Psalms 106:9

9 He commanded the Red Sea to dry up. He led Israel across the sea as if it were a desert.

Psalms 106:9 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 106:9

He rebuked the Red sea also, and it was dried up
By sending a strong east wind, which drove the waters back, and made the sea a dry land, ( Exodus 14:21 ) .

So he led them through the depths;
that is, the deep waters of the sea, which were cast up as an heap, and stood as a wall on each side, through which they passed.

As through the wilderness;
or rather, "as on a plain"; for a passage through a wilderness where no roads are, and many obstructions be, is not easy; and so it is manifestly to be understood in ( Isaiah 63:13 ) , where Jarchi and Kimchi interpret it a plain and smooth ground, a champaign country; and so the word is used for a plain, in opposition to mountains, in ( Jeremiah 9:10 ) , and then the sense is, that God led them through the sea, being dried up, as if they were led through a plain and open country, where was nothing to obstruct their march; an emblem of baptism, ( 1 Corinthians 10:1 1 Corinthians 10:2 ) , and of the passage of the people of God through this world; (See Gill on Psalms 78:13).

Psalms 106:9 In-Context

7 Our ancestors in Egypt were not impressed by the LORD ’s miraculous deeds. They soon forgot his many acts of kindness to them. Instead, they rebelled against him at the Red Sea.
8 Even so, he saved them— to defend the honor of his name and to demonstrate his mighty power.
9 He commanded the Red Sea to dry up. He led Israel across the sea as if it were a desert.
10 So he rescued them from their enemies and redeemed them from their foes.
11 Then the water returned and covered their enemies; not one of them survived.

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. Hebrew sea of reeds; also in 106:22 .
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