How can we experience K’rias Yam Suf every day?
Every morning, when one recites Az Yashir, he should imagine that he is crossing the Sea at that very moment (Mishnah B’rurah 51:17).
Perhaps the deeper lesson of this daily halachah reflects the true purpose of the most famous miracle in history. The goal of supernatural events is not the one-time showy extravaganza of Hashem’s power, but to remind us that Hashem is always involved in the world, even when things operate according to the laws of nature (Ramban, Sh’mos 13:16).
The truth is that it is no more “difficult” for Hashem to split the Sea than to hold it together. In fact, as Rav Shimshon Pincus zt”l pointed out, Moshe needed to exert the exact same effort – stretching out his arm over the water – to bring the Sea back to its natural state (Sh’mos 14:27) as he did to miraculously part it in the first place (ibid. v. 21)! Both are equally impressive demonstrations of Hashem’s creation.
Continuing this theme, immediately following the uplifting Song of the Sea, the Torah transitions to speaking about the Jewish people’s thirst for water (Sh’mos 15:22). Strangely, there is not even a break in the Torah-reading between these two events. The audience is still giving K’rias Yam Suf a standing ovation – and the show just goes on?! What a letdown! Rav Shamshon Raphael Hirsch zt”l explained that this juxtaposition is further evidence of the above message: Hashem is not only involved when we are in extreme danger and in need of a supernatural intervention; He is receptive when we are simply thirsty, as well.
Now we can understand the value of imagining crossing the Sea as we recite Az Yashir each morning. We need to think about the event each day, because the whole point of the miracle was to send us a message about Hashem’s presence in our lives each day. Even the future tense of the song’s title (az yashir = then he will sing) implies that its true significance was not for the day on which it was sung, but for a future day, when life would return to normal and mundane (Tosefes B’rachah, Sh’mos 15:1).
As we recite P’sukei D’Zimrah each morning, let us remember: Every day is that day. May the reminder of miracles of the past help us see the ongoing involvement of Hashem in the present!
Rabbi Yaakov Abramovitz is Assistant to the Rabbi at the Young Israel of Kew Gardens Hills and presides over its Young Marrieds Minyan, while also pursuing a PsyD in School and Clinical Child Psychology at the Ferkauf Graduate School of Psychology. He can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..