MOSES AND MIRIAM PRAISE GOD
LESSON FOR THE JUNIOR CLASSES
STUDY SCRIPTURE: EXODUS 15:11-21
KEY VERSE
Who is like You among the gods, Lord? Who is like You, majestic in holiness, Awesome in praises, working wonders.
Exodus 15:11
INTRODUCTION AND STUDY
The love of God is shown by how mother and father love each other dearly and bring up their children in the fear and instruction of the Lord. But it is also shown the next best way by the love of brothers and sisters for each other.
It is not that they will not sometimes annoy each other and do things they should not do to each other, but when they work together to show their love for each other it is a beautiful thing.
God loves that. He loves when a family can work together like Moses, Miriam, Moses’ older sister, and Moses’ brother Aaron.
They worked together to fulfill the plan of God to take the chosen descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and bring together the tribes these descendants God formed, take them out of slavery from the land of Egypt, and march them toward their inheritance, the Promised Land of Canaan.
God had arranged everything. When the ruler of Egypt tried to kill all the male children born to the tribes of Israel, Miriam and Moses’ mother worked out a plan to save the life of Moses. It worked. Moses was brought up in the Palace of the ruler, was educated and later used by God to lead the tribes of Israel, and tie them together as one people so they became a nation.
God forced the ruler of Egypt to release the people from slavery so they could worship Him and go to the Promised Land. After a final plague where the firstborn in Egypt was killed, the people of Israel were freed from slavery and left Egypt. Pharaoh changed his mind and regretted that he had allowed the Israelites to leave so he chased after them. But God showed His power, took the people safely through the Red Sea by piling uo the waters in a wall so that they could walk between the piled up waters. When the Egyptian army tried to follow the people through the piled up waters God made the waters come together and all the Egyptian army drowned.
The people of Israel were very happy that God had saved them from slavery and taken them safely from the terror of the vengeful Egyptian army. Moses wrote this song and led the nation in this Song of Praise for God’s great deliverance and salvation.
Moses’ entire family, including his sister Miriam who was highly regarded by the nation as a prophetess and his brother Aaron who was the high Priest, sang along with all the people in a great celebration. God loved that.
Everyone sang of God’s triumph over the Egyptian army which made the name of God full of honour and glory. God was a warrior who fought and delivered the people He loved dearly. God would not allow anyone to damage His people. So He let the proud and disrespectful army of Pharaoh sink into the bottom of the Sea like a stone.
God made the world and He controlled everything in nature so He could do what He did to control the waters at the Red Sea.
Nobody but God could do something like that. God showed His awesome unlimited power, and His ability to do wonders.
When the nations that did not like God and the nation of Israel saw what happened to Pharaoh and his army they were filled with terror and fear. They knew Israel would take over the Land of Canaan and they could not stop them. God would bring Israel to His holy mountain and to His Temple in Canaan.
Miriam took her timbrel and led the women with their timbrels in a song and dance to celebrate the victory of God and the salvation He had brought to the nation. She led the women in singing
“Sing to the LORD,
For He has triumphed gloriously!
The horse and his rider
He has thrown into the Sea.
So always remember God loves His people. He will always protect them from their enemies. God is all powerful and He cannot be stopped in fulfilling all His promises. So be thankful for all that God had done. Do not be afraid to sing praises to the Lord for He is good and His mercies will continue forever and ever.