Old Testament Seminary Teacher Manual

Contents
Title Page
Introduction to the Teacher Manual
Lessons 1–2
Welcome to the Old Testament
- Lessons 1–2
  Welcome to the Old Testament
- Lessons 3–6
  Moses 1; Abraham 3
- Lessons 7–9
  Genesis 1–2; Moses 2–3; Abraham 4–5
- Lessons 10–12
  Genesis 3–4; Moses 4–5
- Lessons 13–15
  Genesis 5; Moses 6
- Lessons 16–18
  Moses 7
- Lessons 19–21
  Genesis 6–11; Moses 8
- Lessons 22–24
  Genesis 12–17; Abraham 1–2
- Lessons 25–28
  Genesis 18–23
- Lessons 29–32
  Genesis 24–33
- Lessons 33–34
  Genesis 37–41
- Lessons 35–37
  Genesis 42–50
- Lessons 38–40
  Exodus 1–6
- Easter
- Lessons 41–44
  Exodus 7–13
- Lessons 45–47
  Exodus 14–18
- Lessons 48–51
  Exodus 19–20; 24; 31–34
- Lessons 52–55
  Exodus 35–40; Leviticus 1; 4; 16; 19
- Lessons 56–57
  Numbers 11–14; 20–24; 27
- Lessons 58–60
  Deuteronomy 6–8; 15; 18; 29–30; 34
- Lessons 61–64
  Joshua 1–8; 23–24
- Lessons 65–67
  Judges 2–4; 6–8; 13–16
- Lessons 68–70
  Ruth; 1 Samuel 1–7
- Lessons 71–73
  1 Samuel 8–10; 13; 15–16
- Lessons 74–76
  1 Samuel 17–18; 24–26; 2 Samuel 5–7
- Lessons 77–80
  2 Samuel 11–12; 1 Kings 3; 6–9; 11
- Lessons 81–82
  1 Kings 12–13; 17–22
- Lessons 83–85
  2 Kings 2–7
- Lessons 86–89
  2 Kings 16–25
- Lessons 90–91
  2 Chronicles 14–20; 26; 30
- Lessons 92–93
  Ezra 1, 3–7; Nehemiah 2; 4–6; 8
- Lessons 94–96
  Esther
- Lessons 97–99
  Job 1–3; 12–14; 19; 21–24; 38–40; 42
- Lessons 100–103
  Psalms 1–2; 8; 19–33; 40; 46
- Lessons 104–106
  Psalms 49–51; 61–66; 69–72; 77–78; 85–86
- Lessons 107–108
  Psalms 102–103; 110; 116–119; 127–128; 135–139; 146–150
- Lessons 109–112
  Proverbs 1–4; 15–16; 22; 31; Ecclesiastes 1–3; 11–12
- Lessons 113–116
  Isaiah 1–12
- Lessons 117–118
  Isaiah 13–14; 22; 24–30; 35
- Lessons 119–122
  Isaiah 40–49
- Lessons 123–125
  Isaiah 50–57
- Lessons 126–129
  Isaiah 58–66
- Lessons 130–133
  Jeremiah 1–3; 7; 16–18; 20
- Lessons 134–137
  Jeremiah 31–33; 36–38; Lamentations 1; 3
- Lessons 138–141
  Ezekiel 1–3; 33–34; 36–37; 47
- Lessons 142–145
  Daniel 1–7
- Lessons 146–148
  Hosea; Joel
- Lessons 149–151
  Amos; Obadiah; Jonah
- Lessons 152–154
  Micah; Nahum; Habakkuk; Zephaniah
- Lessons 155–157
  Haggai 1–2; Zechariah 1–4; 7–14
- Lessons 158–160
  Malachi
Lessons 166–170
Life Preparation Lessons
- Doctrinal Mastery: Finding Answers to My Questions
- Lessons 166–170
  Scripture Study Skills
- Lessons 171–176
  For the Strength of Youth Guide
- Lessons 177–180
  Building Self–Reliance
- Lessons 181–187
  Physical and Emotional Health
- Lessons 188–191
  Preparing for Future Education and Employment
- Lessons 192–195
  Succeed in School
- Lessons 196–200
  Missionary Preparation
- Lessons 201–204
  Temple Preparation
- Lessons 205–208
  Teachings of Church Leaders
Appendix

Exodus 7–11: Recognizing the Power of the Lord

“Exodus 7–11: Recognizing the Power of the Lord,” Old Testament Seminary Teacher Manual (2026)

“Exodus 7–11: Recognizing the Power of the Lord,” Old Testament Seminary Teacher Manual

Exodus 7–13: Lesson 41

Exodus 7–11

Recognizing the Power of the Lord

A black-and-white drawing by Paul Gustave Doré of Moses and his brother, Aaron, standing in Pharaoh’s court next to a serpent.

It can be difficult to recognize the Lord’s power in our lives. The Lord selected Moses and Aaron to demonstrate His power before Pharaoh. Pharaoh dismissed the Lord’s power. This prompted additional demonstrations of the Lord’s power through plagues that came upon Egypt. The purpose of this lesson is to help students understand how to recognize the Lord’s power and believe in Him.

Student preparation: Invite students to look for evidence of the Lord’s power in their lives between now and the next class.

Possible Learning Activities

God’s power around us

Consider beginning class by asking the following questions or having students discuss them in groups.

On your way to seminary today, what are things you saw, noticed, or observed?
On a scale of 1–5 (1 being not at all, 5 being very much), how would you rate your awareness of your surroundings today?
What are some reasons we may be more or less observant?

Explain that in a similar way, we can ponder how observant we are to what the Lord has done or is doing for us. Consider asking the following:
What evidence might someone notice of God’s power in an ordinary day?

One way to invite the Holy Ghost to teach students individually is by allowing students to privately assess how they feel they are doing with specific gospel principles. You could help them do this by displaying the following:

Rate yourself on a scale of 1–5 (1 being lowest, 5 being highest) on how well the following describes you:

I feel confident in my ability to recognize God’s power or influence in my life.

As you learn today, invite the Holy Ghost to help you increase your ability to recognize God’s power and influence in your life.

Believing in the Lord

In Exodus 6–7, the Lord promised Moses that He would bring the Israelites out of bondage. He declared that He would manifest His power to Pharaoh and the Egyptians and that they would have no choice but to set the Israelites free.

Read Exodus 6:7; 7:5, looking for what the Lord would make sure that both the Israelites and the Egyptians would know. Students may want to mark what they find.

What would the Israelites and Egyptians come to know because of the manifestations of the Lord’s power?
What can we learn about the Lord from these declarations?

Help students identify a truth similar to the Lord gives us opportunities to believe in Him and recognize His power in our lives.

The plagues

The following activity can give students the opportunity to become familiar with some of the Egyptian plagues. It can also help them to see different responses to the manifestations of God’s power. Be cautious to not spend so much time in this section that it would take away from the remainder of the lesson.

Consider displaying the following chart and questions.

In Exodus 7–11, the Lord manifested His power through a series of plagues. Look at the following chart and select two or three plagues to study, looking for answers to the questions that follow.

Some verses say that the Lord hardened Pharaoh’s heart. The Joseph Smith Translation provides important clarification that Pharaoh hardened his own heart (see Joseph Smith Translation, footnotes to Exodus 7:3, 13; 9:12; 10:1, 20, 27; 11:10).

Plague	Verses to study
Plague 1. Water turned to blood	Verses to study Exodus 7:19–25
Plague 2. Frogs come upon the land	Verses to study Exodus 8:5–15 (Note: “Respite” means rest or relief)
Plague 3. Lice	Verses to study Exodus 8:16–19
Plague 4. Flies	Verses to study Exodus 8:20–25, 29–32
Plague 5. Cattle die	Verses to study Exodus 9:1–7
Plague 6. Boils	Verses to study Exodus 9:8–12
Plague 7. Hail and fire from the sky	Verses to study Exodus 9:22–29, 33–35
Plague 8. Locusts	Verses to study Exodus 10:12–20
Plague 9. Darkness	Verses to study Exodus 10:21–27

In what ways was the Lord’s power manifest?
Why do you think individuals believed or did not believe in the Lord and His power?

After sufficient time, consider inviting students to share their findings in pairs or small groups.

It may be helpful to clarify some of the following. Students may have noticed that Pharaoh’s magicians, either through deception or the power of the adversary, were able to replicate some portion of the first two plagues. They were not, however, able to fully replicate or stop the plagues. Additionally, the Israelites apparently suffered from some plagues but were protected from the fourth, fifth, and seventh plagues.

If useful, you could encourage students to mark additional phrases in Exodus 8:10, 22; 10:2 where the Lord testified that the people would know He is the Lord.
Why do you think the Lord wanted the Egyptians and Israelites to learn about Him?
What are reasons people at times believe in God and His power and later have doubts?

The Lord’s power in our lives

It could be helpful to share with students that the Lord’s power is manifest in many ways today. The following could help students think about how they have seen or experienced that power.

Imagine you have a friend who isn’t confident that they have ever had an experience with Heavenly Father or felt His power. As you continue your study, think about what you would say to this person.

It may be helpful to give students time to ponder or write their thoughts on the following question before they share with the class.

What are ways you have come to believe in the Lord’s power? Or what are things that could help you believe?
What are examples from the scriptures or Church history where people were shown the Lord’s power?

Students might share examples such as feeling comfort or peace from prayer or a priesthood blessing, experiencing forgiveness, feeling personal guidance from the Holy Ghost, and so on.

Help students understand that experiences with the Lord’s power generally result from demonstrating faithful attitudes or actions.

President Russell M. Nelson taught the following about what we can do to invite experiences with Heavenly Father:

Understand that in the absence of experiences with God, one can doubt the existence of God. So, put yourself in a position to begin having experiences with Him. Humble yourself. Pray to have eyes to see God’s hand in your life and in the world around you. Ask Him to tell you if He is really there—if He knows you. Ask Him how He feels about you. And then listen. (“Come, Follow Me,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2019, 90)

What could a person do to begin seeing God’s hand and power in their life?

You might invite students to role-play how they could respond to the scenario above. Have them counsel their friend who isn’t confident that they have ever had an experience with the Lord or felt His power.

Consider bearing testimony of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and the importance of recognizing Their power in our lives.

Additional Resources

Why did the Lord cause those specific plagues?

The plagues served several purposes. One of those was to show Pharaoh, Egypt, and the Israelites that Jesus Christ (Jehovah) is more powerful than the false Egyptian gods. Egypt had many false gods, including the pharaoh himself. “[Some] interpreters suggest a symbolic correlation between each plague and an Egyptian deity, assuming they were each meant to demonstrate Jehovah’s superiority over a specific god. This explanation is difficult to confirm in every case. … [However,] there is no doubt that the plagues as a whole were intended to demonstrate the power of Jehovah over the Egyptian pantheon, which included the divine Pharaoh himself” (Richard Neitzel Holzapfel, Dana M. Pike, and David Rolph Seely, Jehovah and the World of the Old Testament: An Illustrated Reference for Latter-day Saints [2009], 90).

Why were the magicians able to imitate some of God’s miracles?

President Dallin H. Oaks taught:

The devil is the father of lies, and he is ever anxious to frustrate the work of God by his clever imitations. (“Two Lines of Communication,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2010, 84)

President Joseph Fielding Smith (1876–1972) taught:

It should be remembered that Satan has great knowledge and thereby can exercise authority and to some extent control the elements, when some greater power does not intervene. (Answers to Gospel Questions, comp. Joseph Fielding Smith Jr. [1957], 1:178)

Note that after the second plague, the magicians could no longer replicate the plagues (see Exodus 8:18) and told Pharaoh, “This is the finger of God” (Exodus 8:19).

How can I have experiences with Heavenly Father?

President Russell M. Nelson taught:

Pour out your heart to God. Ask Him if these things are true. Make time to study His words. Really study! … [P]ay the price now—through serious study and fervent prayer—to know these eternal truths and then to abide by them.

If you are not sure you even believe in God, start there.

(“Come, Follow Me,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2019, 90)

Supplemental Learning Activities

Alternative beginning

Another way to start class is to invite students to take the following true-or-false quiz:

Moses was confident in his abilities and excited about his responsibility to free the children of Israel from bondage. (False. See Exodus 3:11.)
After Moses and Aaron asked Pharaoh to let the children of Israel go, the Israelites did not want to listen to Moses and follow his leadership. (True. See Exodus 5:19–21.)
The magicians of Egypt were able to duplicate some of Moses’s plagues and miracles. (True. See Exodus 7:11–12, 22; 8:7, 18)
Pharaoh said he was willing to let the children of Israel go free because he respected the Lord’s power. (False. See Exodus 5:1–2.)

Reasons we sometimes don’t recognize the Lord’s power

Students might benefit from additional discussion about why we sometimes don’t recognize the Lord’s power. To help with this, they could read the following scriptures and look for obstacles that made it difficult for the children of Israel and Pharaoh to recognize the Lord’s influence and power:

Exodus 6:9 (The children of Israel after their burdens were increased by Pharaoh)

Exodus 8:32; 9:6–7, 11–12, 34–35; 10:20, 27 (Pharaoh after various plagues were removed)

You could also read Helaman 16:13–23, looking for what caused the people to harden their hearts against the miracles they had witnessed.

You might discuss why hardships or hard hearts can be obstacles to recognizing the Lord’s influence or power.