Exodus 14:15–31, King James Version
Italic words were supplied in the English translation for clarity.
Exodus 14:15–31
The Sea Opens, Israel Crosses, Egypt Falls
Why cry to me? Speak to the people, that they go forward
The LORD tells Moses to stop the cry and move. He is to lift the rod, stretch his hand over the sea, and divide it. Israel will go on dry ground through the midst of the sea. God will harden the Egyptians to follow, and he will be honored upon Pharaoh, chariots, and horsemen. The angel of God and the pillar move from before them to behind, coming between the two camps. Cloud and darkness are on one side, light on the other; they do not come near all night.
East wind, dry ground, walls of water, and a morning look
Moses stretches out his hand. The LORD drives the sea back by a strong east wind all night and makes the sea dry land; the waters are divided. Israel goes into the midst on dry ground, waters a wall on the right and on the left. Egyptians pursue. In the morning watch the LORD looks on the Egyptian host through the pillar, troubles them, takes off their chariot wheels, and they say the LORD fights for Israel.
Moses stretches out his hand again; at morning the sea returns. Egyptians flee into it. The LORD overthrows them. Not so much as one remains. Israel sees the Egyptians dead on the seashore, sees the great work, fears the LORD, and believes the LORD and his servant Moses. The way through is one they did not create. The military power of the oppressor collapses. Drowned bodies are in the text; they are not there to be cheered as sport.
How this should shape us
Celebrate a way opening for trapped people, and keep survivor safety at the center. Do not glorify corpses, invent a certain route or natural mechanism the text does not give, or recruit this crossing as propaganda for a new domination.
Teach it back
Explain Exodus 14:15–31 in your own words. Include both movements, its place in Exodus, one historical or compositional uncertainty, one affected person or group, and one conclusion the complete context rules out.
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Go deeper
The explanation above is meant to stand on its own. Open these notes only if you want language, history, disagreements, or source locations.
Where careful interpreters disagreeThe strongest options and their difficulties
Where do careful interpreters disagree?
Best judgment: Careful interpreters agree that the received text states the following: Moses stretches out his hand, a strong east wind divides the sea, Israel crosses on dry ground, Egypt's force enters and is overwhelmed, and the people fear God and trust Moses. They disagree over source layers, date, historical recovery, archaeology, Hebrew details, ritual development, legal use, and canonical relationship in different proportions; this study treats the final form directly while marking those alternatives as probable or uncertain rather than settled fact.
How certain? probableResearch trail and exact locationsThe source record behind this section
Supports: Exact KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage for this thought unit.
Exodus 14:15–31, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording, morphology, names, speech, law, ritual vocabulary, older-English controls, and translation limits.
Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Exod.xml, words and morphology for 14:15–31
Supports: Unit-bounded Hebrew, syntax, lexical, textual, name, measure, legal, ritual, and older-English notes; silence is not evidence.
NET Bible Exodus PDF, complete 127-page PDF, translation and verse-attached translator notes for 14:15–31
Supports: Sea-name and route uncertainty, poetry and prose relationships, historical limits, divine-war imagery, and liberation reception.
Yale Bible Study, 'Crossing of the Sea,' complete study guide pp. 1–5, sections on yam sup, the hymn, prose sources, history, and liberation reception; applied to Exodus 14:15–31
Supports: Book movement, historicity and archaeology limits, literary plurality, final-form reading, and Exodus's place in Torah.
Yale Bible Study, Exodus Introduction study guide, pp. 1–6: 'Exodus and the Patriarchs,' 'The Historicity of the Exodus,' 'The Sources in Exodus,' and 'The Book of Exodus'
Supports: Distinct Hebrew hardening terms, narrative sequence, source-critical alternatives, moral agency problem, and limits of a single retributive explanation.
Frankel, 'Taking Control of the Story: God Hardens Pharaoh's Heart,' complete article sections on the hardening roots, Priestly and non-Priestly sequences, editorial proposals, sea notices, and traditional ethical readings; applied to Exodus 14:15–31
Sources for This Section
These records identify the source, the claim it supports, and the exact location used. A source remains evidence to evaluate; it does not replace the biblical text.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact KJV wording, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage for this thought unit.
Exact location: Exodus 14:15–31, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Exodus
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording, morphology, names, speech, law, ritual vocabulary, older-English controls, and translation limits.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Exod.xml, words and morphology for 14:15–31
Open source ↗translation and translator notes
NET Bible: Exodus with translators' notes
Biblical Studies Press
eBible.org distribution of the NET Bible, PDF generated 2026-08-12
Supports: Unit-bounded Hebrew, syntax, lexical, textual, name, measure, legal, ritual, and older-English notes; silence is not evidence.
Exact location: NET Bible Exodus PDF, complete 127-page PDF, translation and verse-attached translator notes for 14:15–31
Open source ↗open university course study guide
Crossing of the Sea Study Guide
Joel S. Baden and John J. Collins
Yale Bible Study, 2019 course edition
Supports: Sea-name and route uncertainty, poetry and prose relationships, historical limits, divine-war imagery, and liberation reception.
Exact location: Yale Bible Study, 'Crossing of the Sea,' complete study guide pp. 1–5, sections on yam sup, the hymn, prose sources, history, and liberation reception; applied to Exodus 14:15–31
Open source ↗open university course study guide
Exodus Introduction Study Guide
Joel S. Baden and John J. Collins
Yale Bible Study, 2019 course edition
Supports: Book movement, historicity and archaeology limits, literary plurality, final-form reading, and Exodus's place in Torah.
Exact location: Yale Bible Study, Exodus Introduction study guide, pp. 1–6: 'Exodus and the Patriarchs,' 'The Historicity of the Exodus,' 'The Sources in Exodus,' and 'The Book of Exodus'
Open source ↗modern jewish scholarly source and redaction study
Taking Control of the Story: God Hardens Pharaoh's Heart
David Frankel
TheTorah.com, 2016
Supports: Distinct Hebrew hardening terms, narrative sequence, source-critical alternatives, moral agency problem, and limits of a single retributive explanation.
Exact location: Frankel, 'Taking Control of the Story: God Hardens Pharaoh's Heart,' complete article sections on the hardening roots, Priestly and non-Priestly sequences, editorial proposals, sea notices, and traditional ethical readings; applied to Exodus 14:15–31
Open source ↗