20 And Miriam the inspired one, sister of Aaron, taketh the timbrel in her hand, and all the women go out after her, with timbrels and with choruses;
And it cometh to pass, in their coming in, in David's returning from smiting the Philistine, that the women come out from all the cities of Israel to sing -- also the dancers -- to meet Saul the king, with tabrets, with joy, and with three-stringed instruments;
And Jephthah cometh into Mizpeh, unto his house, and lo, his daughter is coming out to meet him with timbrels, and with choruses, and save her alone, he hath none, son or daughter.
and the name of Amram's wife is Jochebed, daughter of Levi, whom `one' hath born to Levi in Egypt; and she beareth to Amram Aaron, and Moses, and Miriam their sister.
For I brought thee up from the land of Egypt, And from the house of servants I have ransomed thee, And I send before thee Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.
Singers have been before, Behind `are' players on instruments, In the midst virgins playing with timbrels.
And Deborah, a woman inspired, wife of Lapidoth, she is judging Israel at that time,
And Hilkiah the priest goeth, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, unto Huldah the prophetess, wife of Shallum, son of Tikvah, son of Harhas, keeper of the garments, and she is dwelling in Jerusalem in the second, and they speak unto her.
And there was Anna, a prophetess, daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher, she was much advanced in days, having lived with an husband seven years from her virginity,
and have seen, and lo, if the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in dances -- then ye have gone out from the vineyards, and caught for you each his wife out of the daughters of Shiloh, and gone to the land of Benjamin;
And Miriam speaketh -- Aaron also -- against Moses concerning the circumstance of the Cushite woman whom he had taken: for a Cushite woman he had taken;
and every woman praying or prophesying with the head uncovered, doth dishonour her own head, for it is one and the same thing with her being shaven,
Thou hast turned my mourning to dancing for me, Thou hast loosed my sackcloth, And girdest me `with' joy.
and it hath come to pass, the ark of Jehovah hath come in to the city of David, and Michal daughter of Saul, hath looked through the window, and seeth king David moving and dancing before Jehovah, and despiseth him in her heart.
and David and all the house of Israel are playing before Jehovah, with all kinds of `instruments' of fir-wood, even with harps, and with psalteries, and with timbrels, and with cornets, and with cymbals.
`Afterwards thou dost come unto the hill of God, where the garrison of the Philistines `is', and it cometh to pass, at thy coming in thither to the city, that thou hast met a band of prophets coming down from the high place, and before them psaltery, and tabret, and pipe, and harp, and they are prophesying;
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Exodus 15
Commentary on Exodus 15 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 15
In this chapter,
Exd 15:1-21
Having read how that complete victory of Israel over the Egyptians was obtained, here we are told how it was celebrated; those that were to hold their peace while the deliverance was in working (ch. 14:14) must not hold their peace now that it was wrought; the less they had to do then the more they had to do now. If God accomplishes deliverance by his own immediate power, it redounds so much the more to his glory. Moses, no doubt by divine inspiration, indited this song, and delivered it to the children of Israel, to be sung before they stirred from the place where they saw the Egyptians dead upon the shore. Observe,
Exd 15:22-27
It should seem, it was with some difficulty that Moses prevailed with Israel to leave that triumphant shore on which they sang the foregoing song. They were so taken up with the sight, or with the song, or with the spoiling of the dead bodies, that they cared not to go forward, but Moses with much ado brought them from the Red Sea into a wilderness. The pleasures of our way to Canaan must not retard our progress, but quicken it, though we have a wilderness before us. Now here we are told,