Bible Strands
Exodus 15:5
The depths have covered them; they sank there like a stone.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Moses and the Israelites sing this verse to the Lord immediately after the Red Sea closes over Pharaoh’s pursuing army. It functions as a descriptive clause within a victory song, pinpointing the moment of divine judgment on the Egyptian forces.
The words — The Hebrew תְּהֹמֹת (te.ho.Mot) means "the deeps" and יְכַסְיֻמוּ (ye.khas.yu.mu) translates to "they have covered them." The phrase כְּמוֹ אֶבֶן (ke.mo- 'A.ven) literally renders "like a stone," specifying the manner of their descent.
The thread — This drowning action is recorded in Exodus 14:28 when the waters flow back over Pharaoh’s chariots and horsemen. The same event is echoed in Exodus 15:10 and recalled in Nehemiah 9:11 as God hurling the pursuers into the depths.
Why it lands — The verse plainly states that the enemy was completely submerged and immobilized by the sea’s weight. It requires the reader to acknowledge that divine intervention operates with total finality, leaving no ambiguity about the outcome of the confrontation.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
The depths have covered them: they sank into the bottom as a stone.
Cross-references
- Nehemiah 9:11 You divided the sea before them, and they crossed through it on dry ground. You hurled their pursuers into the depths like a stone into raging waters.
- Exodus 14:28 The waters flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had chased the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived.
- Exodus 15:10 But You blew with Your breath, and the sea covered them. They sank like lead in the mighty waters.
- Jeremiah 51:63 When you finish reading this scroll, tie a stone to it and cast it into the Euphrates.
- Ezekiel 27:34 Now you are shattered by the seas in the depths of the waters; your merchandise and the people among you have gone down with you.
- Jonah 2:2 saying: “In my distress I called to the LORD, and He answered me. From the belly of Sheol I called for help, and You heard my voice.
- Micah 7:19 He will again have compassion on us; He will vanquish our iniquities. You will cast out all our sins into the depths of the sea.
- Matthew 18:6 But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.
- Revelation 18:21 Then a mighty angel picked up a stone the size of a great millstone and cast it into the sea, saying: “With such violence the great city of Babylon will be cast down, never to be seen again.