When a friend promises to eat lunch with you, you depend on him or her to be there at lunch time. The Israelites were the same way. They had received many promises from God. God promised to make them a great nation. God promised to take them to the Land of Milk and Honey.

They depended on God to keep the promises He had made. They must have been confused when they found themselves slaves in Egypt. Wouldn’t you be surprised if your friend didn’t show up at lunch? Well, they were surprised also. How did this happen to them? Had God forgotten his promises? Had God let them down? In this lesson, you will learn how the Israelites got to Egypt and how God helped them.

Traveling to Egypt

How the Israelites Became Slaves in Egypt

This story is about the Israelites, a tribe, or group of people who lived in what we call today the Middle East.  Many years ago Abram was the leader of the Israelites, and he decided to take his family from Ur to a new home in Canaan. Finding out how they ended up in Egypt as slaves will help you understand the rest of the story. You may do this activity by yourself or with a group. You will use the map of the ancient Middle East to keep track of your stops on the journey from Ur to Egypt.  Take notes on a separate sheet of paper.

God told Abram to leave his home and go to a new land. God promised to bless him and make a new nation.  God promised to be Abram.s God and the God of Abram’s descendants. When Abram was 99 years old, God changed his name to Abraham (see Genesis 17: 4-5).

For more than 400 years (from 1700-1290 B. C.) the Israelites stayed in Egypt.  In Egypt, the Israelites had to do what their masters ordered them to do.  One of the things that made them different from their Egyptian masters was that they believed in one God. The Egyptians believed that there were many gods who ruled over different parts of their lives. God showed the Israelites that they were right.

Story Activities

A.   Pretend you are a slave in Egypt.  Use this list of words to help you write a journal entry in the Travel Journal describing your life. Some words you might use are: work – cruel – bricks – long – bosses – fields – babies - cities.

Could this be a prayer asking God to see your pain and come to your aid?  Remember, God
had promised to be the Hebrews. God and be with them.

B.   Slaves have little control over their own lives.  They cannot even choose where to live.
Make a list of choices you think slaves do NOT have.

1. ___________________________________________
2. ___________________________________________
3. ___________________________________________
4. ___________________________________________
5. ___________________________________________

On the list, star the choice(s) you are free to make. Talk about your choices with a friend.