Exodus 15
Amplified Bible
The Song of Moses and Israel
15 Then Moses and the children of Israel sang this [a]song to the Lord, singing,
“I will sing to the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously;
The horse and its rider He has thrown into the sea.
2
“The Lord is my strength and my song,
And He has become my salvation;
This is my God, and I will praise Him;
My father’s God, and I will exalt Him.
3
“The Lord is a warrior;
The Lord is His name.
4
“Pharaoh’s chariots and his army He has thrown into the sea;
His chosen captains are drowned in the [b]Red Sea.
5
“The deep [water] covers them;
[Clad in armor] they sank into the depths like a stone.
6
“Your right hand, O Lord, is glorious in power;
Your right hand, O Lord, shatters the enemy.
7
“In the greatness of Your majesty You overthrow and annihilate those [adversaries] who rise [in rebellion] against You;
You send out Your fury, and it consumes them like chaff.
8
“With the blast of Your nostrils the waters piled up,
The flowing waters stood up like a mound;
The deeps were congealed in the heart of the sea.
9
“The enemy said, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil;
My desire shall be satisfied against them;
I will draw my sword, my hand shall dispossess them and drive them out.’
10
“You blew with Your wind, the sea covered them;
[Clad in armor] they sank like lead in the mighty waters.
11
“Who is like You among the gods, O Lord?
Who is like You, majestic in holiness,
Awesome in splendor, working wonders?
12
“You stretched out Your right hand,
The [c]sea swallowed them.
13
“You in Your lovingkindness and goodness have led the people whom You have redeemed;
In Your strength You have guided them with care to Your holy habitation.
14
“The peoples have heard [about You], they tremble;
Anguish and fear has gripped the inhabitants of Philistia.
15
“Then the [tribal] chiefs of Edom were dismayed and horrified;
The [mighty] leaders of Moab, trembling grips them;
All the inhabitants of Canaan have melted away [in despair]—
16
Terror and dread fall on them;
Because of the greatness of Your arm they are as still as a stone;
Until Your people pass by and [into Canaan], O Lord,
Until the people pass by whom You have purchased.
17
“You will bring them [into the land of promise] and plant them on the mountain (Mt. Moriah in Jerusalem) of Your inheritance,
The place, O Lord, You have made for Your dwelling [among them],
The sanctuary, O Lord, which Your hands have established.
18
“The Lord shall reign to eternity and beyond.”
19 For the horses of Pharaoh went with his war-chariots and his charioteers into the sea, and the Lord brought back the waters of the sea on them, but the sons of Israel walked on dry land in the middle of the sea.
20 Then Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron [and Moses], took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed her with timbrels and dancing.(A) 21 Miriam answered them,
“Sing to the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously and is highly exalted;
The horse and its rider He has hurled into the sea.”
The Lord Provides Water
22 Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea, and they went into the Wilderness of Shur; they went [a distance of] three days (about thirty-three miles) in the wilderness and found no water. 23 Then they came to Marah, but they could not drink its waters because they were [d]bitter; therefore it was named Marah (bitter). 24 The people [grew discontented and] grumbled at Moses, saying, “What are we going to drink?” 25 Then he cried to the Lord [for help], and the Lord showed him a tree, [a branch of] which he threw into the waters, and the waters became sweet.
There the Lord made a statute and an ordinance for them, and there [e]He tested them, 26 saying, “If you will diligently listen and pay attention to the voice of the Lord your God, and do what is right in His sight, and listen to His commandments, and keep [foremost in your thoughts and actively obey] all His precepts and statutes, then I will not put on you any of the diseases which I have put on the Egyptians; for I am the [f]Lord who heals you.”
27 Then the children of Israel came to Elim where there were twelve springs of water and seventy date palms, and they camped there beside the waters.
Footnotes
- Exodus 15:1 It was natural enough to create and sing a song of celebration to the Lord at this point, but the song, with all its detail, undoubtedly served as a memory device as well, a way to embed the account of the miracle in the minds of the people of Israel.
- Exodus 15:4 Lit Sea of Reeds.
- Exodus 15:12 Lit earth.
- Exodus 15:23 The water may have been like that of the Dead Sea, which has such a high salt content that it is bitter, and the natural reaction when attempting to sample it is to spit it out immediately.
- Exodus 15:25 God tests His people to see if they are learning from past experiences and growing in spiritual maturity.
- Exodus 15:26 Heb YHWH (Yahweh)-Ropheeka.
Exodus 15
English Standard Version
The Song of Moses
15 Then Moses and the people of Israel (A)sang this song to the Lord, saying,
(B)“I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;
the horse and his rider[a] he has thrown into the sea.
2 (C)The Lord is my strength and my (D)song,
and he has become (E)my salvation;
this is my God, and I will praise him,
(F)my father's God, and (G)I will exalt him.
3 The Lord is (H)a man of war;
(I)the Lord is his name.
4 (J)“Pharaoh's chariots and his host he cast into the sea,
and his chosen (K)officers were sunk in the Red Sea.
5 The (L)floods covered them;
they (M)went down into the depths like a stone.
6 (N)Your right hand, O Lord, glorious in power,
your right hand, O Lord, (O)shatters the enemy.
7 In the (P)greatness of your majesty you overthrow your adversaries;
you send out your fury; it (Q)consumes them like stubble.
8 At the (R)blast of your nostrils the waters piled up;
the (S)floods stood up in a heap;
the deeps congealed in the heart of the sea.
9 The enemy said, (T)‘I will pursue, I will overtake,
I (U)will divide the spoil, my desire shall have its fill of them.
I will draw my sword; my hand shall destroy them.’
10 You (V)blew with your wind; the (W)sea covered them;
they sank like lead in the mighty waters.
11 (X)“Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods?
Who is like you, majestic in holiness,
awesome in (Y)glorious deeds, (Z)doing wonders?
12 You stretched out (AA)your right hand;
the earth swallowed them.
13 “You have (AB)led in your steadfast love the people whom (AC)you have redeemed;
you have (AD)guided them by your strength to your holy abode.
14 (AE)The peoples have heard; they tremble;
pangs have seized the inhabitants of Philistia.
15 Now are the chiefs of Edom (AF)dismayed;
trembling seizes the leaders of (AG)Moab;
(AH)all the inhabitants of Canaan have melted away.
16 Terror and (AI)dread fall upon them;
because of the greatness of your arm, they are still (AJ)as a stone,
till your people, O Lord, pass by,
till the people pass by whom (AK)you have purchased.
17 You will bring them in and (AL)plant them on your own mountain,
the place, O Lord, which you have made for your abode,
(AM)the sanctuary, O Lord, which your hands have established.
18 (AN)The Lord will reign forever and ever.”
19 For when (AO)the horses of Pharaoh with his chariots and his horsemen went into the sea, (AP)the Lord brought back the waters of the sea upon them, but the people of Israel walked on dry ground in the midst of the sea. 20 Then (AQ)Miriam (AR)the prophetess, the (AS)sister of Aaron, took a tambourine in her hand, and (AT)all the women went out after her with tambourines and dancing. 21 And Miriam sang to them:
(AU)“Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;
the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.”
Bitter Water Made Sweet
22 Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of (AV)Shur. They went three days in the wilderness and found no water. 23 When they came to (AW)Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah.[b] 24 And the people (AX)grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” 25 And he (AY)cried to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a log,[c] and he (AZ)threw it into the water, and the water became sweet.
There the Lord[d] made for them a statute and a rule, and there he (BA)tested them, 26 saying, (BB)“If you will diligently listen to the voice of the Lord your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the (BC)diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, (BD)your healer.”
27 Then (BE)they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees, and they encamped there by the water.
Footnotes
- Exodus 15:1 Or its chariot; also verse 21
- Exodus 15:23 Marah means bitterness
- Exodus 15:25 Or tree
- Exodus 15:25 Hebrew he
Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
