Preparing for the Exodus Children’s Sunday School Lessons

Greetings, brothers, and sisters! Here are 3 full-length Sunday School lessons you can use to set the stage for teaching about the Exodus from Egypt.

This first collection of lessons includes:

• Shiphrah and Puah Do What is Right – two midwives listen to God instead of Pharaoh
• God Gives Moses' Mom a Great Idea – the saving of baby Moses, and God's leading in our lives
• Moses and the Burning Bush – God assures Moses that He'll give him the help he needs

All of these lessons are told as a first-hand story from one of the people involved. Kids will hear from Shiphrah, Moses' sister Miriam, and Moses himself.

Besides the story and discussion questions, you'll also find ideas for games, crafts, and snack activities.

If you want to teach these stories a different way, be sure to check out my children's sermons about the Exodus. . You'll find object lessons you can use to tell the stories without the use of the first-person narratives.

Recommended Extras

Consider using these resources to extend your lesson time. They're perfect increasing student understanding both visually as they engage with the stories on their own time.

Paid Resources

I enjoy showing videos in my classes. It helps students get familiar with the Biblical setting, people, and overall story. I'll generally use one video as an introduction to a series of lessons and then use the second video as a review after the series is over. Here are my top choices.

Superbook: Let My People Go – This is probably going to be the most popular with kids, especially if they're familiar with the Superbook series. But even if they're not, they'll enjoy the Disney-esque animation style and the cast of fictional characters that travel back in time to meet the Biblical characters.

The Greatest Adventure Stories from the Bible: Moses – Similar to the Superbook idea, three teenagers travel back to the days of Moses in this episode. The art style is more realistic, but the production value is a bit dated. Still worth showing though!

Greatest Heroes and Legends of the Bible – Of course, another great option is to listen Charlton Heston reprise his role as Moses with this series. It is an older series, but the art and high-quality production still appeal to the modern child audience.

The Prince of Egypt – And if you're looking for a full-length movie and don't mind some additions to what we know of the story, this DreamWorks production is the highest-quality movie on Moses you'll find. I've shown it during special movie nights after a series on Moses and the Exodus, but you could also show it in clips to introduce each lesson or show it over two or three weeks in class.

Bible Fun Factory: Volume 2 and Volume 3 – In the second volume of the series, fellow indie author Mary Kate Warner has a great lesson on Moses' mother along with lessons you can use for the second half of Genesis. The third volume has a lesson on God speaking to Moses through the burning bush and four other lessons that we'll also cover in later posts. She includes a variety of games and lesson activities to make each lesson as fun as possible.

The Beginner's Bible: Baby Moses and the Princess – If you have a younger crowd, consider telling the Bible story with this illustrated story book. The art style and simple phrasing are perfect for keeping the attention of preschoolers up to about 2nd grade.

Free Resources

Free Sunday School Curriculum has a coloring page and activity page in their lesson, The Israelites are Slaves . You'll also find a craft to make paper chains to remind kids that the Israelites were slaves in Egypt. They also have material for God Protects Baby Moses and God Talks to Moses .

You'll find more coloring and activity pages from Sermons4Kids about baby Moses and the burning bush . They also have a message from Karin Grant about God's name of I Am and how it relates to us.

Make a take-home packet of these pages and reward kids who bring them back. It's a great way to get them started spending time with Scripture outside of church.

Ministry-to-Children published a lesson showing the similarities between Moses' birth and Jesus'. I recommend using it as a follow-up to the lesson below.

Shiphrah and Puah Do what is Right Children's Sunday School Lesson

Purpose: Use this Exodus children's Sunday School lesson to teach kids about doing the right thing, even when it's difficult.

Needed: volunteer to play Shiphrah (you can be Shiphrah if you want), baby doll, soft play balls or scrap paper to make paper wads

Game: Simon Says – You give students commands of what to do, acting out the motions. The trick is that you have to say, "Simon says…" to do the action. Sometimes, you'll give a command and act out a motion without saying, "Simon says" first. If students listen to you and complete the command, they're out. Sometimes, you'll act out a different motion than you tell the students to perform. If they perform the wrong action, they're out.

Play until only one student is left in the game. Let them be Simon for the next round and continue playing as long as time allows.

Lesson: (Note: Always allow students enough time to think about and answer the questions before clarifying the teaching.)

Ask students, What would you do if your teacher or your parent asked you to do something wrong? Would you do it?

What if you knew you would get in trouble if you didn't do what they told you to do?

What if the king or the president asked you to do something wrong? Then, would you do it?

Well, today we're going to meet a woman who believed in God and would not do the wrong thing that her king told her to do.

(Ask Shiphrah to come in.)

(Shiphrah reads the following script based on Exodus 1:1-21 .)

Shiphrah: (enters, carrying a baby doll) Hello, everyone! My name is Shiphrah. Can you say that? Everyone say "Shiphrah". Very good!

Well, a long time ago, I lived in Egypt. The people of Israel were living in Egypt because when Joseph told Pharaoh what his dreams meant, Pharaoh made Joseph the second-in-command over the whole country. Joseph told his whole family to move to Egypt with him, and that's what they did. Jacob and all of Joseph's brothers and their whole family moved to Egypt to be with Joseph.

But, then, Joseph died, and a new Pharaoh became king. He didn't know about how Joseph had been second-in-command and he didn't care about us Israelites. In fact, he started to be afraid of us because there were so many of us Israelites in Egypt. He thought that if he let us keeping having more babies and getting bigger, then we might try to join up with his enemies and leave the country.

So, because the new Pharaoh was afraid of us Israelites, he turned us into slaves and made us build his buildings for him and do all of the farming work. Pharaoh and the Egyptians were very mean to us by making us be their slaves, but God was still with us. He kept letting us have babies so that there kept being more and more Israelites.

Of course, that made that mean old Pharaoh even more afraid of us. So, one day, he called me and my partner, Puah, into his palace. Puah and I were both nurses who helped take care of the other Israelite women when they were having their babies. Pharaoh told us (using a lower voice), "Shiphrah and Puah, I don't want the Israelites to have any more baby boys. Those boys could grow up to be warriors that might fight against me. So, when you go help take care of the Israelite women when they're having their babies, I want you to look and see if their baby is a boy or a girl. If it is a girl, you can let her live. But if it is a boy, I want you to kill him."

Puah and I were so afraid. We knew Pharaoh would be mad at us if we didn't kill the baby boys, but we couldn't do that. We knew that God said killing was wrong. So we didn't do it, even though we were afraid of what Pharaoh might do to us for not listening to him.

When Pharaoh called us back into the palace and asked us why we hadn't been killing the Israelite baby boys, we lied and told him that the Israelite women kept having their babies before we could get there and kill them.

God was so proud of us for listening to Him and not killing the baby boys, that He let us have babies of our own.

(Have students thank Shiphrah.)

Review Questions

Why was Pharaoh so mean to the Israelites? (He was afraid they would join up with his enemies and fight against him.)

So, Pharaoh made the Israelites be his slaves. Then, what did he do to try to make it so that there wouldn't be any more Israelite baby boys? (He told the Israelite nurses, Shiphrah and Puah, to kill the baby boys when they born.)

Did God want the nurses to kill the baby boys? (No.)

Did the nurses do it? (No.)

Do you think it would be hard for them to not listen to Pharaoh? (Yes.)

Pharaoh told the nurses to do something wrong, but they listened to God instead of Pharaoh. It was probably hard for them to do the right thing because they knew they could get in trouble. Pharaoh could even have had them put to death for disobeying him. But they did the right thing and God rewarded them for it. Sometimes, it's hard for us to do the right things, but if we listen to God instead of other people, He will reward us.

Game: Pharaoh Says – Tell students that you want them to practice not listening when someone tells them to do the wrong thing. You're going to play Simon Says, but, now, they should only listen to you when you don't say "Pharaoh says" first. If anyone does do what you tell them when you say, "Pharaoh says…," they're out.

Game: Despite All Obstacles – Set up an obstacle course with two mirror paths. Divide the students into two teams. One student from each team runs the obstacle course at a time while the other team members line up along the length of the obstacle course. When they're not running, the members of the opposite team throw soft balls or paper wads at the runner from the sidelines.

If a student makes it through the obstacle course without being hit, they score a point for their team and return to the sidelines. If they are hit, they go to the sidelines to throw but not run again. After each pair runs the course, gather the balls or paper wads again for the next two to run.

The game ends when all the students have run the course. The team with the most points wins.

Afterward, explain that we have to do the right things in life even when it seems difficult. There might be things that get in the way of us doing the right thing. There might be people who try to keep us from doing the right thing, like Pharaoh tried to stop Shiphrah from doing the right thing. But we have to keep doing what we know is right.

Closing Prayer: Father God, You always help us to know what the right thing is. We pray that You'll give us the courage to do what You want us to do even when other people try to stop or tell us to do the wrong things. We want to follow You above everyone else. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.

God Gives Moses' Mom a Great Idea Children's Sunday School Lesson

Purpose: Use this children's Sunday School lesson on the birth of Moses to teach kids why they should always listen to what God tells them.

Needed: volunteer to play Miriam (you can be Miriam if you want), baby doll, basket, paper to make journals, crayons or colored pencils

Intro Activity: Brainstorm – Tell students that you want their help to create a new product or solve a problem. First, ask them what product they want to design or what problem they want to solve. Then, guide them with questions on how they might accomplish their goal. Affirm every idea and try to work it into the product or solution.

When you're finished, say, Those were some great ideas you all had! Today, we're going to hear about how God gave someone a great idea.

Lesson: Say, Last week, we met a woman named Shiphrah. She was a nurse who helped the Israelite women have their babies when the Israelites were living in Egypt. Does anyone remember what Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, told Shiphrah to do when she saw a baby Israelite boy being born? (Pharaoh told her to kill the baby Israelite boys.)

Why did Pharaoh tell her to do that? (He was afraid the Israelites would grow up and join his enemies and fight against him.)

Did Shiphrah do it? Did she kill the baby Israelite boys? (No.)

Shiphrah did what was right and listened to God instead of Pharaoh.

Well, today we're going to meet someone else who is going to tell us a little bit more about what happened when the Israelites were in Egypt.

(Ask Miriam to come in.)

(Miriam reads the following script based on Exodus 1:22-2:10 .)

Miriam: (enters, carrying a baby doll) Wow! Look at all these great kids. Hi, kids! My name is Miriam and I want to tell you a little bit about my brother, Moses, today. Is that okay? Are you ready to hear my story?

Great! Well, a long time ago, when we were living in Egypt, the Pharaoh told Shiphrah and Puah, the nurses, to kill all the baby boys as soon as they were born. But Shiphrah and Puah wouldn't do it. So, Pharaoh ordered all of the mothers to kill their baby boys by throwing them in the river and letting them drown.

Does that sound very nice? Would you throw your baby in the river and let it drown? No, of course you wouldn't. And my mom didn't want to do that, either. So, when she had a baby boy, my little brother, she hid him for three months, and didn't let Pharaoh or any of his guards know that she had him.

But after three months, it started to get too hard to keep him hidden. She knew that Pharaoh's guards would find him sooner or later and, when they did, they would kill him. So God gave my mom a plan. She put my baby brother in a basket (put baby doll in basket) and put the basket by the river. Then, she told me to hide by the edge of the river and watch him to make sure that the basket didn't go into the water or anything.

So, that's what I did. I watched the basket and I watched it and watched it…until someone started coming down to the river. You'll never guess who it was. It was the princess, Pharaoh's daughter! She was coming down to the river with her servants to take a bath in the river.

Then, she looked over and saw my baby brother's basket. She sent her slave to pick up the basket and bring it to her and she found my baby brother inside. My baby brother was crying and the princess felt sorry for him. She decided to keep him for herself!

Then, I came out of my hiding spot and ran over to her. "Do you want me to find someone to take care of him for you?" I asked the princess.

She said yes, so I went and got my mom. My mom took care of my baby brother for the princess, and the princess named him Moses. That's how my baby brother was born, and that's how he became a prince in Egypt. The princess adopted him as her own son.

But it's all because God gave my mom the idea to put him in the basket by the river. God knew that the princess would come and find him. God knew that the princess would take care of him. Isn't that a great story?

(Have students thank Miriam.)

Review Questions

What did Pharaoh say to do to all the Israelite baby boys? (Drown them.)

Who gave Moses' mom the idea to put him in a basket by the river? (God.)

What happened to Moses when his mom put him in the basket? Did he drown in the river? (No, the princess found him and he was allowed to live.)

Who got to take care of Moses after the princess adopted him? (Moses' mom.)

Do you think you should listen to God if He gives you an idea? (Yes.)

We should also listen to what God is telling us because God always has the best ideas. He saved Moses from being killed and even made it so that his mom could keep taking care of him. If we listen to God, He can protect us and make good things happen for us too.

So, let's remember to trust God and do what He tells us.

Craft: Idea Basket – Give children paper to make journals out of. You can give them staples or string to bind the journals. On the front of the journal, have them draw Moses' mother getting the idea to put Moses in the basket.

Explain that this is their journal to write down ideas that God gives them. It can be a great way for them to think about what God might be leading them to do in their daily lives or what direction He might want them to follow as they get older. Get them started by telling them to write "Ideas of what God wants me to do today…" on the top of one page and "Ideas of what God wants me to do in my life…" on another page.

Game: Finding Moses – Tell the students to close their eyes. Then, take the baby doll and basket (or a smaller version of it) and hide it somewhere in the room. Tell students to open their eyes and find the baby Moses. The first student who finds it gets to hide it for the next round.

An alternative would be allowing the student to hide themselves. In that case, they are Moses, and their hiding place is the basket.

Closing Prayer: Lord, we thank You for giving us all great ideas of what You want us to do, just like You gave Moses' mom the idea of how to save Moses in the basket. Help us to always listen to You so that we can follow Your plan in our lives.

Moses and the Burning Bush Children's Sunday School Lesson

Purpose: Use this children's Sunday School lesson about God talking to Moses from out of the burning bush to teach kids how God helps us when He calls us to do something.

Needed: volunteer to play Moses (you can be Moses if you want), long stick for a staff, flashlight, supplies to make a snack (optional: things to burn)

Optional Intro Activity: Gather a variety of items that will burn or melt, including a twig from a bush. Before lighting each item on fire, ask students what they think will happen. Save the twig for last.

Explain that we can make some things that won't be damaged by fire, but it's very rare. Say, And, of course, we can't make a bush or a tree or any kind of plant that won't burn. But in today's story, we're going to hear about a bush that didn't burn up when it was on fire.

Lesson: Ask students, What are some things that you're good at?

What are some things that you're not very good at? (The teacher should also share something they're not good at.)

What would you think if God told you it was really important for you do something that you weren't very good at? Would you try to do it or would you tell God that you're not good at that thing and that He should ask someone else to do it?

Well, today we're going to meet a man who did ask God to find someone else to do it, and we're going to see what God said to him.

(Ask Moses to come in.)

(Moses reads the following script based on Exodus 2:11-4:17 .)

Moses: (enters, carrying a staff) Well, hello everyone! My name is Moses. You might remember that I was the baby who the princess found by the side of the river. My mom put me there because Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, had told the Israelites to put all of their baby boys in the river and let them drown. But my mom didn't put me in the river. She put me in a basket by the side of the river so that I wouldn't drown. That's when the princess found me and adopted me as her own baby.

I grew up and was a prince. How would you like to be princes or princesses?

Well, it was pretty nice. But, then, I started thinking about the Israelites. I was an Israelite and I had become a prince, but the rest of the Israelites were still slaves. Would you like to be a slave?

No, being a slave is no fun. Your masters are mean to you and you have to do hard work all day long. I went out one time and saw one of the slave bosses beating up an Israelite slave. It made me really mad to see that Egyptian slave boss beating up an Israelite slave. So, I looked around and didn't see anyone else. I went up to the slave boss and killed him. I know I shouldn't have done it. I should have just broken up the fight. But I let myself get too angry and I killed him.

The next day, I went out again and I saw two Israelites fighting. I told them that they should be friends and not fight, and one of them asked if I was going to kill him like I killed the Egyptian slave boss.

I didn't think anyone had seen me kill the Egyptian, but I guess the Israelite the slave boss was beating must have told what I did. When Pharaoh heard about what I did, he tried to kill me, but I ran away.

I went to another country called Midian. When I got there, I saw these shepherds picking on some girls and their sheep. The girls were just trying to get some water out of the well for their sheep, but these other shepherds came up and cut in line and made the girls leave so that the shepherds could give their own sheep some water. Do you think that was very nice of the shepherds to do that?

I didn't think it was very nice, either. So, I fought the shepherds and let the girls come back. They were so thankful that I helped them that they invited me to go stay at their dad's house and work for him. Eventually, I married one of those girls and had two baby boys with her.

I stayed in Midian for many years and helped the girls' father, Jethro, take care of his sheep. I became a shepherd like them. But one day, when I was taking care of the sheep, I saw something strange. Up on the mountain, there was a bush on fire. But the bush wasn't burning up. It was as if the fire wasn't doing anything to it. So, I thought, I have to go up and get a closer look to see why the fire isn't burning up the bush.

I climbed up the mountain and, when I got close to the bush, I heard God talk to me out of the bush. He told me to stop and take off my shoes to show respect for Him. He said, "I am God. I have seen how mean the Egyptians are being to the Israelites by making them be their slaves. I have come down to rescue the Israelites out of Egypt and take them to their own country. And I want you, Moses, to be their leader. I want you to go talk to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt."

I couldn't believe what God was saying. I was very afraid and I said, "God, what if the Israelites don't believe that You sent me to be their leader?"

God said answered, "What do you have in your hand?"

I said, "My staff."

God said, "Throw your staff on the ground." I threw it on the ground (throw staff on ground), and God turned it into a snake! He said, "Pick it back up." I picked it up and God turned it into a stick again.

Then God said, "Put your hand inside your robe." I put my hand inside my robe and, when I pulled it out, God had made my hand all scaly and gross, like I had a disease on my hand. He told me to put my hand back in my robe, and this time, when I pulled it back out, it was totally normal again.

God said, "If the Israelites don't believe I sent you to be their leader, turn the staff into a snake and make your hand turn diseased and then normal again, and they will believe you."

But I was still afraid and nervous and I said, "But God, I can't be the leader. I'm not a good speaker. I get nervous when I have to talk in front of big groups."

Then God said, "Don't worry. I will help you."

But I said, "No, God. Let someone else be the leader. I don't want to do it."

Then, God got very mad at me. He said, "You're the person I chose to be the leader. Now, stop making excuses. I told you I would help you. I'm also sending your brother to help you, but you're the person I chose to be the leader. Now, do it."

And that's how God made me the leader of the Israelites. I'll come back next week and tell you how God helped me and the Israelites escape from Egypt.

(Have the students thank Moses.)

Review Questions

God told Moses that He had come to rescue the Israelites out of Egypt because the Egyptians were being mean to them and making them be their slaves. God cared about the Israelites. Do you think God cares about you when people are being mean to you or when bad things are happening to you? (Yes.)

God always cares about us and He will always help us, just like He said He was going to help the Israelites. Sometimes, God wants us to help other people, though, just like God wanted Moses to help the Israelites. So, if you see someone that needs help, remember that God wants you help them.

What did God say when Moses said he didn't want to be the leader because he wasn't good at it? (God said he would help Moses.)

Do you think God can help you with the things you're not good at? (Yes.)

If God tells you to do something, He will always help you to do it.

So, let's remember to help people when they need help and to trust God to help us do the things He tells us to do.

Game: Holy Ground – Divide students into two or more teams for a relay race. Dim the lights. Tell students that when you shine your flashlight on them and call their name, they have to stop whatever they're doing and take off their shoes before they continue. You can even shine your light on kids who are still standing in line for their turn. The first team to have all of their runners complete the race wins.

Afterward, say, I had you take off your shoes just like God told Moses to take off his shoes. Does anyone remember why God told Moses to take off his shoes? (Because God said Moses was standing on holy ground.)

We have to remember how special God is and we need to show Him respect. In those days, they took off their shoes to show respect. Today, we can show respect to God by stopping what we're doing and listening to God when He wants to talk to us. We can show respect by paying attention in church. We can show respect by listening when someone is praying or reading the Bible or teaching us about God. Those are all ways that we can show God that we understand how special He is.

Play the game again if time allows.

Snack Activity: Supplying the Need – Tell students what to do to make their snack, but only give them what they need one step at a time. If you had a bowl of fruit salad, for example, you would put the bowl of fruit salad in front of them and tell them to scoop some out for themselves. When they say that they don't have a spoon to scoop with, give it to them. When they complain that they don't have bowls, give them some. Next, tell them to put some whipped cream on their fruit salad. When they complain that they don't have whipped cream, give them the container.

When they have all they need, say, When God asks us to do something, He always gives us everything we need. He might not give us everything right away, but, if we trust Him, He will give us all the help that we need.

Closing Prayer: Father, we thank You for always helping us to do what You ask us to do. Help us to trust You as You lead us in each of our lives. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.

Visit Patreon for an easy printer version of this post. You can also these lessons in my book, Slaves to Conquerors: Children's Sunday School Lessons for Exodus – Joshua .

Look for The Exodus Children's Sunday School Lessons coming next.

I hope you and your students find these lessons to be beneficial as you and they seek to grow closer to Christ. May God's Spirit be with your spirit! - Steve