2026.03.22.Sermon Notes. SONG OF REDEMPTION AND THE TESTING OF FAITH – Exodus 15
William Akehurst, HSWC
KEY WORDS:
Redemption, Deliverance, Song of Moses, Song of Miriam, Marah, Jehovah Rapha, Faith, Testing, Wilderness, Kinsman Redeemer, Salvation, Worship
SCRIPTURES:
Exodus 15:1-27, Matthew 1:21, Deuteronomy 20:4, Romans 8:31, Mark 16:19, Ephesians 1:20-21, Isaiah 41:10, Revelation 11:15, 1 Peter 2:24, Deuteronomy 31:6-8
BIG IDEA
When GOD delivers HIS people, HE deserves their worship; yet after the song of victory comes the test of faith. True faith praises GOD in victory and trusts HIM in the wilderness.
INTRO
Exodus 15 stands immediately after one of the greatest miracles recorded in Scripture…the deliverance at the Red Sea in Exodus 14. Israel has just watched the Egyptian army destroyed and their slavery permanently ended.
The natural response of the redeemed people of GOD is WORSHIP.
Exodus 15 contains:
1. The Song of Moses (vs.1-18) Praise for GOD’s victory
2. The Song of Miriam (vs.19-21) Celebration led by the women
3. The Test at Marah (vs.22-27) The first wilderness test
And teaches an important truth:
POINT: Deliverance leads to worship, but worship must be followed by obedience and trust.
I. THE SONG OF MOSES – WORSHIP AFTER DELIVERANCE (Exodus 15:1-18)
After crossing the Red Sea, Moses and the Israelites break out into a song.
Exodus 15:1
1 Then Moses and the children of Israel sang this song to the LORD, and spoke, saying: “I will sing to the LORD, For He has triumphed gloriously! The horse and its rider He has thrown into the sea!
This is the first recorded song in the Bible.
The Hebrew word for song is (shir) meaning to sing or celebrate in praise.
GOD’s salvation produces joyful worship.
THE LORD IS MY STRENGTH AND SALVATION (v.2)
2 The LORD is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation; He is my God, and I will praise Him; My father’s God, and I will exalt Him.
The Hebrew word for salvation is:
(Yeshuah) — deliverance, rescue, salvation.
This word is closely related to the name Yeshua (JESUS).
The deliverance from Egypt foreshadows the greater deliverance found in Matthew 1:21:
• Matthew 1:21 21 And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.”
CHRIST TYPOLOGY
Egypt represents bondage to sin,
Pharaoh represents the tyranny of Satan,
The Red Sea represents the impossible barrier,
But GOD provides salvation.
POINT: Just as Israel could not save themselves, neither can we.
THE LORD IS A MAN OF WAR (v.3)
3 The LORD is a man of war; The LORD is His name.
GOD fights for His people.
This truth appears throughout Scripture:
• Deuteronomy 20:4 For the LORD your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you.
• Romans 8:31 What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
POINT: The victory belongs to GOD alone.
THE POWER OF GOD OVER CREATION (vv.4-10)
4 Pharaoh’s chariots and his army He has cast into the sea; His chosen captains also are drowned in the Red Sea.
5 The depths have covered them; They sank to the bottom like a stone.
6 “Your right hand, O LORD, has become glorious in power; Your right hand, O LORD, has dashed the enemy in pieces.
7 And in the greatness of Your excellence You have overthrown those who rose against You; You sent forth Your wrath; It consumed them like stubble.
8 And with the blast of Your nostrils the waters were gathered together;
The floods stood upright like a heap; The depths 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 on them. I will draw my sword, My hand shall destroy them.’
10 You blew with Your wind, The sea covered them; They sank like lead in the mighty waters.
YOUR RIGHT HAND – GLORIOUS IN POWER (vs. 6)
6 “Your right hand, O LORD, has become glorious in power; Your right hand, O LORD, has dashed the enemy in pieces.
This description signifies GOD’s strength, authority and divine power to deliver HIS people and defeat their enemies.
WHO is the RIGHT HAND of the FATHER?
WHO is glorious in power?
In the New Testament, JESUS CHRIST is described as sitting at the right hand of GOD, further emphasizing HIS role as a powerful mediator and protector. The right hand symbolizes not only GOD’s might, but also HIS Protection and guidance in the lives of believers.
• Mark 16:19 So then, after the Lord had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.
• Ephesians 1:20-21 20 which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.
• Isaiah 41:10 10 Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’
These verses poetically describe the destruction of the Egyptian army.
GOD uses nature itself as His weapon.
The sea becomes the grave of Israel’s enemies.
Notice verse 8:
“With the blast of Your nostrils the waters were gathered together.”
This is a vivid image of GOD’s sovereign power.
POINT: The same GOD who created the sea now commands it.
JESUS also commands the wind and the seas.
Mark 4:39 Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.
(Matt. 8:23–27; Luke 8:22–25)
THE UNIQUENESS OF GOD (v.11)
11 “Who is like You, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like You, glorious in holiness, Fearful in praises, doing wonders?
12 You stretched out Your right hand; The earth swallowed them.
“Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the GODs?”
This is a rhetorical question.
The answer is no one.
The plagues had already demonstrated this truth.
Every Egyptian GOD was powerless before the LORD.
This verse affirms the biblical doctrine of GOD’s absolute supremacy.
GOD LEADS HIS REDEEMED PEOPLE (v.13)
13 You in Your mercy have led forth the people whom You have redeemed; You have guided them in Your strength to Your holy habitation.
“You in Your mercy have led forth the people whom You have redeemed” The Hebrew word for redeemed is:
(ga’al) — to redeem, to act as a kinsman redeemer.
This word appears again in the story of Book of Ruth, where Boaz redeems Ruth.
CHRIST Typology
JESUS is our Kinsman Redeemer.
• He became man.
• He paid the price.
• He redeemed His people from slavery to sin.
GOD’S PROMISE OF THE PROMISED LAND (vv.14–17)
14 “The people will hear and be afraid; Sorrow will take hold of the inhabitants of Philistia.
15 Then the chiefs of Edom will be dismayed; The mighty men of Moab, Trembling will take hold of them; All the inhabitants of Canaan will melt away.
16 Fear and dread will fall on them; By the greatness of Your arm they will be as still as a stone, till Your people pass over, O LORD, till the people pass over whom You have purchased.
17 You will bring them in and plant them In the mountain of Your inheritance, In the place, O LORD, which You have made For Your own dwelling, The sanctuary, O Lord, which Your hands have established.
The song moves prophetically toward the future.
Israel has not yet entered Canaan, but Moses sings as if it is already accomplished.
This reflects faith in GOD’s promises.
POINT: Faith celebrates before the promise is fulfilled.
This is a “Prophetic Declaration of Faith” - Standing on what was promised, and what is to come.
THE ETERNAL REIGN OF GOD (v.18)
18 “The LORD shall reign forever and ever.”
GOD’s reign is eternal.
This theme echoes later in Revelation 11:15:
• Revelation 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.
POINT: The victory at the Red Sea points forward to the ultimate victory of CHRIST.
II. THE SONG OF MIRIAM – CELEBRATION OF DELIVERANCE (Exodus 15:19-21)
19 For the horses of Pharaoh went with his chariots and his horsemen into the sea, and the LORD brought back the waters of the sea upon them. But the children of Israel went on dry land in the midst of the sea.
The Song of Miriam 20-21 (Num. 26:59)
20 Then Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took the timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances. 21 And Miriam answered them: “Sing to the LORD, For He has triumphed gloriously! The horse and its rider He has thrown into the sea!”
After Moses finishes, Miriam leads the women in worship.
Miriam
She is called “the prophetess.”
She leads the women with timbrels and dancing.
This shows the joy of salvation.
Her refrain repeats the central truth:
Sing to the LORD, For He has triumphed gloriously!
The focus of worship is GOD’s victory, not human effort.
III. THE TEST AT MARAH – FAITH IN THE WILDERNESS (Exodus 15:22-27)
Bitter Waters Made Sweet 22-27
22 So Moses brought Israel from the Red Sea; then they went out into the Wilderness of Shur. And they went three days in the wilderness and found no water. 23 Now when they came to Marah, they could not drink the waters of Marah, for they were bitter. Therefore the name of it was called Marah. 24 And the people complained against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” 25 So he cried out to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a tree. When he cast it into the waters, the waters were made sweet.
There He made a statute and an ordinance for them, and there He tested them, 26 and said, “If you diligently heed the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the LORD who heals you.”
27 Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve wells of water and seventy palm trees; so they camped there by the waters.
After the song, the journey continues.
And immediately, a test appears.
THREE DAYS WITHOUT WATER (v.22)
Israel travels three days into the wilderness.
Water is essential in the desert.
The people quickly begin to fear.
This reveals a spiritual truth:
POINT: It is easier to sing on the shore than trust in the desert.
THE BITTER WATERS OF MARAH (v.23)
When they finally find water, it is bitter.
The place is named Marah.
The Hebrew word:
(marah) — bitter, unpleasant.
Life often brings bitter experiences.
Yet GOD uses these moments to test faith.
THE PEOPLE MURMUR (v.24)
Instead of praying, the people complain.
This becomes a repeated pattern in the wilderness journey.
Murmuring reveals a lack of trust in GOD.
GOD PROVIDES THE REMEDY (v.25)
GOD shows Moses a tree.
When it is thrown into the water, the water becomes sweet.
CHRIST TYPOLOGY
Many theologians see a powerful symbol here.
The tree represents the cross.
The cross turns bitter waters into sweet salvation.
As written in 1 Peter 2:24:
• 1 Peter 2:24 Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
POINT: The cross transforms the bitterness of sin into the sweetness of redemption.
THE TEST – “IF” (vs. 25-26)
He made a statute and an ordinance for them, and there He tested them, 26 and said, “If you diligently heed the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you…
JEHOVAH RAPHA – THE LORD WHO HEALS (v.26)
GOD reveals a new name.
(YHWH Rapha)
Meaning:
“The LORD who heals you.”
This healing is not only physical but spiritual.
GOD restores His people.
THE OASIS AT ELIM (v.27)
After Marah comes Elim.
Elim contains:
• 12 wells of water
• 70 palm trees
This shows the gracious character of GOD.
After testing comes refreshment.
POINT: GOD never abandons His people.
Deuteronomy 31:6, 8
6 Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.”
8 And the LORD, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.”
REFLECT AND APPLY
1. SALVATION SHOULD PRODUCE WORSHIP
Israel sang because GOD saved them.
True believers worship because they have experienced redemption through CHRIST.
2. WORSHIP MUST CONTINUE IN THE WILDERNESS
It is easy to praise when the sea parts.
But faith is tested when the water becomes bitter.
3. GOD TURNS BITTER EXPERIENCES INTO BLESSINGS
Many believers experience “Marah moments.”
Yet GOD uses these trials to grow faith and reveal His power.
4. THE CROSS MAKES THE BITTER SWEET
Just as the tree healed the waters, the cross heals the soul.
CHRIST transforms suffering into redemption.
FINAL THOUGHT: Deliverance inspires worship, but genuine faith involves trusting GOD through life's tests, with CHRIST as the Ultimate Redeemer Who turns bitterness into sweetness.
PRAYER
Heavenly FATHER,
We praise YOU for YOUR mighty power and for the salvation YOU have given through JESUS CHRIST. Just as YOU delivered Israel from Egypt, YOU have delivered us from sin and death.
Teach us to worship YOU not only in moments of victory but also in the wilderness trials of life. When we encounter bitter waters, remind us that YOU are the LORD Who heals.
Strengthen our faith so that we trust YOU completely and follow wherever YOU lead.
In the name of our Redeemer, JESUS CHRIST,
Amen.
BE BLESSED AND BE A BLESSING,
Bill
Hymns
11 - Great Is Thy Faithfulness
401 - Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah
249 - Redeemed, How I Love to Proclaim It
