B’Shalach
Exodus 13:17 - 17:16

             This week’s Torah portion contains the victory song of Moses. This is the first such song found in the Bible. In ancient times it was not unusual for a victorious king to be venerated and all of his heroic acts enumerated.  However, the Song of Moses is different in that it is not Moses who is praised but rather the God of Moses.  In addition, this song is unusual because the God of Israel is not made of wood or stone - He is invisible.  The Song of Moses depicts God as having power over nature and over history.   When God told Moses of His plan for bringing the Jewish people out of Egypt , He said that the Egyptians would know that He is the Lord. This is clearly described in verse 11. Who is like you among the gods, O Lord? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in praises. Working wonders?” God showed Himself as the God of nature in the plagues and in parting the waters of the Red Sea .    In the second verse we read, “the Lord is my strength and song and He has become my salvation.”  This statement is repeated by Isaiah and also in Psalm 18.  It speaks of God as the protector and the one to who we give praise.  He is called a warrior in verse 3.  We usually do not think of God as a “warrior”.  However, if He is the one who fights the battles, He is indeed a warrior.  The verse says “The Lord is a warrior, the Lord is his name”.  Rashi understood this to mean that His wars are not carried out with weapons but rather He does battle using his name.  This is what David says when he fights Goliath. He says “You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel , whom you have taunted.”(1 Sam. 17:45).  He says further,    "This day the LORD will deliver you up into my hands, and I will strike you down and remove your head from you. And I will give the dead bodies of the army of the Philistines this day to the birds of the sky and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel,   and that all this assembly may know that the LORD does not deliver by sword or by spear; for the battle is the LORD'S and He will give you into our hands." (v.46-47). In our Torah portion, Moses makes the same kind of statement: The LORD will fight for you while you keep silent." (Ex. 14:14).  Throughout the entire song, God is the only One credited with the victory. Moses never talks about himself or the people. It is God alone who gets the praise for He is the one who wins the battle. 

       In our own day, this Song of Moses brings great comfort as well as awe to those who trust in His Name.   When the Messiah came, He achieved victory over sin and death. He protects us and empowers us to live godly lives. He fights our battles and in Him we have victory.  In the Song of Moses, there is also a foretelling of the future. Verses 17 and 18 tell of people living in the land of Israel and of the Temple . In the same way, Messiah’s victory over sin assures us that the final victory will be attained - eternal life.  May we sing praises to God and testify of His power in our lives so that the nations will know that the Lord - He is God.

Shabbat shalom!

Howard Silverman