The Red Sea (Yam Suf in Hebrew) — often mistranslated as the Reed Sea — is located along Egypt's eastern border. In the book of Exodus, when the Israelites flee slavery in Egypt, the Red Sea stands between them and their freedom. God miraculously splits the Red Sea, allowing the Israelites to pass through. The Egyptians though pursued the Israelites into the Red Sea, wherein they drowned.
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The Miracle at the Red SeaTANAKH
The Miracle at the Red Sea
TANAKH
As they flee Egypt, the biblical Israelites are caught between Pharaoh’s armies and the Red Sea and have nowhere to run. The book of Exodus describes the moment when God splits the sea in two, opening a path for the Israelites to escape.
Was the Red Sea Red? REFERENCE
Was the Red Sea Red?
REFERENCE
Though the sea mentioned in the Exodus story is known in English as the “Red Sea,” its Hebrew name — Yam Suf — has nothing to do with the color red. The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon, a dictionary of biblical Hebrew, explains the meaning of the sea’s Hebrew name and its relationship to its English counterpart.
Negotiation on the WaterfrontMIDRASH
Negotiation on the Waterfront
MIDRASH
While according to the biblical account of the splitting of the Red Sea, God commands and Moses complies immediately, later interpreters added texture to the story. Shemot Rabbah, an early medieval midrash on the book of Exodus, describes an extensive dialogue and negotiation between Moses, God, and the sea before the sea finally splits.
Revelation at the Red SeaMIDRASH
Revelation at the Red Sea
MIDRASH
The parting of the Red Sea was a moment of intense divine revelation for all the Israelites, even the humblest of them. The Mekhilta DeRabbi Yishmael, an ancient midrashic work on the book of Exodus, describes the unique encounter with God that the Israelites experienced at the sea.
A Contemporary ExodusHALAKHAH
A Contemporary Exodus
HALAKHAH
Tens of thousands of Ethiopian Jews traveled from Ethiopia to Israel in the second half of the twentieth century, and on their way crossed the Red Sea. In his book From Sinai to Ethiopia, Rabbi Dr. Sharon Shalom provides a first-hand account of the journey across the sea and to Israel.
King Solomon’s Maritime TradeTANAKH
King Solomon’s Maritime Trade
TANAKH
During the rule of King Solomon, the Red Sea became a site of international trade. The book of Kings recounts that King Solomon built a fleet of ships on the Red Sea, using it as a trade route with neighboring countries.
Lilith’s Flight to the SeaMIDRASH
Lilith’s Flight to the Sea
MIDRASH
According to Jewish legend, before the creation of Eve, Adam had a counterpart named Lilith, who fled to the Red Sea after a fight with Adam. The Alphabet of Ben Sira, an ancient midrashic text, recounts the story of her falling out with Adam and her confrontation with divine angels at the water.
The First to Step ForwardTALMUD
The First to Step Forward
TALMUD
Rabbinic tradition debates who of the Israelites had the courage to be the first to step into the Red Sea. The Babylonian Talmud in tractate Sotah offers several different accounts of the moment before the Israelites began to cross the sea.
The End of Pharaoh’s ArmyCOMMENTARY
The End of Pharaoh’s Army
COMMENTARY
After the Israelites crossed the Red Sea, the Torah recounts that God drowned the Egyptian army. In his commentary on the Torah, Rabbi Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin notes the difficulty involved in drowning the Egyptian forces in such narrow waters and how it required an act of God.
As Difficult as the Splitting of the SeaCHASIDUT
As Difficult as the Splitting of the Sea
CHASIDUT
In several places, the Talmud describes something as “as difficult as the parting of the Red Sea.” Rabbi Chaim of Chernowitz, in his Chasidic commentary on the Torah, offers an explanation of what was so difficult about the splitting of the sea.
Echoes of the Red SeaTANAKH
Echoes of the Red Sea
TANAKH
News of the splitting of the Red Sea reached other biblical nations, instilling awe and fear of the Israelites and their God. The book of Joshua recounts how Rahab, a resident of Jericho, was moved by the news of the miracle at the sea.
Plagues at the SeaLITURGY
Plagues at the Sea
LITURGY
The splitting of the Red Sea is seen by some voices in the Jewish tradition as even more miraculous than the ten plagues in Egypt. A passage from the Passover Haggadah describes a debate among rabbinic sages about how many plagues took place at the Red Sea.
The Sea of GodKABBALAH
The Sea of God
KABBALAH
According to kabbalistic tradition, seas in general and the Red Sea in particular represent an attribute of the Divine. In his 13th-century mystical work Sha’arei Orah, Joseph Gikatilla explains the meaning of this divine attribute and its connection to the Red Sea.
A Wall of OceanMIDRASH
A Wall of Ocean
MIDRASH
The Torah describes that the Red Sea, when split, was “like a wall” to the Israelites. The midrashic text Pesikta DeRav Kahana relays an argument between a rabbinic sage and an eyewitness about what the sea looked like when it was split.
A Daily Song LITURGY
A Daily Song
LITURGY
The Song of the Sea, sung by the Israelites after crossing the Red Sea, is recited as part of the daily Jewish liturgy. This poem, sung by the Levites during Temple times, is believed to bring spiritual benefits to those who sing it.
