BIBLE CHAPTER STUDY

Exodus 15 — The Song of Moses at the Red Sea

After crossing the Red Sea, Moses and Israel sing a victory hymn praising God's power over Egypt; later, at Marah, God sweetens bitter waters and reveals Himself as healer.

Scripture

1Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto Jehovah, and spake, saying, I will sing unto Jehovah, for he hath triumphed gloriously: The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.

2Jehovah is my strength and song, And he is become my salvation: This is my God, and I will praise him; My father's God, and I will exalt him.

3Jehovah is a man of war: Jehovah is his name.

4Pharaoh's chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea; And his chosen captains are sunk in the Red Sea.

5The deeps cover them: They went down into the depths like a stone.

6Thy right hand, O Jehovah, is glorious in power, Thy right hand, O Jehovah, dasheth in pieces the enemy.

7And in the greatness of thine excellency thou overthrowest them that rise up against thee: Thou sendest forth thy wrath, it consumeth them as stubble.

8And with the blast of thy nostrils the waters were piled up, The floods stood upright as a heap; The deeps were congealed in the heart of the sea.

9The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; My desire shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them.

10Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them: They sank as lead in the mighty waters.

11Who is like unto thee, O Jehovah, among the gods? Who is like thee, glorious in holiness, Fearful in praises, doing wonders?

12Thou stretchedst out thy right hand, The earth swallowed them.

13Thou in thy lovingkindness hast led the people that thou hast redeemed: Thou hast guided them in thy strength to thy holy habitation.

14The peoples have heard, they tremble: Pangs have taken hold on the inhabitants of Philistia.

15Then were the chiefs of Edom dismayed; The mighty men of Moab, trembling taketh hold upon them: All the inhabitants of Canaan are melted away.

16Terror and dread falleth upon them; By the greatness of thine arm they are as still as a stone; Till thy people pass over, O Jehovah, Till the people pass over that thou hast purchased.

17Thou wilt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of thine inheritance, The place, O Jehovah, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in, The sanctuary, O Lord, which thy hands have established.

18Jehovah shall reign for ever and ever.

19For the horses of Pharaoh went in with his chariots and with his horsemen into the sea, and Jehovah brought back the waters of the sea upon them; but the children of Israel walked on dry land in the midst of the sea.

20And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances.

21And Miriam answered them, Sing ye to Jehovah, for he hath triumphed gloriously; The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.

22And Moses led Israel onward from the Red Sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water.

23And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah.

24And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink?

25An he cried unto Jehovah; And Jehovah showed him a tree, and he cast it into the waters, and the waters were made sweet. There he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them;

26and he said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of Jehovah thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his eyes, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases upon thee, which I have put upon the Egyptians: for I am Jehovah that healeth thee.

27And they came to Elim, where were twelve springs of water, and threescore and ten palm-trees: and they encamped there by the waters.

What this passage means

The Song of Moses (vv. 1–18) is structured around the declaration 'I will sing unto Jehovah, for he hath triumphed gloriously.' It rehearses the drowning of Pharaoh's army, celebrates God's right hand as glorious in power, and climaxes with the question 'Who is like unto thee, O Jehovah, among the gods?' The song's theology is concrete: God's saving act at the sea is the ground for His reign, declared in v. 18: 'Jehovah shall reign for ever and ever.'

The narrative section (vv. 19–21) frames the song as communal liturgy: the men sing through Moses, and Miriam the prophetess leads the women with timbrels and dances, answering with the same refrain (v. 21). This shows the victory song is not a private reflection but a covenant community's response, with both genders participating in witnessed praise.

Verses 22–27 pivot to a new test. Three days without water leads to murmuring at Marah, where God shows Moses a tree that sweetens the waters. The chapter closes with God's self-revelation: obedience to His statutes removes the diseases of Egypt from Israel, 'for I am Jehovah that healeth thee' (v. 26). Elim's twelve springs and seventy palms end the chapter as a picture of provision.

Context

The curated note indicates this chapter was backfilled as part of Exodus material outside the primary focus passages. The cross-references cluster around (a) God's incomparability and holiness (1 Kings 8:23; 1 Samuel 2:2; 2 Samuel 7:22; Isaiah 6:3; Revelation 4:8), and (b) God as healer who removes sickness (Deuteronomy 7:15; Exodus 23:25; Psalms 41:3–4; Psalms 103:3), both themes explicit in Exodus 15:11 and 15:26.

Within the chapter, the only contextual thread available in the provided material is the immediate transition from the sea crossing (v. 19) through wilderness testing (vv. 22–25) to the divine promise of healing (v. 26) and the oasis at Elim (v. 27). No external historical, geographical, or cultic background is supplied beyond the verse text itself.

Key words in the original

  • H7892 The noun שִׁירָה (šîrāh, 'song') in v. 1 denotes a composition for singing, here paired with the verb שִׁיר. The chapter is titled by this term, identifying the passage as a victory hymn rather than narrative.
  • H3050 The form יָהּ (yāh) in v. 2 is a shortened form of the divine name יהוה (YHWH), rendered 'LORD.' Its appearance alongside 'my strength' and 'my song' intensifies the personal confession of covenant relationship.
  • H1342 The verb גָּאָה (gāʾāh, 'be exalted') in v. 1 is repeated twice: 'he hath triumphed gloriously.' The doubling emphasizes the heightening or rising of God's majesty as the cause of the song.

Related verses

  • 1 Kings 8:23 Solomon's prayer, 'there is no God like thee,' echoes v. 11 ('Who is like unto thee, O Jehovah?') and shows the Song of Moses as a template for later covenant worship.
  • Deuteronomy 7:15 The promise 'none of the evil diseases of Egypt will he put upon thee' directly parallels v. 26 and shows how Moses' generation received this word as a covenant statute restated for entry into the land.
  • Psalms 103:3 'Who healeth all thy diseases' matches 'I am Jehovah that healeth thee' (v. 26) and extends the Red Sea healer's identity into Israel's ongoing worship.

Common questions

Why is Exodus 15 called the Song of Moses?

Because vv. 1–18 are a victory hymn introduced by 'Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto Jehovah,' making Moses the human lead singer through whom the community's praise is voiced.

Who is Miriam in Exodus 15?

Miriam is identified as 'the prophetess, the sister of Aaron,' who leads the women with timbrels and dances and answers with the same refrain as Moses (v. 21), framing the song as communal liturgy.

What does 'I am Jehovah that healeth thee' mean?

In context (v. 26) God attaches the promise of healing from Egypt's diseases to covenant obedience at Marah, so 'healeth' here is a covenant-title tied to statute-keeping rather than a general medical claim.

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