You Shalt Have No Other gods Before Me

"Ye shall walk after the Lord your God, and fear Him." Deut. 13:4

When the Israelites reached the land where God had led them, they were careful to not worship idols. Idols weren't gods at all - only wood and stone. They can't hear when you pray or give you what you want. The Israelites learned that the people in the land had frightening ways of trying to please their false gods.

They had one god called Moloch. His idol was made of brass and the people would sacrifice their children to him, all the while making noise with drums and trumpets so no one could hear the children crying.

Another god was called Baal. The people would set up images of Baal and hold a great feast. Another goddess they called Ashtoreth, or queen of heaven. Women would bake cakes in honor of her and dance for her. They believed she sent the moon to shine on them at night. 

The Israelites knew they weren't to worship any false gods. They were to remember how the One True God spoke to them out of a cloud and told them, "I am the Lord thy God - you shall have no other gods but me." God told them that if they worshiped him and served him, all would be well and they would be happy and blessed. But if they turned away and served these false idols, there would only be sorrow and misery.

QUESTIONS

1. Say the First Commandment.

2. Say the Second.

3. What three idols did the people of the country worship ?

4. What did they do in honour of Moloch ?

5. What did they do in honour of Baal ?

6. What did they call Ashtoreth ?

7. What did they think she sent them ?

8. Who made the moon ?

9. What would happen if the children of Israel worshipped God ?

10. What would happen if they worshipped idols ?

Moses Destroys the Golden Calf

"Know therefore that the Lord thy God, He is God." Deut. 7:9

Moses stayed on Mount Sinai for 40 days. The Israelites didn't know what happened to him. They thought he'd died because he'd been gone for so long. Even though they'd heard God's voice speaking to them, they grew impatient and didn't want to wait. So they said they wanted something to worship since Moses was gone. They took their gold earrings and melted them down and made a golden calf. Then they began to worship this idol, and they sang, danced and had a feast. 

Moses came down off of Mount Sinai with the tablets God had written. He heard shouting and singing, then saw people dancing around the golden calf. He grew angry at them and threw the two tablets down on the ground. They broke into pieces. He punished the Israelites for disobeying and he broke the calf to pieces and ground it up.

Then he prayed to God to forgive them. God did, and Moses received two new tablets of stone with the commandments written on them.

QUESTIONS

1. Where did Moses go?

2. What was God going to give him ?

3. Who were left below ?

4. What did the Israelites want?

5. What did they make of their earrings ?

6. What is the Second Commandment ?

7. How did they break the Second Commandment ?

8. What did Moses do with the tablets?

11. Why did he throw them down?

12. What did he do with the golden calf?

13. What did he do then?

14. What did God do?

God Writes the Ten Commandments

"The Lord talked with you face to face in the mount out of the midst of the fire." Deuteronomy 5:4

When God spoke the Ten Commandments, he called Moses to speak with Him in the cloud. Moses was the only man that spoke to God this way. 

God gave him two blocks of stone where He'd written the Ten Commandments with His own finger. Then God told them to make a chest - an ark - to keep the commandments in. He told Moses to make it from wood, cover it with gold, and have two cherubims - angels - on each side. This chest was called the Ark of the Covenant. 

God told Moses to put the Ark inside of a room in a tent. He told him how to make the room, how to make the curtains for the tent and everything they would need to carry it with them. This was called the Tabernacle and it was a holy place. The Israelites could pray in front of the Tabernacle but they couldn't go inside because it was going to be God's holy place. The room where the Ark was kept was called the Holy of Holies. Only the priest God chose could enter that room.

The first High Priest God chose was Moses' brother, Aaron. God gave Moses instructions on how to make Aaron's clothing. He had a beautiful tunic to wear and a cap with a "Holiness to the Lord" etched on it. Aaron was also made an embroidered robe, decorated with bells and pomegranates and a blue scarf over his chest. He was to wear a breast plate and on it would be twelve precious stones, each carved with the name of a tribe of Israel. Then Aaron would always have them nearby, on his heart and his mind, when he prayed to God. 

God gave Moses all of these instructions while on the mountain, and Moses went back to the people to tell them what to do.

QUESTIONS

1. What was given to Moses on Mount Sinai?

2. Who spoke the Commandments ?

3. To whom did God give them ?

4. What were they written on ?

5. Who wrote them ?

6. Where were they to be kept ?

7. What was the chest like ?

8. What was the chest called ?

9. Where was Moses to put the chest ?

10. What was the room called ?

11. Who could go near the Holy of Holies?

12. Who was the first High Priest?

13. Who was Aaron?

14. What was Aaron supposed to wear?

15. Why couldn't the people come inside ?

The Ten Commandments

"Thou heardest His words out of the midst of the fire." Deut. 4:36

When the Israelites had left Egypt, God told Moses to lead them to Mount Sinai. This was a high, rocky mountain in the wilderness. God told Moses to put a boundary - like a fence - around the mountain so that no one could touch it. It was a holy place. The people were to pray around it and wait. God covered the mountain with a dark cloud and smoke. The ground shook and they heard thunder and saw lightning from the sky. Then they heard God's voice speaking to them adn they were afraid. 

God spoke out of that cloud to Moses and gave him the Ten Commandments and the rest of the laws the people needed to obey. God wrote the commandments himself on two tablets of stone. 

God wants us to obey the commandments just like the Israelites needed to obey them. They are His words and should be kept. When we pray, we can ask for strength and help to obey them.

 QUESTIONS

1. Where had the children of Israel come from ?

2. Who was leading them ?

3. Where did God tell Moses to take them ?

4. What wonderful sight did they see on Mount Sinai ?

5. What did they hear ?

6. Who spoke out of the cloud?

7. What did God speak ?

8. How many Commandments?

9. Do you know the first commandment?

10. On what did God write them?

11. To whom did He give them?

12. Did you promise to keep them?

13. How can you be helped to do as they tell you?

14. How do you ask for God's help ?