Exodus15

Moses and the children of Israel sing a triumphant song to the LORD, praising Him for His glorious victory over Pharaoh and his army at the Red Sea, where the Egyptians were drowned. Following this, they journey into the wilderness, encountering bitter waters at Marah, which the LORD miraculously makes sweet. The chapter concludes with God's promise of health for obedience and Israel's arrival at Elim, a place of abundant water.

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The Song of Moses: Praise for Deliverance

Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the LORD: “I will sing to the LORD, for He is highly exalted. The horse and rider He has thrown into the sea.

The LORD is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise Him, my father’s God, and I will exalt Him.

The LORD is a warrior, the LORD is His name.

Pharaoh’s chariots and army He has cast into the sea; the finest of his officers are drowned in the Red Sea.

The depths have covered them; they sank there like a stone.

Your right hand, O LORD, is majestic in power; Your right hand, O LORD, has shattered the enemy.

You overthrew Your adversaries by Your great majesty. You unleashed Your burning wrath; it consumed them like stubble.

At the blast of Your nostrils the waters piled up; like a wall the currents stood firm; the depths congealed in the heart of the sea.

The enemy declared, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake. I will divide the spoils; I will gorge myself on them. I will draw my sword; my hand will destroy them.’

But You blew with Your breath, and the sea covered them. They sank like lead in the mighty waters.

Who among the gods is like You, O LORD? Who is like You—majestic in holiness, revered with praises, performing wonders?

You stretched out Your right hand, and the earth swallowed them up.

Anticipation of the Conquest

With loving devotion You will lead the people You have redeemed; with Your strength You will guide them to Your holy dwelling.

The nations will hear and tremble; anguish will grip the dwellers of Philistia.

Then the chiefs of Edom will be dismayed; trembling will seize the leaders of Moab; those who dwell in Canaan will melt away,

and terror and dread will fall on them. By the power of Your arm they will be as still as a stone until Your people pass by, O LORD, until the people You have bought pass by.

You will bring them in and plant them on the mountain of Your inheritance— the place, O LORD, You have prepared for Your dwelling, the sanctuary, O Lord, Your hands have established.

The LORD will reign forever and ever!”

For when Pharaoh’s horses, chariots, and horsemen went into the sea, the LORD brought the waters of the sea back over them. But the Israelites walked through the sea on dry ground.

Miriam and the Women Celebrate

Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her with tambourines and dancing.

And Miriam sang back to them: “Sing to the LORD, for He is highly exalted; the horse and rider He has thrown into the sea.”

The Trial at Marah

Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea, and they went out into the Desert of Shur. For three days they walked in the desert without finding water.

And when they came to Marah, they could not drink the water there because it was bitter. (That is why it was named Marah.)

So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What are we to drink?”

And Moses cried out to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a log. And when he cast it into the waters, they were sweetened. There the LORD made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there He tested them,

saying, “If you will listen carefully to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His eyes, and pay attention to His commands, and keep all His statutes, then I will not bring on you any of the diseases I inflicted on the Egyptians. For I am the LORD who heals you.”

Provision at Elim

Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they camped there by the waters.

Study Notes for Exodus 15

Verse 1

The 'Song of the Sea' is one of the oldest attested poetic traditions in the Bible, celebrating God’s triumph as a divine warrior. It functions as a liturgical response to the miraculous salvation at the Red Sea.

Verse 2

This verse establishes the foundational relationship: God is the source of strength and salvation. The phrase 'I will prepare him an habitation' (Hebrew nāwah) reflects the intention to worship and build a sanctuary (later realized in the Tabernacle).

Verse 3

Describing the LORD as a 'man of war' (’ish milchamah) emphasizes His active involvement in history and His role as the Divine Warrior fighting for Israel against cosmic and earthly foes.

Verse 8

The 'blast of thy nostrils' uses poetic personification to describe God’s powerful breath or wind, illustrating that the separation of the waters was an instantaneous and effortless act of divine power.

Verse 11

This rhetorical question (“Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods?”) serves as a challenge and declaration, asserting Yahweh's incomparable power, holiness, and uniqueness over all other supposed deities.

Verse 13

The song pivots here from celebrating past deliverance to anticipating future provision. God's ultimate goal is to guide the redeemed people to His 'holy habitation,' anticipating the Promised Land and Mount Zion.

Verse 14

Verses 14-16 function as a prophetic oracle, describing the terror the news of the Red Sea miracle will strike into the hearts of surrounding hostile nations, including the Philistines (Palestina), Edom, and Moab.

Verse 17

The 'mountain of thine inheritance' and 'Sanctuary' refer ultimately to Mount Zion in Jerusalem. This shows that the purpose of the Exodus was not merely freedom, but the establishment of a permanent place where God could dwell among His people.

Verse 20

Miriam is identified as a 'prophetess,' indicating she held a position of spiritual leadership alongside her brothers. Her leading the women in musical celebration is a key act of corporate worship.

Verse 22

This verse marks the transition from celebration back to historical narrative. The immediate lack of water introduces the crucial theme of testing and provision in the wilderness, contrasting sharply with the earlier praise.

Verse 23

The name *Marah* means 'bitter.' This location serves as the first major test of Israel's faith after the great deliverance, demonstrating their instant shift from sung praise to impatience and complaint.

Verse 25

After providing a supernatural solution (the tree), God immediately establishes a 'statute and an ordinance,' demonstrating that divine provision and covenant obedience are inseparable in the wilderness experience.

Verse 26

This verse contains the first declaration of a covenant name for God in the wilderness: *Yahweh Rophekha* ('I am the LORD that healeth thee'). This healing refers to both physical health and spiritual/national restoration contingent upon obedience.

Verse 27

Elim serves as a temporary oasis, providing twelve wells (perhaps symbolizing the twelve tribes) and seventy palm trees. This provision contrasts sharply with the trial at Marah, showing God's balance of testing and sustaining grace.

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Exodus15

The Song of Moses: Praise for Deliverance

Anticipation of the Conquest

Miriam and the Women Celebrate

The Trial at Marah

Provision at Elim

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