Single lesson
Moses Encourages and Commissions Joshua
Deuteronomy 31:1–8; Deuteronomy 31:14–23
Moses speaks to Israel when he is old and will not cross the Jordan. In this passage, he encourages the people, speaks directly to Joshua, and Yahweh formally commissions Joshua while also warning about Israel’s future choices.
Before you teach
Moses addresses all Israel and says he will not go over the Jordan. He says Yahweh will go before the people, and Joshua will go over before them and go with them into the land. Later, Yahweh calls Moses and Joshua to the Tent of Meeting, commissions Joshua, and warns that Israel will later turn to other gods.
Students will be able to sequence the passage, identify that Joshua is commissioned with the call to be strong and courageous because Yahweh says he will be with him, and explain the warned choice and outcome that if Israel turns to other gods, many troubles will come and Yahweh will hide his face.
Welcome: A change of leader
4 minAsk the children what it means when one leader finishes and another begins. Then introduce the passage: Moses speaks to all Israel, says he is 120 years old, and says he will not go over the Jordan. Tell the group to listen for who will go next and what Moses says about Yahweh’s help.
Deuteronomy 31:1, Deuteronomy 31:2
Read and explain: Strong and courageous
8 minRead Deuteronomy 31:1-8 aloud. Explain that Moses says Yahweh will go over before the people, and Joshua will also go over before them. Moses then speaks to Joshua in front of all Israel and says Joshua will go with the people into the land. Notice the repeated command to be strong and courageous because Yahweh goes with them and before them.
Deuteronomy 31:3, Deuteronomy 31:6, Deuteronomy 31:7, Deuteronomy 31:8
Discuss: Commission and warning at the Tent
7 minRead Deuteronomy 31:14-23 in short parts. Explain that Yahweh calls Moses and Joshua to the Tent of Meeting so Joshua may be commissioned, and Yahweh appears in a pillar of cloud. Then trace the warning clearly: Yahweh says the people will later turn to other gods and forsake him, and the result will be evils and troubles, with Yahweh hiding his face from them.
Deuteronomy 31:14, Deuteronomy 31:15, Deuteronomy 31:16, Deuteronomy 31:17, Deuteronomy 31:18, Deuteronomy 31:20
Make and respond: Sequence the choices and outcomes
8 minChildren make simple sequence cards for the main parts of the passage, then place them in order and retell it. Include these moments: Moses speaks to Israel, Moses encourages Joshua, Moses and Joshua go to the Tent, Yahweh warns that Israel will turn to other gods, Moses writes the song as a witness, and Yahweh commissions Joshua. As they retell, ask them to match the warned choice with its outcome.
Deuteronomy 31:6, Deuteronomy 31:7, Deuteronomy 31:14, Deuteronomy 31:16, Deuteronomy 31:19, Deuteronomy 31:21, Deuteronomy 31:22, Deuteronomy 31:23
Closing: What this passage teaches
3 minReview the order together. Ask the children to finish two sentences from the passage: ‘Joshua can be strong and courageous because...’ and ‘When the people turn to other gods...’. Help them answer from the text: Yahweh says he will be with Joshua, and Yahweh warns that evils and troubles will come and he will hide his face. Close by noting that this passage shows both Yahweh’s commission of Joshua and a serious warning to the people.
Deuteronomy 31:8, Deuteronomy 31:17, Deuteronomy 31:23
Questions to explore
What reasons does Moses give for telling Israel and Joshua to be strong and courageous?
Look for the repeated reason in the passage: Yahweh goes with them, goes before them, and says he will not fail or forsake them.
Deuteronomy 31:6, Deuteronomy 31:8
What does Yahweh say the people will do later, and what will happen as a result?
Find the warned choice to turn to other gods, then trace the outcome of evils and troubles and Yahweh hiding his face.
Deuteronomy 31:16, Deuteronomy 31:17, Deuteronomy 31:18, Deuteronomy 31:20
Besides commissioning Joshua, what does Yahweh tell Moses to do, and why?
Look for the instruction to write and teach the song, and the reason it is given as a witness.
Deuteronomy 31:19, Deuteronomy 31:21, Deuteronomy 31:22
Make, think or respond
Sequence Cards: Commission, Warning, and Song
What you’ll need
- plain paper or card
- pencils or textas
- Bible
- scissors
Try it together
- Help the children choose six key moments from the passage: Moses speaks to Israel, Moses encourages Joshua, Moses and Joshua go to the Tent, Israel will turn to other gods, Moses writes and teaches the song, Yahweh commissions Joshua.
- Have them draw or write one moment on each card.
- Mix the cards and work in pairs or small groups to place them in order.
- Ask each child or group to retell the passage using the cards and point out one warned choice and one stated outcome from the passage.
This activity helps children follow the order of the passage and notice both Yahweh’s commission of Joshua and the warning that turning to other gods brings troubles, while the song stands as a witness.
Adapt for your group
- For younger children, say the six key moments aloud and let them draw simple pictures instead of writing full labels.
- For older or more confident children, ask them to add the matching verse reference to each card and explain how the song connects to the warning in the passage.
An optional closing prayer
Suggested prayer: ‘God, thank you for the words spoken to Moses and Joshua. Please help us listen carefully, remember your warning, and understand why Joshua was told to be strong and courageous because you said you would be with him.’
Read the Bible passage World English Bible Classic
Deuteronomy 31
1 Moses went and spoke these words to all Israel.
2 He said to them, “I am one hundred twenty years old today. I can no more go out and come in. Yahweh has said to me, ‘You shall not go over this Jordan.’
3 Yahweh your God himself will go over before you. He will destroy these nations from before you, and you shall dispossess them. Joshua will go over before you, as Yahweh has spoken.
4 Yahweh will do to them as he did to Sihon and to Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land, when he destroyed them.
5 Yahweh will deliver them up before you, and you shall do to them according to all the commandment which I have commanded you.
6 Be strong and courageous. Don’t be afraid or scared of them, for Yahweh your God himself is who goes with you. He will not fail you nor forsake you.”
7 Moses called to Joshua, and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you shall go with this people into the land which Yahweh has sworn to their fathers to give them; and you shall cause them to inherit it.
8 Yahweh himself is who goes before you. He will be with you. He will not fail you nor forsake you. Don’t be afraid. Don’t be discouraged.”
14 Yahweh said to Moses, “Behold, your days approach that you must die. Call Joshua, and present yourselves in the Tent of Meeting, that I may commission him.” Moses and Joshua went, and presented themselves in the Tent of Meeting.
15 Yahweh appeared in the Tent in a pillar of cloud, and the pillar of cloud stood over the Tent’s door.
16 Yahweh said to Moses, “Behold, you shall sleep with your fathers. This people will rise up and play the prostitute after the strange gods of the land where they go to be among them, and will forsake me and break my covenant which I have made with them.
17 Then my anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall come on them; so that they will say in that day, ‘Haven’t these evils come on us because our God is not among us?’
18 I will surely hide my face in that day for all the evil which they have done, in that they have turned to other gods.
19 “Now therefore write this song for yourselves, and teach it to the children of Israel. Put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for me against the children of Israel.
20 For when I have brought them into the land which I swore to their fathers, flowing with milk and honey, and they have eaten and filled themselves, and grown fat, then they will turn to other gods, and serve them, and despise me, and break my covenant.
21 It will happen, when many evils and troubles have come on them, that this song will testify before them as a witness; for it will not be forgotten out of the mouths of their descendants; for I know their ways and what they are doing today, before I have brought them into the land which I promised them.”
22 So Moses wrote this song the same day, and taught it to the children of Israel.
23 He commissioned Joshua the son of Nun, and said, “Be strong and courageous; for you shall bring the children of Israel into the land which I swore to them. I will be with you.”
World English Bible Classic. Public domain.