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God's revelation that began in Egypt reached its climax with the splitting of the Red Sea. The experience of revelation and the miracle of rescue from the hands of the Egyptians at sea was so powerful that it immediately led the people to have awe and faith in G-d, which they expressed in the Song of the Sea. It is no coincidence that this song is included in Jewish morning prayers every day, serving to remind us and to note the miracles of the Exodus from Egypt and the splitting of the Red Sea every day.
This unit begins with the Egyptians' pursuit of the Israelites immediately after the Exodus from Egypt, and with the feeling of fear and helplessness that the Israelites felt when the Egyptians chased them. The students will internalize this idea by relating to situations of fear in their lives, and learn about ways of dealing with fear. The students will study the verses describing the miracle of the splitting of the Red Sea, and will try to describe in their own words what happened there and the feeling of the people following the various stages of the miracle. After learning about the miracle and the revelation, we will get to the reaction of the people to the great miracle - the Song of the Sea that emanates from the depths of the hearts of Moshe and the children of Israel, Miriam and the children of Israel. This song is a song of praise and thanksgiving to the Master of the Universe. The main values emerging from the study are: Ways of dealing with fear in the biblical story, and in the students' lives. Faith in God and in Moshe who brought the Israelites out of Egypt. The value of expressing praise and thanksgiving.
El éxodo de Egipto. Mapa con explicacionesPedagogy
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The Israelites experienced a process that began with a great downfall as slaves in Egypt, until they experienced a great climax, when they left Egypt in the aftermath of the Ten Plagues. During this period, the people also experienced various ups-and-downs and difficulties. The climax of the Exodus did not last a very long time since G-d hardened Pharaoh's heart and he chased the people of Israel into the desert. The people of Israel felt great fear.
Exodus 14:10: “They were greatly frightened”.
Rabbi Avraham ibn Ezra describes the fear of the Israelites as the mental distress of a slave who is afraid of his masters. He writes: “Because the Egyptians were masters of Israel and this is the generation that had come out of Egypt who learned from their youth to endure the burden of Egypt and their humble soul. How can they now fight against their masters?...” By reading the verses we can see that there is a strong emphasis on fear that the Israelites felt about Egypt, and the power of the Egyptians. The Israelites still saw themselves as slaves of the Egyptians and were very much afraid of them.
In the course of the Exodus story, Pharaoh denied the existence of the G-d of Israel. The plagues of Egypt proved G-d’s presence and power. In the story before us, this struggle reaches its climax. G-d strikes the military power of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt - Pharaoh's chariots and his soldiers.
G-d performed the miracle of the splitting of the Red Sea and the drowning of the Egyptians in front of all Israel. The response of the people of Israel was: faith - "They had faith in G-d and in Moshe His servant" (Exodus 14:31) and singing and praising G-d: “Then Moshe and the Israelites sang this song to G-d…” (Exodus 15:1).
Fear of the Egyptians changed to awe of G-d and Moshe at the end of the chapter.
To remember this miracle and the thanksgiving that followed, the Song of the Sea was established as part of the Jewish morning prayer service.
The sequence of events can be taught by having the group watch the following video clip:
After watching the video you can ask the students to share
Some suggestions might be: Egyptian power (chariots and horses compared to the Israelites who walked on foot, perhaps with small carts); the fact that the Egyptian army was chasing them; the argument they had with Moshe; Moshe's faith in God. Alternatively, if you do not want to show one of the video clips, you can read the verses and discuss the fear of the Israelites when they see the Egyptians chasing them using the attached worksheet.
At the beginning of this unit we saw the great fear of the Israelites when they realized that the Egyptians were chasing after them. The Torah informs us that this was done on purpose by G-d to increase the knowledge of G-d in the world.
"And the Egyptians shall know that I am G-d" (Exodus 14:4)
(It is also possible that this helped the Israelites to learn to deal with difficult situations together, as a nation.)
We will discuss this in class using the "back to back" method. By clicking on the words, you can reach an explanation of the practice.
You can ask the students:
In a scary situation (for example, when walking in an unpleasant place in the dark alone, or any situation that scares you) how do you cope?
You can offer them different suggestions:
After the student thinks for a minute or two about the situation, they then can share the situation or how they might deal with the situation with a friend, and listen to that friend to hear how they would deal with it.
When the whole class is together you might want to talk with the students about how each person feels fear in different situations. This can lead to a discussion about ways to deal with fear:
At the beginning of the lesson we will learn about what happened immediately after the Exodus from Egypt (Exodus 14:1-14).
The students divide up into Hevruta pairs to study the amazing, miraculous story-line of the splitting of the Red Sea:
You’ll find a Hevruta exercise on this worksheet.
You can review the spiritual experience of the Israelites in the aftermath of the Splitting of the Sea with the whole class - from fear and trepidation as Egyptian slaves to awe and faith in G-d and in Moshe.
You might want to open a discussion with students on different types of fear - fear that is positive and fear that is negative (when fear of falling from a high place keeps you safe, that is positive; being in awe of G-d is positive, and so forth).
You can use Debate practices to raise the question: Is fear positive or negative?
Clicking on the word Debate will bring you to a detailed description of this method.
You can ask the students: Why do you think that G-d brought the Israelites to the Red Sea instead of taking them out of Egypt in a different way when no miracle would have been needed? What did the miracle do for them?
You can emphasize the following points:
Only by the splitting of the Sea of Reeds did the result come about that the Israelites saw the Egyptians, whom they so feared, dead, and thus they stopped fearing Egypt.
The story of the splitting of the Sea of Reeds highlighted the great fear of the Egyptians’ pursuit and then the complete salvation by G-d, which led to faith in the Creator of the world and in His servant Moshe.
Why do you think G-d brought the Israelites to the Sea of Reeds instead of just ensuring they left Egypt without the splitting of the sea? What did the splitting of the Sea of Reeds contribute?
You can emphasize the following points:
Only through the splitting of the Sea of Reeds did the Israelites see the Egyptians dead, allowing them to achieve complete separation from Egypt.
The process of the splitting of the Sea of Reeds, with the tension of the Egyptians’ pursuit, led to absolute faith in the Creator of the world and His ultimate ability to save the people of Israel.
After the Israelites experienced the powerful and amazing experience of the miracle of the Splitting of the Red Sea, we immediately hear that Moshe and the Israelites, as well as Miriam and all the women, burst into song.
Then Moshe and the Israelites sang this song to G-d. They said:
I will sing to G-d, for He has triumphed gloriously;
Horse and driver He has hurled into the sea.
The Torah relates that the women also sang the Song of the Sea:
Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron’s sister, picked up a hand-drum, and all the women went out after her in dance with hand-drums.
And Miriam chanted for them:
Sing to G-d, for He has triumphed gloriously;
Horse and driver He has hurled into the sea.
(Something you might want to point out to students is the contrast between the great heights attributed to G-d in His triumph and the depths to which the Egyptians were thrown down.)
The Song of the Sea reminds us of the miracle of the Exodus, it reminds us of our need to offer thanks to G-d and also of G-d’s unfathomable power and rule over the universe.
Its relevance to our lives today is reflected in our connection and reliance on G-d.
In conclusion, we will emphasize the value of giving thanks and showing appreciation. The Israelites expressed their thanks for being saved and their recognition of G-d’s rule over the world by singing and dancing. When we say thank you we are expressing our appreciation for what was done on our behalf. Thanking someone certainly affects the person who is being thanked, but it also has a great impact on the person expressing their thanks. Expressing thanks causes the person to recognize what was done for them and increases their sense of joy and appreciation.
Awareness leads to gratitude.
Students will use the “think pair share” method.
The question to be asked is:
Think of someone who did something good for you recently.
Write down who it was, what they did for you, and how would you like to thank them for it.
Share what you wrote with your partner.
You can ask your partner about what they wrote:
One could say that the Song of the Sea expressed appreciation, admiration, and thanks to G-d for the great miracle that G-d performed for the Israelites in the Exodus. In the midst of their singing, the Israelites also expressed their understanding that "God will reign forever and ever" - faith in G-d's kingship over the people of Israel.
We keep those ideas in mind on a daily basis, and especially on the first night or Passover at the Seder when we recollect our faith in G-d and appreciation for all that G-d does for us every single day.
What don’t you know about giving thanks!
Students can be directed to this short article by Rabbi Jonathan Sacks about giving thanks, and then to this short exercise.
We began this lesson with fear and trepidation with the Israelites facing the Egyptian army and Pharaoh, and it ended with awe and great joy in recognition of the rule of G-d.
The miracle of the Splitting of the Red Sea is a clear, one-time miracle that brings the Israelites to a complete recognition of the greatness of G-d, and appreciation for
G-d and for Moshe. Egyptian slavery is expressed in terms of sorrow and fear, compared to service to G-d that is expressed with joy and dancing.
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