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For Children · Lesson 30 · D. Moses and the Exodus — Exodus to Deuteronomy

Moses Says Goodbye

Read together in your Bible: Deuteronomy 31; 34 (King James Version)

Old Moses looks out over the promised land and says goodbye
Memory Verse — Hide It in Your Heart
“And the LORD, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.”
Deuteronomy 31:8 · KJV

Say it together morning and night until you know it by heart — these are the very words of God.

The Story

Moses was now a hundred and twenty years old, and he knew that his work as Israel's leader was almost done. God had told him that he would not cross the river Jordan into the promised land — Joshua would lead the people in. So Moses gathered all the people together to say goodbye, and to give them God's words one more time.

Moses told the people not to be afraid of the nations in the land ahead of them, for the LORD their God would go with them: "he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee". Then he called Joshua and spoke to him in front of everyone: "Be strong and of a good courage", for Joshua would go with the people into the land God had sworn to their fathers, and would divide it among them. And Moses gave Joshua the promise of our memory verse: the LORD Himself would go before him; He would be with him, and would never fail him or forsake him.

Moses wrote all of God's law in a book and gave it to the priests to keep beside the ark, so that it could be read aloud to the people and their children in the years to come — God's words must never be forgotten. God also gave Moses a song to teach the people, to help them remember Him.

Then Moses climbed Mount Nebo, and from the top God showed him the whole promised land spread out below — Gilead and Dan in the north, the hills and the valleys, and the great sea far away in the west — the land He had promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And there on the mountain, "Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab", just as God had said. God Himself buried Moses, and no man knows where his grave is to this day. Even at a hundred and twenty years old, "his eye was not dim, nor his natural force abated" — God had kept him strong to the very end of his long life.

The people wept for Moses for thirty days. Then Joshua, full of the spirit of wisdom because Moses had laid his hands on him, took up the work, and the people listened to him. And the Bible gives Moses this honour: "there arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses" — a man whom the LORD knew face to face. Moses had said goodbye, but God's promise had not ended: the God who never left Moses, and never left Israel, will never leave us either. He never has — and He never will.

The Big Truth

Moses told the people God would never leave them or forsake them — and He never has.

What We Learn

  1. Moses' work finished and a new leader took his place, but God never changed and never left — leaders come and go, God stays forever.
  2. God's promise to Joshua is for us too: He goes before us, He is with us, and He will never fail us or forsake us.
  3. Moses trusted God to the very last day of his long life — we can trust Him every day of ours.

Talk About It

  1. What did Moses say to the people and to Joshua in his goodbye?
  2. How did God care for Moses at the end — by showing him the land, and by burying him Himself?
  3. When something changes in your life — a move, a new place, a friend leaving — what promise from this lesson can you remember?

Fun to Do

Make a Promise Card for Your Pillow! Write the memory verse, Deuteronomy 31:8, on a card in your very best writing (ask for help if you need it), and decorate the border with mountains and a river. Keep it by your bed, and read it whenever you feel lonely, worried, or afraid — and remember: God will never leave you.

Let’s Pray

Dear God, thank You that You will never leave me or forsake me. Help me to be strong and brave like Joshua, trusting You every day of my life. Amen.

← Balaam's Talking Donkey All Children's Lessons Joshua and the River Jordan →
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