Biblical Parallels Index – Shemot 15

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Overview

This index is meant to help the reader explore Biblical parallels, be they two accounts of the same event, stories with similar motifs and themes, or units of text which are linguistically similar and perhaps alluding one to the other. The page includes links to tools that aid in comparison, primary sources that touch upon the parallels, and summaries of and links to articles which analyze them in depth.

Songs in Tanakh

The Song of the Sea (שירת הים) is one of several songs in Tanakh. Others include the song of Ha'azinu, Devorah and Channah's songs, and David's song. Is there a common denominator between the events which led to the singing and composing of each of these songs?

Tools

Articles

  • Haazinu: The Five Songs in Tanach, by R. Menachem Leibtag, differentiates between three songs (the song of the sea, of Devorah, and of David) that describe ideal situations of redemption and triumph, and two (Ha'azinu and the song of Yehoshua)1 that conclude periods that fall short of expectations. Focusing on the songs found in Torah, R. Leibtag notes that the "Song of the Sea" marked the completion of the Exodus and independence from Egypt. It should have ushered in the conquest, leading into an idyllic song praising entry into the Promised Land. However, the generation of the Wilderness did not live up to its ideal and so the next song that is sung, Ha'azinu, is much more pessimistic in tone
  • See Beshalach: The Song at the Sea, by R. Michael Hattin, for comparison and contrast of Biblical songs, with a focus on the similarities and differences between "שירת הים" (the Song of the Sea) and "שירת דבורה" (the Song of Deborah).  R. Hattin identifies the unique theme of "שירת הים" as being Hashem’s “saving might,” both in the present and eschatologically.
  • See אך חבל כל אדם: עיונים בשירה המקראית, by Dr. Victor Kellner, for analysis of the unique religious goals of Biblical poetry and how these relate to its aesthetic features, with a focus on Tehillim.
  • See מלחמה ושירה, by R. Yehuda Shaviv, for analysis and contrast of the elements of Shirat HaYam, Shirat Devorah, and Shirat David, and discussion of why there was no similar song after the defeat of Amalek. He proposes that perhaps songs are only composed after a total defeat or after the undoing of a prolonged subjugation, neither of which occurred with regards to Amalek.

Splitting the Sea and the Jordan

The two miracles of the splitting of the sea and of the Israelites’ crossing of the Jordan in Yehoshua 3, not surprisingly, have much in common.

Tools

  • Use Makbilot BaMikra to find all the places in Tanakh where the miracle of the splitting of the sea is mentioned.  One of the verses listed is Yehoshua 4:23 in which the text itself explicitly compares the miracle at the Jordan to the miracle by the sea.

Articles

  • See Crossing a River and Splitting a Sea, by R. Michael Hattin, for comparison and contrast of the descriptions of the two miracles. He notes that in both cases, passage through a body of water is the symbolic act that severs the people from their past and secures for them their future. The differences between the two units, however, reflect how much the nation has grown from one story to the next. In Shemot, the fragility of the Israelites is highlighted, as their slave mentality encumbers them and leads to panic. In contrast, their descendants in Sefer Yehoshua are marked by self confidence and faith in God.

Israelites’ Complaints

Shemot 14:10-14 describes the first many complaints of the Israelites in the desert.2 Other complaints can be found in Shemot 15:22-25, Shemot 16:2-4, Shemot 17:1-7, Bemidbar 11:5-6, Bemidbar 14:2-3, Bemidbar 20:1-6, and Bemidbar 21:4-7.

Tools

  • Use Makbilot BaMikra to find links to the many verses which speak of the nation's various complaints, including descriptions of the events in Tehillim.

Articles and Lectures

  • Listen to Sefer Bemidbar: From Doubt to Debate, by Atara Snowbell, for an insightful analysis and close reading of the evolution of the Israelites’ complaints from Shemot 15 through Bemidbar 21, reflecting their increasing faith and independence.
  • See מסע בעקבות תלונות עם ישראל במדבר, by Dr. Brachi Elitzur, for a nuanced comparison and contrast of the complaints in the desert along six different parameters: the situation that prompted the complaint, the way that the Torah describes the people and their complaint, the content of their request, the way that the nation relates to Egypt, and the consequences of the complaint. 
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