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LXX Exodus

Septuagint

About this book
Chapter 15

1 Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song to God, and spoke, saying, Let us sing to the Lord, for he is very greatly glorified: horse and rider he has thrown into the sea. 2 He was to me a helper and protector for salvation: this is my God and I will glorify him; my father's God, and I will exalt him. 3 The Lord crushing wars, the Lord is his name.⁠ 4 He has cast the chariots of Pharaoh and his host into the sea, the chosen mounted captains: they were swallowed up in the Red Sea. 5 He covered them with the sea: they sank to the depth like a stone. 6 Your right hand, Lord, has been glorified in strength; your right hand, Lord, has broken the enemies. 7 And in the abundance of your glory you have broken the adversaries to pieces: you sent forth your fierce anger, it devoured them as stubble. 8 And by the breath of your anger the water parted; the waters were congealed as a wall, the waves were congealed in the midst of the sea. 9 The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the captured goods; I will satisfy my soul, I will destroy with my sword, my hand shall have dominion. 10 You sent forth your wind, the sea covered them; they sank like lead in the mighty water. 11 Who is like you among the gods, Lord? who is like you? glorified in holiness, marvelous in glories, doing wonders. 12 You stretched forth your right hand, the earth swallowed them up. 13 You have guided in your righteousness this your people whom you have redeemed, by your strength you have called them into your holy resting-place. 14 The nations heard and were angry, pangs have seized on the dwellers among the Philistines. 15 Then the princes of Edom, and the chiefs of the Moabites hastened; trembling took hold upon them, all the inhabitants of Canaan melted away. 16 Let trembling and fear fall upon them; by the greatness of your arm, let them become as stone; till your people pass over, Lord, till this your people pass over, whom you have purchased. 17 Bring them in and plant them in the mountain of your inheritance, in your prepared habitation, which you, Lord, have prepared; the sanctuary, Lord, which your hands have made ready. 18 The Lord reigns for ever and ever and ever. 19 For the horse of Pharaoh went in with the chariots and horsemen into the sea, and the Lord brought upon them the water of the sea, but the children of Israel walked through dry land in the midst of the sea. 20 And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand, and there went forth all the women after her with timbrels and dances. 21 And Miriam led them, saying, Let us sing to the Lord, for he has been very greatly glorified: the horse and rider he has cast into the sea. 22 So Moses brought up the children of Israel from the Red Sea, and brought them into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water to drink. 23 and they came to Marah, and could not drink of Marah, for it was bitter; therefore the name of that place was called Bitterness. 24 And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink? 25 And Moses cried to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a tree, and he cast it into the water, and the water was sweetened: there he established for him ordinances and judgments, and there he tested him, 26 and said, If you will indeed hear the voice of the Lord your God, and do things pleasing before him, and will listen to his commands, and keep all his ordinances, no disease which I have brought upon the Egyptians I will bring upon you, for I am the Lord your God that heals you. 27 And they came to Elim, and there were there twelve fountains of water, and seventy stems of palm-trees;⁠ and they encamped there by the waters.

Texts in conversation

Compare LXX Exodus 15:3 and Judith 9:7

Septuagint · Deuterocanon

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Summary

Judith demonstrates how it uses the Greek Septuagint version of Exodus by describing God as the one who "shatters wars," instead of the original Hebrew version, which calls God a "man of war."

Passages

LXX Exodus 15:3

Septuagint
1 Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song to God, and spoke, saying, Let us sing to the Lord, for he is very greatly glorified: horse and rider he has thrown into the sea. 2 He was to me a helper and protector for salvation: this is my God and I will glorify him; my father's God, and I will exalt him. 3 The Lord crushing wars, the Lord is his name. 4 He has cast the chariots of Pharaoh and his host into the sea, the chosen mounted captains: they were swallowed up in the Red Sea. 5 He covered them with the sea: they sank to the depth like a stone.
300–201 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in LXX Exodus

Judith 9:7

Deuterocanon
5 For you did the things that were before those things, and those things, and such as come after; and you planned the things which are now, and the things which are to come. The things which you planned came to pass. 6 Yes, the things which you determined stood before you, and said, ‘Behold, we are here; for all your ways are prepared, and your judgment is with foreknowledge.’ 7 For, behold, the Assyrians are multiplied in their power. They are exalted with horse and rider. They were proud of the strength of their footmen. They have trusted in shield, spear, bow, and sling. They don’t know that you are the Lord who breaks the battles. ‘The Lord’ is your name. 8 Break their strength in your power, and bring down their force in your wrath; for they intend to profane your sanctuary, and to defile the tabernacle where your glorious name rests, and to destroy the horn of your altar with the sword. 9 Look at their pride, and send your wrath upon their heads. Give into my hand, which am a widow, the might that I have conceived.
100 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Judith

References

"... In 2010, Johann Maier examined the problem by focusing on the verb employed in the phrase, which he understood as “to rub together” (i.e. to light a fire)”, “to shatter”, and, thus, having the figurative meaning of “waging war”. Hence, according to the LXX version of Exodus 15:3, God is by no means a pacifist and does not make an end to war. In her 2012 article, Judith Lang raised this issue again, contesting the traditional exegesis (comparing Judith 9:7, Judith 16:2, and Exodus 15:3). Like Larry Perkins, she focuses on the context and concludes “The Greek text perpetuates the idea of God’s powerful and destructive capability”. Concretely, the LXX does not say that God refrains from fighting but underlines exactly the contrary:Excluding Israel from fighting, God “fights (for the benefit of Israel) in the warfare.” ..."
Eberhard Bons, "The Lord is the One Who Crushes Wars – A Fresh Look at the Septuagint Translation of Exod 15:3" in Meiser, M. et al (eds.), Die Septuaginta – Geschichte, Wirkung, Relevanz (Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2018), 158–167.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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LXX Exodus 15:3 and Judith 9:7

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