Just how stupid were the ancient Israelites?

[Wyrd of Gawd]

So the ancient Israelites have suffered slavery in Egypt until a certain Mr. Moses frees them.

To get free, they witness the plagues of Egypt.

While fleeing they witness Moses part the Red Sea, and drown the Egyptian army.

Then, after a few days, Moses wanders up a mountain to get his rocks off, and the moment he turns his back, they're off creating new gods!

They witnessed these events and still chose to create new gods and idols the moment Moses buggered off for a quick wank!

So, were the ancient Israelites really that fucking stupid...

..or, perhaps, is the story a complete work of fiction?

In actual history the Egyptians left the Levant area that had been part of their empire.  So they left the Israelites instead of the Israelites leaving them.  When the Israelites built the golden calf idol they were worshiping the Egyptian deity instead of the deity that Moses had cooked up (probably a Hittite one).  In the story about ghow God couldn't defeat iron chariots it's really about how the Hittites used their technological advantage of iron chariots to defeat the Egyptians.  In that story the God character is the Egyptian Pharaoh.