had to be thrown into the river. That made everyone very sad. Can you make a sad face? [Let kids make sad faces]
Now, there was a mommy named Jochebed. Can you say “Jochebed”? [Wait for response] She had a little girl named Miriam [Wait for them to repeat] and a little boy named Aaron [Wait for them to repeat]. And then… Jochebed had a BABY!
Was it a boy or a girl? [Let kids guess] It was a BOY! And they named him Moses!
Jochebed loved baby Moses SO much! [Put hands on heart] Can you put your hands on your heart? [Let them copy you] Miriam loved baby Moses! Aaron loved baby Moses! The whole family loved baby Moses!
But remember Pharaoh’s bad rule? They had to hide baby Moses! So let’s be very, very quiet like they were hiding Moses. [Whisper] Shhhhh! [Put finger to lips, let children copy]
For three months, they kept Moses safe and hidden. But babies grow bigger! And babies make noise! [Cup hands around mouth] Can you make a baby crying sound? “Waaah! Waaah!” [Let children make crying sounds]
Mama Jochebed said, “We need a new plan to keep Moses safe!” So she took some long grass from by the river [make scooping motions] and she wove it together [make weaving motions with hands] to make a basket. Can you help me weave? [Do weaving hand motions together]
Then she got some sticky tar, which is like really thick glue, and she covered the basket so no water could get in! The basket could float!
Jochebed put baby Moses in the basket [pretend to place baby gently] and she took him to the river. Now, a river is VERY big water with lots of tall grass on the sides. [Stretch arms wide] Can you stretch your arms wide like the big river? [Let them stretch]
She put the basket in the water by the tall grass called reeds. Let’s stand up and be tall like the reeds swaying in the water! [Stand and sway back and forth, let children copy] Sway, sway, sway!
[Sit back down] Big sister Miriam was very brave! She said, “I will watch Moses!” So she hid in the reeds and watched. Let’s peek through our fingers like Miriam watching! [Peek through hands, let children copy]
The basket floated [make floating motions] in the water… and who do you think found baby Moses? [Wait for guesses]
It was Pharaoh’s daughter, the princess! She came to the river to take a bath. She saw the basket and said, “What is that?” Her helper got the basket for her.
When the princess opened the basket, Moses was crying! [Make crying motion] “Waaah!” Can you cry like baby Moses? [Let kids make crying sounds]
The princess looked at baby Moses and said, “Oh, this is one of the Hebrew babies. I feel sorry for him. He’s so sweet!” Even though her dad, Pharaoh, said to throw the baby boys in the river, SHE wanted to keep Moses safe! She loved him!
Guess who was still watching? Miriam! [Peek through fingers again] Brave Miriam came out from the reeds and walked right up to the princess! Miriam said, “Would you like me to find someone to take care of the baby for you?”
The princess said, “Yes! That would be wonderful!”
So who do you think Miriam brought back? [Wait for guesses] She brought their Jochebed! So Moses got to stay with his family!
When Moses got bigger, he went to live in the palace with the princess. But because his family loved him SO much and protected him, Moses was safe!
Let’s all say together: “Families love each other!” [Have children repeat]
God used Moses’ family to keep him safe because God had big plans for Moses! And God has big plans for YOU too!
Theological Questions:
- Who protected baby Moses? (His family—his mommy, his sister Miriam, and God also protected him)
- Why did Pharaoh’s daughter keep Moses instead of throwing him in the river like her daddy said? (She felt sorry for him; she loved him and wanted to help him)
Life Application Questions:
- How does your family show love to you? (Accept various answers—hugs, taking care of them, feeding them, etc.)
- What is one way you can show love to someone in your family this week? (Helping, hugging, sharing, being kind, etc.)
Closing Prayer:
Dear God, thank You for families who love each other. Thank You for protecting baby Moses through his brave family. Help us to love and take care of each other just like Moses’ family did. Amen!
WORSHIP IN SONG 6:25-6:35
PRAYER 6:35-6:45 p.m.
Transition kids to the floor for prayer time. Pray for families to love and protect each other, just like Moses’ family loved and protected him.
BIBLE VERSE GAME 6:45-6:55 | Baby Moses Match Game
Items Needed:
Memory Match Cards (Print 2 on Cardstock)
Description: Preprint and cutout the Baby Moses Memory Match cards (use multiple sets for larger groups). Turn them upside down and have kids find matches. As they find matches, retell that part of the Bible story.
BIBLE CRAFT 6:55-7:10 | Love Bug Craft
Items Needed:
- Love Bug Bodies (printed on cardstock, precut)
- Pipe cleaners (cut into small pieces for antennae)
- Small heart stickers
- Glue sticks
- Tape
- Popsicle sticks or tongue depressors
Description: Give each child pre-cut love bug bodies. Help them attach small pipe cleaner pieces as antennae to create “love bugs.” Add heart stickers to the bugs’ bodies. Tape a popsicle stick to the back of each bug to make a puppet. Children can use their love bug puppets to act out showing love to each other. The hearts on the bugs remind them that Jesus commanded us to love.
SNACK TIME & BIBLE VIDEO 7:10-7:25
Pass out snacks and allow kids time to eat snacks while the watch a recap Bible Story Video.
BONUS ACTIVITY | BABY MOSES PLAY DOH MATS
Items Needed
- Moses Playdoh Mats
- Playdoh
- Dry Erase Pockets
Print the Playdoh mats and put inside the Dry Erase pockets. Children use Playdoh to create Baby Moses on the Playdoh Mats.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV)
Exodus 1:1-22; 2:1-10
¹These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob, each with his household: ²Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, ³Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin, ⁴Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher. ⁵All the descendants of Jacob were seventy persons; Joseph was already in Egypt. ⁶Then Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation. ⁷But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.
⁸Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. ⁹And he said to his people, “Behold, the people of Israel are too many and too mighty for us. ¹⁰Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, lest they multiply, and, if war breaks out, they join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land.” ¹¹Therefore they set taskmasters over them to afflict them with heavy burdens. They built for Pharaoh store cities, Pithom and Raamses. ¹²But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and the more they spread abroad. And the Egyptians were in dread of the people of Israel. ¹³So they ruthlessly made the people of Israel work as slaves ¹⁴and made their lives bitter with hard service, in mortar and brick, and in all kinds of work in the field. In all their work they ruthlessly made them work as slaves.
¹⁵Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, ¹⁶”When you serve as midwife to the Hebrew women and see them on the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall kill him, but if it is a daughter, she shall live.” ¹⁷But the midwives feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live. ¹⁸So the king of Egypt called the midwives and said to them, “Why have you done this, and let the male children live?” ¹⁹The midwives said to Pharaoh, “Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them.” ²⁰So God dealt well with the midwives. And the people multiplied and grew very strong. ²¹And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families. ²²Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, “Every son that is born to the Hebrews you shall cast into the Nile, but you shall let every daughter live.”
Exodus 2:1-10
¹Now a man from the house of Levi went and took as his wife a Levite woman. ²The woman conceived and bore a son, and when she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him three months. ³When she could hide him no longer, she took for him a basket made of bulrushes and daubed it with bitumen and pitch. She put the child in it and placed it among the reeds by the river bank. ⁴And his sister stood at a distance to know what would be done to him. ⁵Now the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, while her young women walked beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her servant woman, and she took it. ⁶When she opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the baby was crying. She took pity on him and said, “This is one of the Hebrews’ children.” ⁷Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and call you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?” ⁸And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Go.” So the girl went and called the child’s mother. ⁹And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this child away and nurse him for me, and I will give you your wages.” So the woman took the child and nursed him. ¹⁰When the child grew older, she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. She named him Moses, “Because,” she said, “I drew him out of the water.”
PARENT TAKE HOME SHEET
Today’s Key Takeaway: Families Love Each Other
What I Learned Today:
- Baby Moses was born when there was danger all around, but his family loved him and kept him safe.
- Moses’ mother put him in a special floating basket by the river, and his big sister Miriam bravely watched over him.
- God protected Moses through his loving family, and Pharaoh’s daughter found him and kept him safe.
Questions to Ask Me:
Theological Questions:
- Who made baby Moses? (God made baby Moses)
- Why did Moses’ family hide him? (Because Pharaoh wanted to hurt baby boys, and they wanted to keep Moses safe)
- Who watched over baby Moses in the basket? (His sister Miriam watched over him, and God protected him)
- Who found baby Moses in the river? (Pharaoh’s daughter, the princess, found him)
- Did God keep Moses safe? (Yes, God kept Moses safe and had a special plan for his life)
Life Application Questions:
- What are some ways your family shows love to you? (Hugs, taking care of me, feeding me, playing with me, keeping me safe)
- Who are the people in your family? (Accept their family members—parents, siblings, grandparents, etc.)
- How can you help someone in your family? (Being kind, sharing toys, helping clean up, giving hugs, listening)
- What is something brave that Miriam did in the story? (She watched over her baby brother and talked to the princess)
- How can you be a good helper in your family like Miriam? (Helping with little brothers or sisters, being kind, doing what parents ask)