When the Israelites reached the border of the promised land, Moses sent in twelve men to see what it was like and report back. After forty days, they returned with good news and bad news. Yes, the land was good. No, they didn't think they were strong enough to go in and take it.  Only two of the men, Caleb and Joshua, voted for going into the land. God was so disappointed that the people didn't trust him. He told Moses that although he forgave them, none of the people who didn't believe him would get to enter the land.  Just Caleb and Joshua. What is going to happen to everyone else?

At the tabernacle, the priests offered animals as sacrifices to God. You could bring an animal, and let the animal's death be a substitute for the death that you deserved. 

The Israelites made a tent to contain sacred furniture and the ark of the covenant.  When the tabernacle was completed, the presence of God came and rested on the tabernacle, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. 

In Exodus 34, Moses returns to Mt Sinai to get another copy of the Ten Commandments on stone tablets. He had broken the previous tablets when he saw the golden calf. This time, God reveals himself further to Moses, repeating his name and sharing more about his character. Moses' face was radiant when he came down the mountain after talking to God. We might experience the presence of God, too, when we worship him. 

After the golden calf, God tells Moses that he isn't going to go with them to the promised land.  Moses pleads with God to reconsider.  If God doesn't go with them, how will they be any different from any other people group? Moses wants to know God, and to please him. God sees Moses' heart, and tells him he will do what Moses asked. 

Moses was gone for forty days. The children of Israel said they didn't know what had happened to Moses.  They forgot about the 10 commandments. They gathered around Aaron and asked him to make a god that would lead them. Aaron made a golden calf.  They sacrificed to the golden calf and had a festival. When God saw it, he wanted to destroy them, but Moses talked him out of it. But they had disobeyed the commandment. What will their punishment be?

When we trust someone, it is easier to do what they say. When God gave Moses the 10 commandments on Mt Sinai, he wanted to make sure that the people would trust Moses. So he actually came down on top of the mountain in a thick cloud, to show that he was real. The mountain smoked and trembled with the power of God so near. Moses spoke to him, and God answered.

In Exodus 20, God tells the Israelites 10 commandments. If they followed these 10 rules, life would go well for them. You can remember the 10 commandments, by using this finger play. The first one is the thumb on your right hand. Listen and learn them! 

God gave manna from heaven for his people, the Israelites. Every day they had just what they needed. They didn't have to keep any leftovers for the next day. But some people didn't trust God. They kept some overnight, and it went bad. God also told them on the sixth day, to gather twice as much. On the sixth day, they cooked enough for two days. That way, on the seventh day, they could rest. Some people didn't trust what God said! They went out to gather manna on the seventh day, too. But there wasn't any.   

In Exodus 16, the people of Israel grumbled about the lack of food. Moses talked to God about it, and God said he would rain down bread from heaven for the people to eat. Also he sent quails in the evening so they could have some meat.