Exodus 15

📖 Exodus 15:1–21

Saved People Sing

Big Idea: /The Church sings because God has acted powerfully, redeemed completely, and reigns eternally through Jesus Christ.

We often would not expect to find the foundation for many church practices in the Old Testament. And yet, one of the most familiar things we do every week is also one of the most ancient. Have you ever stopped to ask why we sing so much as God’s people? Why is music so central to our gatherings?

From the beginning of creation, song has been woven into humanity. We sing in the car and in the shower. We sing before ball games. We sing when a melody reaches down into the depths of our souls and puts words to something we could not otherwise express. Song has always been a human response to joy, sorrow, victory, and longing.

So when the church gathers and sings, is that all we are doing? Are we simply borrowing cultural habits and baptizing them for religious use? Are our songs just emotional warm ups before the real work begins? You see this instinct all throughout church history.

Isaac Watts believed the church needed to sing more than biblical words. He wanted the church to sing biblical truth fulfilled in Christ. That is why he reworked the Psalms so believers could sing of redemption clearly and confidently. Watts understood that worship was not about preserving tradition. It was about responding rightly to what God had done.

A generation later, Charles Wesley carried that same conviction. Wesley wrote thousands of hymns because he believed theology was meant to be sung. He once said he wanted doctrine placed not only in the minds of God’s people, but on their lips. For Wesley, singing was not emotional excess. It was catechesis. It was discipleship through praise.

Neither Watts nor Wesley invented this. They inherited it.

Long before the church sang its theology, Israel sang its salvation. When God delivered His people at the sea, He did not command them to organize. He did not instruct them to move on. The first thing He records is this: then Moses and the people of Israel sang to the Lord.

Redemption always produces worship.

This is what we are going to see this morning, As the church we sing because God has acted powerfully, redeemed completely, and reigns eternally through Jesus Christ.

INTRODUCTION: FROM SILENCE TO SONG (vv. 1–2)

The song comes after salvation, not before it. As the trail of the recent flight comes to an end, the sea is closed and the enemy is defeated, worship erupts. It does not erupt because this is what people do in the midst of frightening situations. It erupts because redemption has been accomplished. Moses and the people all sing in this moment. In the Final book of the Lord of the Rings Series, when the Ring is destroyed and the threat of Sauron is finally ended, there is a pause. The battle is over. The danger has passed. And then comes celebration. Songs are sung, crowns are placed, and honor is given.

No one sings in the middle of Mount Doom while the Ring still exists. No one breaks into celebration while the enemy still holds power. The joy comes after the victory is complete.

That is exactly what happens in Exodus 15. Israel does not sing while the waters are still parted and the enemy is still alive. They sing when the sea closes and the threat is gone. The song does not create victory. It responds to it.

Their singing speaks distinctly about what God has done and theologically about who God is. This is not a song meant to be fun or merely upbeat. It is focused, deliberate, and centered on God Himself. The distinction is clear. The main character in this song is not the people of God, but the person of God.

The song is sung in the wake of salvation. They do not sing to get God to act. They sing in response to what God has already done to save them. God does not ask them to sing in order to be saved. He saves them, and then He gives them a song.

The exact nature of God’s saving work is explained in the song itself. He has triumphed gloriously. He rises up like a wave, like a flooding force that overwhelms His enemies. Yahweh has displayed His greatness over Egypt and over all their false gods. This is heartfelt praise because Yahweh is a personal God who saves His people, and they trust Him.

This same understanding has carried forward into the life of the church. We sing heartfelt praise because Yahweh has saved us completely. We sing because Christ has already declared, “It is finished.” We sing because salvation has come to people who were bound in sin and deserved nothing but the wrath of God. And because of that, we now sing to the Lord of His marvelous work accomplished for us in Christ. Redemption has given them a song, and now the lyrics reveal the God who alone is worthy of their praise.

MOVEMENT 1: THE LORD WHO SAVES BY POWER (vv. 3–10)

Moses lifts up his voice in song declaring who God is. Moses writes that Yahweh is a man of war, a warrior. God’s willingness to fight for His people against their enemies has just been displayed in the waters of judgment. Israel has been formed into a people by the power and might of God Himself.

Soon, at Mount Sinai, they will be constituted as a covenant community. They will be a people defined not by military strength or political alliances, but by the presence and power of God who goes before them and fights for them. Throughout the Old Testament, God’s people repeatedly face battles they cannot win, and the Lord Himself becomes the means of their salvation. They needed to understand what it meant for God to be a warrior, one who leads them into battle and one who fights on their behalf to ensure their survival as a people.

As they move toward the Promised Land, they will have no allies, no earthly deliverers to trust in, no reason for confidence in themselves. Their hope will rest entirely in the fact that Yahweh is the true God and their God. Think about the power on display here. An overwhelmingly powerful military force is defeated by Yahweh alone. This victory is undeniable proof of His power and His protection.

Verse 7 then turns our attention to God’s judgment on those who oppose Him. His destruction of His enemies is not a contradiction of His character, but an inherent expression of it. God is not tolerant of evil or sin. He is patient and slow to anger, but He does not overlook rebellion. God is a God of justice. That is why He overthrows His adversaries. He sends out His fury, and His wrath consumes His enemies like stubble.

This text reminds us that God does indeed have wrath. He does become angry toward sin. And He is majestic even as He executes judgment upon those who deserve it. His holiness demands it, and His justice requires it.

Imagine a judge who sees clear evidence of violence, exploitation, and murder, and then simply shrugs and lets the guilty walk free. We would not call that judge loving. We would call him corrupt. Justice demands a response.

This text reminds us that God does indeed have a response. He does become angry toward sin. And He is majestic even as He executes judgment upon those who deserve it. His holiness demands it, and His justice requires it. A god who refused to judge evil would not be loving or good. He would be unjust. God’s anger is not uncontrolled rage. It is His settled, holy opposition to everything that destroys what He has made.

Even as the enemy plots to attack, to capture, and to destroy, God Himself ensures that those who rise against His people will be overthrown, just as He did with the Egyptians. The victory does not rest in Israel’s resolve, strength, or strategy, but in the Lord who fights for them.

And this is why the song sounds the way it does. This is not Israel celebrating their faith. This is Israel celebrating God’s might.

Even as the enemy plots to attack, to capture, and to destroy, God Himself ensures that those who rise against His people will be overthrown, just as He did with the Egyptians. The victory does not rest in Israel’s resolve, strength, or strategy, but in the Lord who fights for them.

And this is why the song sounds the way it does. This is not Israel celebrating their faith. This is Israel celebrating God’s might.

When Moses sings that the Lord is a warrior, he is not exaggerating for poetic effect. He is confessing what Israel has just seen with their own eyes. But even this great victory at the sea was not the final battle. It was a shadow of something greater still to come.

Christ is the greater Warrior. Where Pharaoh stood as a tyrant over God’s people, sin stood as a greater tyrant over our souls. Where Egypt enslaved with chains, sin enslaved with guilt and death. And just as Israel could not free themselves, neither could we.

At the cross, Christ does not negotiate with sin. He does not bargain with death. He does not compromise with Satan. He confronts them. He bears the judgment they deserve and emerges victorious. What looked like defeat was in fact triumph.

Paul tells us in Colossians 2:15 that Christ disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, triumphing over them in the cross. That language is not accidental. It is victory language. It is warfare language. It is Exodus language.

Just as the waters of judgment closed over Egypt, the judgment of God fell upon Christ. But unlike Pharaoh, Christ was not overcome by it. He passed through death and rose again in victory. The enemies that once held us captive no longer have the final word.

The God who crushed Egypt’s power is the same God who has crushed our greater enemies through Christ. Sin no longer condemns. Death no longer reigns. Satan no longer accuses. The Warrior has won.

And that is why we sing. Not because life is easy. Not because the battle feels over. But because the victory is already secured. Saved people sing because the greater Warrior has triumphed gloriously.

MOVEMENT 2: THE LORD WHO REDEEMS FOR HIS DWELLING (vv. 11–13)

As the movement of the song shifts, Moses recounts the Lord who redeems for His dwelling. God saves His people not merely to pull them out of danger, but to bring them near to Himself. With the memory of Egypt’s gods still lingering in their minds, Moses presses a decisive truth upon the singers. Yahweh is not one god among many. He is the only God. There is none like Him.

Moses frames this truth as a question. Who is like the Lord? And the implied answer is unmistakable. No one. Yahweh alone is majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, and powerful beyond comparison. He is utterly unique.

When Moses speaks of God’s holiness, he is describing God as set apart, distinct in His being, His will, and His purposes. Even the heavenly beings are not sufficient to compare with Him. They do not share His authority, His sovereignty, or His moral perfection. God stands apart from all created things. He alone is glorious.

And unlike human strength, God’s power is effortless. He does not strain or grow weary. He accomplishes His will with ease, performing works that are supernatural, intentional, and perfect. He never tires. He never falters. He acts as no creature ever could.

Imagine walking into a room filled with candles. Some burn brighter than others. Some flicker. Some are nearly out. But now imagine the sun entering that room. The candles do not compete with it. They are not even in the same category. The sun does not burn harder to outshine them. It simply is what it is.

That is what Moses is doing when he asks, “Who is like the Lord?” He is not comparing Yahweh to Egypt’s gods as if they are alternatives on the same shelf. Yahweh is not the brightest candle. He is the sun. He does not struggle to overcome rivals. He simply reveals Himself, and everything else is exposed for what it is.

Yet this holy and powerful God is not distant. As Moses sings, we see a deeply relational God who leads His people in steadfast love. Look at the language You have led, you have redeemed, you have guided.

You are bringing us toward your holy dwelling. Redemption is not cold rescue. It is covenantal relationship.

This has always been the pattern of God’s work. Throughout Scripture, God graciously comes near to His people. He came to Noah and saved him through the flood. He came to Abraham and made promises of redemption and blessing. He came to Israel when He heard their cries under Egyptian oppression and acted to save them.

He came near in the wilderness, dwelling with His people in the tabernacle, placing His glory in their midst. He came near through the sacrifices, providing a way for sinful people to approach a holy God. He came near through judges and kings, raising up deliverers when His people were powerless. He came near through the prophets, speaking His word again and again to a stubborn and wandering people.

Even when Israel rebelled, God did not abandon His purpose. He continued to draw near, calling His people to repentance and promising a greater redemption still to come. The pattern never changed. God saves, God dwells, God leads.

And all of it was pointing forward.

In the fullness of time, God came near in the most unexpected way. He did not merely send another deliverer. He came Himself. In Jesus Christ, God took on flesh and dwelt among us. The holy God who once descended on Sinai now walked among sinners. The God who redeemed His people to dwell with them became the dwelling place Himself.

Jesus did not simply rescue us from danger. He brought us to God. Scripture is explicit about this purpose. Hebrews tells us that Christ entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood, securing an eternal redemption, and that through Him we now have confidence to enter the holy places by His blood (Hebrews 9:12; 10:19). Redemption was never meant to stop at escape. It was meant to end in access.

This is exactly what we see unfolding in Exodus 15. Redemption here is relational, not merely rescue. God saves His people and then leads them forward. Moses sings that the Lord has led His redeemed people in steadfast love to His holy dwelling (Exodus 15:13). Salvation does not terminate at the sea. It moves toward the presence of God.

This is why salvation itself is not the destination. God Himself is. The goal of redemption has always been dwelling. God saves so that His people might live with Him, know Him, and worship Him.

Jesus makes this unmistakably clear in John 14 when He tells His disciples that He is going to prepare a place for them, and that He Himself is the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14:2–6). Christ does not merely open the door. He is the way through it. He is both the Redeemer and the path into God’s presence.

Through His life, death, and resurrection, Christ accomplished what every earlier act of redemption anticipated. He fulfills God’s long pattern of coming near. In Him, redemption and dwelling finally meet.

And that is why this song in Exodus 15 does more than celebrate a past victory. It teaches us how to understand salvation itself. God saves His people so that they may dwell with Him. And in Christ, that purpose is fully and forever realized.

Having sung of the God who saves and brings His people near, the song now lifts its eyes beyond the shore and into the future. Redemption does not end in private devotion or quiet dwelling. It announces a King. The God who brings His people into His presence also establishes His rule over all peoples and all time. And in verses 14 through 18, the song declares that the Lord who saves is the Lord who reigns forever.

MOVEMENT 3: THE LORD WHO REIGNS FOREVER (vv. 14–18)

Moses now lists several peoples and nations, and this is not accidental. Moses would have known these nations well from his upbringing as a prince in Egypt. He understood the political and economic realities surrounding Canaan and the land Israel was heading toward. The nations he names are not abstract. They are the very peoples Israel will soon encounter and face in opposition during their conquest.

The Philistines will be among the first major foes Israel confronts. They were superior in both military strength and technology, and they would remain a persistent enemy of Israel for generations. Edom, Moab, and Canaan all stem from earlier encounters in Israel’s history and stand directly in the path of God’s promises.

Edom descended from Esau, the brother of Jacob, making them Israel’s closest relatives. They occupied territory south and southeast of the Dead Sea, directly along Israel’s future travel routes. Their mention is significant because Edom would later refuse Israel passage through their land. The song anticipates that even close kin will tremble before the power of Israel’s God.

Moab descended from Lot, Abraham’s nephew. They lived east of the Dead Sea and would later interact with Israel throughout the wilderness years and beyond. Moab’s fear reflects awareness. They know Israel is coming, and more importantly, they know Israel’s God goes before them. Rather than first confronting Israel with armies, Moab attempts spiritual compromise, revealing a deep fear of Yahweh’s power.

Canaan was not a single nation, but a region made up of many city-states and peoples. This is the land God promised to Abraham generations earlier. These were the peoples Israel would eventually confront directly in conquest. When Moses names Canaan, he is looking forward. The God who drowned Egypt’s army will also bring His people into the land He promised. The fear of Canaan’s inhabitants is already sealed by what happened at the sea.

These nations will experience terror and dread because of the mighty acts of God accomplished for the sake of His people. The Lord is going to act, bringing His redeemed people to His holy dwelling place, where He will reign as supreme and sovereign over all things. Moses speaks of God bringing His people in and planting them. This personal, covenant Lord will give His people an inheritance under His kingship, where He will rule forever and ever.

And this song looks beyond more than just Exodus, Numbers, or even the entire Old Testament. It looks forward to the reign of the Lord and His kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. This reign will be unstoppable, uninterrupted, and eternal, a reign fulfilled in Christ. Hebrews tells us that the Son’s throne is forever. Revelation declares that Christ holds the keys of death and Hades, and that the kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever.

Christ established His kingdom in His first coming. He inaugurated His kingship through His death. He now sits and reigns until every enemy is placed under His feet. And for the people of God, this shapes both our worship and our hope. We sing now in anticipation, knowing that one day, as Revelation 15 tells us, we will stand with the redeemed and sing the song of Moses and the song of the Lamb.

The song of redemption begun at the sea will one day be completed before the throne.

Redeemed people do not sing only because salvation has come, or because they recognize the power of the Lord, or because they enjoy a relationship with Him. They sing because their worship points forward to the hope they have in Christ, the day when they will be with Him and He will reign forever and ever.

CONCLUSION: A SAVED PEOPLE STILL SING (vv. 19–21)

As the song draws to a close, the focus shifts to Miriam. She takes a tambourine in her hand, and the women follow her with singing and dancing. What began with Moses now spreads through the entire congregation. Worship is no longer led by one voice. It becomes the response of the whole redeemed community.

This moment reminds us that worship is communal. God did not save individuals in isolation. He redeemed a people. And redeemed people respond together. The victory at the sea was not private, and neither is the praise that follows it.

Worship here is also responsive. Miriam does not introduce a new theme. She echoes what has already been declared. The people respond to what God has done. Their praise flows from remembrance, from truth, and from shared confession. Worship does not create salvation. It celebrates it.

And finally, this worship is God-centered. The song does not linger on Israel’s escape or their courage. It returns again to the Lord who has triumphed gloriously. The focus remains fixed on God’s power, God’s victory, and God’s glory.

In this closing scene, we see the enduring pattern of God’s people. When the Lord saves, His people sing. Together. In response. For His glory.

Brothers and sisters, as we see in this song, worship is not about mood, style, or personal preference. And it is not ultimately about us. Worship is a response to what Christ has done, how He has done it, and what He has promised to do. We sing because Christ has triumphed. We sing because the enemy has been defeated. We sing because the Lord reigns forever.

So when we sing, we want our songs shaped by these truths. We want the gospel to direct our worship. We want to sing the fullness of the gospel. We sing.

And that raises an honest question for each of us. Do you sing, or do you simply stand and wait for the song to end? Do you lift your voice in worship, recounting what God has done and what He has promised to do? Congregational singing is one of the ways God strengthens His church. It is how we encourage one another and build one another up in faith.

Scripture calls us to sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. So it is worth asking, not in judgment but in reflection, why do we sometimes hold back? What keeps us silent? And what might God be doing in us and through us when we lift our voices together in praise?

Redemption always produces worship.. Not because the music is perfect. Not because the moment feels right. But because the gospel is true, and the Lord reigns forever.

The other truth is also important to say. You can sing and it never reach your heart. You do not have to be a Christian to sing Christian songs. You can know the melodies, the lyrics, even the language of worship, and still remain unchanged. Singing itself does not save. Participation does not equal devotion.

The song in Exodus 15 was not powerful because it was sung loudly. It was powerful because it flowed from redeemed hearts. Worship without redemption is only sound. It may move emotions, but it cannot transform the soul.

And this is where the gospel invites us to be honest. The question is not simply, Do you sing? The deeper question is, Has Christ saved you? Because only redeemed people truly sing from the heart. Only those who have passed from death to life can worship God in spirit and truth.

The good news is this. Christ offers more than a song. He offers salvation. He offers forgiveness for sin, peace with God, and new life. He invites sinners not to perform, but to repent and believe. To turn from self trust and place their faith fully in Him.

If Christ has saved you, then sing with joy, with gratitude, with confidence. But if He has not, then hear this invitation. Come to Him. Trust in His finished work. And when He saves, He will not only give you a song. He will give you a new heart that longs to sing.

Redemption always produces worship, therefore saved people sing. And Christ saves all who come to Him, and none will he ever cast out.