Remember Abram of Ur? He followed God’s plan and became Abraham. And do you remember three things that God promised? First, a great nation. Check! Israel left Egypt with over a million people. Second, God’s presence. Check! Remember that special tent that allowed a holy God to dwell with his people? Third, the promised land. Um, not quite check. That was still on the divine to-do list. For four hundred years Israel had lived in Egypt, and they had spent most of that time as slaves. Hardly the promised land. Then came the great rescue: Moses, ten plagues, the parting (and closing) of the Red Sea. (Whew! What a lot to remember. Shall we take a small stretch?) And then the moment we’ve all been waiting for: rescued from the land of Egypt, Israel enters . . . the wilderness. What a major letdown, wandering and wandering for forty years. (At least it wasn’t four hundred!) Yes, God was with them. Yes, he fed them and gave them good laws. He even provided a sign of his presence and a place to worship (a traveling tent). But he hadn’t yet given them the land. That is, not until today’s lesson.