Shabbat Shirah: Learning to Sing for Both Suffering and Redemption

The Shabbat on which we read Parashat Beshalach is known as Shabbat Shirah, named after the song sung by the Children of Israel following the miracle of the splitting of the Sea of Reeds.

The Song of the Sea opens with the verse: “Then Moshe and the Children of Israel sang this song to the Lord” (Shemot 15:1).

At first glance, the word “then” appears not to be part of the song itself, but merely a reference to timing: then, when the Israelites saw the Egyptians lying dead on the seashore, they sang. However, the Sages teach that the word “then” is in fact an integral part of the song. The Midrash explains: “Moshe said before the Holy One, blessed be He: I know that I sinned before You with the word ‘then,’ as it is written, ‘And since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your Name, he has harmed this people, and You have not rescued Your people’ (Shemot 5:23). And now that You have drowned him in the sea, therefore I praise You with ‘then.’ This is what is written: ‘Then Moshe sang’” (Shemot Rabbah 23:3).

Let us explain the intent of this Midrash.

From Complaint to Understanding

When Moshe first approached Pharaoh and demanded that he release the Children of Israel, Pharaoh not only refused but intensified their labor. Moshe turned to God with a complaint and said: “Why have You harmed this people? Why did You send me? And since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your Name, he has harmed this people, and You have not rescued Your people” (Shemot 5:22–23).

Now, with the completion of the exile, as Moshe sees the Egyptian army dead on the seashore, everything becomes clear. Moshe now understands that the process of redemption began already then, from the very first moment he came to Pharaoh. He begins the song with the word “then” in order to repair what he misunderstood in the past. He now realizes that even that earlier “then” was a cause for song, not for complaint.

Singing Not Only for Salvation, but for Suffering

The Beit HaLevi, in his commentary on this parashah, sheds further light on the significance of beginning the song with the word “then.”

When a person is saved from trouble and thanks God for the deliverance, their joy is not greater than it would have been had the suffering never occurred at all. Their happiness is focused on the rescue, not on the pain that preceded it, for no one rejoices in suffering itself.

However, the song that the Children of Israel sang at the sea was not only about salvation. It was also about the suffering itself. They sang because they merited being the instruments through whom God’s Name and honor were magnified and sanctified, fulfilling the verse: “I will sing to the Lord, for He is exalted above all.” As Rashi explains: “He is exalted above all songs, and beyond every praise I can offer, there is still more.”

The miracles of the Exodus demonstrated God’s existence to the entire world. None of this would have happened without the suffering and bondage of the Children of Israel. Therefore, they sang not only about the redemption, but also about the servitude itself. Without the servitude, there would have been no redemption and no great sanctification of God’s Name.

Thanking God for Both Pain and Deliverance

King David expressed this same idea when he said: “I thank You, for You afflicted me, and You became my salvation” (Tehillim 118). He gives thanks for the suffering through which salvation came and through which God’s Name was sanctified publicly. For both together, he gives thanks, for both are ultimately good.

Life is filled with cycles of bondage and redemption, distress and relief. It is not easy to thank God for both. Yet there comes a moment in a person’s life when they understand something they had never understood before: a moment when they can thank God for the suffering itself, at least as much as they thank Him for the rescue. To reach this level, a person must seek a strong anchor to hold onto at all times, in every situation.

Bitter Waters Made Sweet

Later in the parashah, this idea is reinforced. The Children of Israel travel three days in the wilderness until their water runs out. They arrive at a place called Marah, where there is water, but it is bitter and unfit to drink. The Torah says: “The Lord showed him a tree; he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet” (Shemot 15:25).

The tree that was thrown into the water was itself bitter (Tanchuma Beshalach 24; Shemot Rabbah 23:3). Why a bitter tree? God was teaching the Children of Israel that they must also drink the bitter. Here, it was precisely the bitterness that sweetened the water. Such is life: many times, bitterness itself becomes part of the sweetness.

The Message of Shabbat Shirah

This parashah carries a powerful message. When a person truly believes in and trusts their Creator, they can give thanks for suffering just as they give thanks for redemption. They can feel secure even in the wilderness and understand that bitterness is not the opposite of sweetness, but part of it.