Beshalach - War and Praise

(Ashkenazim – Shoftim 4-5; Sefaradim – 5 only)

 

1. a. Shabbat Shira

 

The Shabbat on which we read parashat Beshalach is called Shabbat Shira, in honor of the song of praise sung by Bnei Yisrael upon crossing the Red Sea. This song represents the climax of the parasha and its spirit is meant to illuminate the entire Shabbat. The name "Shabbat Shira" also alludes to the haftora, though, for here again we find a song of praise. According to the Sefaradi custom, the entire haftora consists only of the song, and although for Ashkenazim the song is only the second half of the haftora, it appears that the song is the most important part. And thus, there is a strong parallel between the parasha and the haftora.

 

In both instances, the song of praise as a whole consists of many details: the content of the song; the miraculous victory over the enemy who sought to destroy; the part played by the water in defeating the enemy (in the parasha – the Red Sea, in the haftora – the waters of the Kishon river); the enemy's chariot, of which he is so proud, has to contend with the water; the elevated style of the song, with a rhythm, reminiscent of the waves; the special style in which the song is written – print over blank space and blank space over print; the scope and breadth of vision of the song, joining past, present and future. All of these features are common to the songs of both the parasha and the haftora.

 

1. b. In the wake of song on earth, a hope of song on high

 

If we turn our attention to the Ashkenazi custom, the comparison goes even further. The parallel involves not only the songs themselves, but also the background leading up to the songs – the war and all that it entails. There are even common linguistic features, such as "... and God looked to the camp of Egypt... and he struck the camp of Egypt with confusion" (14:24), corresponding to "And God struck Sisra and all the camp with confusion" (4:15); "There remained not even one of them" (14:28) corresponding to "Not even one was left" (4:16); and "The enemy said... I shall divide the spoils" (16:9), corresponding to "have they not found and divided the spoils?" (5:30).

 

It seems that a vision of the splitting of the Red Sea and the text narrating what happened there was in the mind of the author of Sefer Shoftim, and apparently in the minds of Devorah and Barak as well. It is therefore most surprising that at the start of their song, where they seek some historic precedence for their praise, they mention not the events of the Red Sea but rather those of Sinai:

 

"God, when You came out of Se'ir, when You marched from the field of Edom, the earth trembled and the heavens dripped; the clouds also gave forth water. The mountains melted from before God, so too Sinai, before the Lord God of Israel." (5:4-5)

 

The waters referred to here are not the physical waters of the Red Sea, but rather the waters that sprout forth from the Torah. Perhaps this song also reflects a great hope, that a spiritual revelation would follow Devorah and Barak's victory. In the wake of the miraculous splitting of the Red Sea, the nation reached the lofty occasion of God's revelation at Sinai. Devorah and Barak and the rest of the nation hoped that in the wake of the revelation in the form of the defeat of their mortal enemies, a greater – spiritual – revelation would come about, and that their song would be the prelude to a great chorus that would sound from Above.

 

An expression of this hope is to be found right at the start of the song of Devorah and Barak: "I, to God I shall sing..." (5:3). This is reminiscent of the beginning of the song sung at the Sea: "I shall sing to God..." (15:1). But the repeated use of the word "I" ("anokhi") in the verse hints that the song is inspired by a vision of Sinai and that the memory of Sinai seeks to be included in the song – just as the revelation at Sinai began with the word "I," so does Devorah's song. Thus, this song derives its inspiration both from the song of the sea and from the revelation at Sinai.

 

1. c. The first war vs. those that followed

 

Why does Devorah's song use the revelation at Sinai as inspiration in addition to the song of the sea? The reason for this may lie in the great difference between the two events involved. What characterized the people of Israel in their first war as a nation was the way in which they observed as spectators: "God  will fight for you and you will hold your peace" (14:14). Even though "with arms did Bnei Yisrael go up from the land of Egypt" (13:18), nevertheless they themselves did not actually fight, and the only soldier who fought the battle against Egypt was God Himself: "God is a Man of war" (15:3).

 

The war in the days of Devorah and Barak, on the other hand, was a war fought by Israel. They responded to the Divine command to present themselves for battle: "Did not the Lord God of Israel command, Go and gather men at Mount Tavor... and I shall draw Sisra out to you to the river Kishon... and his chariots and his multitude..." (4:6-7). And although among the tribes of Israel there was an almost complete lack of arms – "Was there a shield seen or a spear among forty thousand of Israel?" (5:8) – the fighters of Israel did not hold themselves back from battle. They were well aware – as expressed in the song – that it was not their physical might that would bring them victory, but rather "they fought from heaven; the stars in the courses fought with Sisra" (5:20). Nevertheless, this knowledge did not prevent them from taking an active part in the war – in the spirit of Sinai, which was characterized by the joint cooperation of God and Israel: had the nation not agreed to accept the Torah, declaring "we shall do and we shall hear" (Shemot 24:7), the Torah would not have been given. God's handing over of the Torah was the response to the nation's own readiness to accept it. Thus, the more profound historical precedent for Devorah's prophetic song was the giving of the Torah at Sinai.

 

And the selection of the haftora may have been made with the intention to teach us that the war of the Red Sea, fought entirely by God, could not serve as an example and precedent for Israel's future wars. This was a unique, one-time war. In future wars, the people of Israel would be required to act first on their own, and only then would God intercede on their behalf and assist them.

 

1. d. When does the song break forth?

 

In fact, the parasha itself describes another war completely different in nature from the war fought at the sea. At the end of the parasha we read of the war against Amalek, and this war is fought by Bnei Yisrael themselves. "And Moshe said to Yehoshua, Choose us men and go out and fight with Amalek" (17:9). Obviously, here too, if they did not have faith and subject themselves to God's will, they would not be successful (Mishnah Rosh HaShanah 3:8), but nevertheless the people themselves were required to take action and to fight.

 

From this point of view, the war of Devorah and Barak against Sisra can be compared with the war of Yehoshua against Amalek rather than with the war against Paro. Indeed, the war against Amalek is mentioned in Devorah's song too: "They came from Efraim, rooted in Amalek" (5:14).

 

Interestingly, though, the victory over Amelek did not give rise to a song. And the reason for this cannot be that Bnei Yisrael themselves fought the war and and thus there was no obvious miracle, because the same can be said for the war of Devorah and Barak, and they nevertheless did utter a song of praise.

 

Perhaps a song of praise is uttered only upon the final and complete demolishment of the enemy. When not a single soldier remained of the Egyptians, Bnei Yisrael sang their song, but in the war against Amalek, the victory was not complete. Perhaps it is on the basis of this reality that we have the promise, at the end of parashat Beshalach, "for with a hand on God's throne, God's war is with Amalek from generation to generation" (17:16).

 

Or, perhaps a song of praise comes only after a long period of subjugation and bitterness, when the suffering has been almost unbearable. The profound depths of depression are at once released with the victory, and the formerly oppressed break forth in song. Such was the case at the victory of the Red Sea, which marked the conclusion of a prolonged period of harsh slavery, and such was the case of Devorah and Barak and the nation who had suffered for dozens of years at the hands of their oppressive neighbors. Amalek's attack, on the other hand, although powerful and extremely painful, lasted only a few days and was suppressed by Yehoshua within a short time. Since no prolonged distress was involved, no song was uttered in honor of the victory.

 

There is another possible explanation. Only a few short weeks after the miracle of the Red Sea and the great euphoria which took hold of the nation, Amalek struck. This was a great blow, for the nation discovered that they were still not safe from enemy attack and that the victory at the sea could not assure them real peace and security. This being the case, what cause was there for song? But perhaps the opposite is the case: Devorah's song teaches us that even some small salvation, a temporary victory ("And the land was quiet for forty years" (5:31)), a victory where not even all the tribes of Israel had participated, is sufficient reason for song and praise.

 

1. e. One-time song and a song for generations

 

The song of the sea became a heritage for all generations and was even included in the daily prayers as part of "pesukei de-zimra" (songs of praise). The song of Devorah, on the other hand, left its impression only for a short time, and had it not been selected as a haftora it would not be heard with any regularity in the synagogue at all; it would be studied only in the beit midrash like any other section of Tanakh.

 

Indeed, this is the difference between the redemption from Egypt, which was the root and source of all future redemptions, and a one-time specific redemption.

 

This may find expression in the opening phrases of the respective songs. The song of the sea begins, "Then sang (yashir) Moshe...", the verb hinting at the future tense, while the song of Devorah begins, "And Devorah sang (va-tashar), and Barak the son of Avinoam, on that day..." The song was uttered on that day and remained the song of that day. It lasted only forty years, as we learn from its conclusion: "And the land was quiet for forty years."

 

Indeed, the redemption at the sea and the song of praise uttered in its wake had the potential to elevate the nation to heights from which they would never descend: "'God will reign for ever and ever' – R. Yosi ha-Gelili said, Had Israel said at the sea 'God reigns (melekh) for ever and ever,' no nation could ever have had dominion over them, but instead they said, 'God will reign (yimlokh) for ever and ever' – i.e., in the future" (Mekhilta).

 

1. f. Comparing Devorah's song to that of David

 

On two occasions in the year the song of the sea is read in public. It is read as part of the regular weekly parasha reading, and another time on the seventh day of Pesach, the day on which the event actually occurred.

 

On both of these occasions where the Torah reading is a song of praise, the haftora accompanying it is also a song of praise. The haftora of Beshalach is the song of Devorah, while the haftora for the seventh day of Pesach is the song of David (Shmuel II 22). Why was the former chosen as the haftora for the song of the sea when it occurs as a regular weekly Torah reading while the latter was selected to accompany the song when we read it on Pesach?

 

Perhaps it is because on the seventh day of Pesach the song of the sea represents the climax of the portion read. The entire narrative, from the beginning of parashat Beshalach, comes only to give the background to the song and to lead us to it. Hence, it is most appropriate that it be accompanied by the song of David, which was uttered on the day when God saved him from all his enemies (according to Abarbanel, who maintains that David composed this song in his old age, when he sensed that God had now saved him literally from all his enemies) and from Shaul.

 

The conclusion of the reading from the Torah contains echoes of the complete redemption: "God will reign for ever and ever" – and the song alludes to the land and to the Temple. For this reason, too, it is fitting to read the song of praise of David, who represents the bridge to the world of future redemption, since the Mashiach who brings about the final redemption will be one of his descendants.

 

In contrast, when we read parashat Beshalach in the regular order of weekly parashiot, the reading does not conclude with the song. We continue with the journeys of Bnei Yisrael, with all of their problems and complaints, and with the next war that awaited them. In terms of this physical journey, the redemption at the sea represented only a temporary respite. (Its impression for all generations was only in the very long term, while the short term remained characterized by petty concerns.) Thus, the song of Devorah is more suitable – a great song for a great redemption, but certainly not one representing the end of anything or a permanent peace – only a temporary break: "And the land was quiet for forty years."

Translated by Kaeren Fish