Parashat Beshalachפָּרָשַׁת בְּשַׁלַּח

Beshalach (“When He Let Go”) describes the splitting of the Red Sea and the song the Israelites sing upon crossing through. In the desert, God sweetens bitter water and provides manna and quail. The portion ends recounting the victory of the Israelites against an attack by the Amalekites. Beshalach marks the decisive turn from slavery to freedom, the moment Israel finally leaves Egypt behind at the Sea of Reeds. Its great theme is divine redemption made visible: God acts as redeemer and protector, and the people respond first with faith and song, then quickly with complaint. The wilderness episodes (bitter water made sweet at Marah, manna and quail, water from the rock) frame an ongoing test of trust, while the manna introduces the rhythm of Shabbat through the double portion gathered on the sixth day. The closing battle with Amalek, won as Moses' hands are held aloft, establishes Israel's first armed conflict and an enduring symbol of unprovoked enmity in Jewish tradition.

The haftarah is the Song of Deborah from the Book of Judges. In most Ashkenazi communities the longer reading of Judges 4:4–5:31 is chanted, which includes the prose account of Deborah, Barak, Sisera, and Yael leading into the song; at 52 verses it is often described as the longest haftarah of the year. In most Sephardi communities only the song itself is read, generally Judges 5:1–31, though the exact starting verse can vary by community and edition. The pairing is thematically rich: both readings join a military victory over an oppressor with a victory song, both are led by prophetesses (Miriam at the Sea, Deborah in Judges), and both deliverances turn on water, the sea drowning Pharaoh's army and the Kishon River sweeping away Sisera's forces.

The Shabbat on which Beshalach is read is called Shabbat Shirah, the "Sabbath of Song," named for the Song of the Sea (Exodus 15:1–18). In the Torah scroll this song is written in a distinctive brick-like, interlocking pattern unlike ordinary columns, and it is chanted to a special melody. Its famous lines include the opening "Az yashir Moshe" (Exodus 15:1), "Ozi v'zimrat Yah" (Exodus 15:2, often rendered "The Lord is my strength and song"), and "Mi chamocha ba'eilim Adonai" ("Who is like You among the mighty, O Lord," Exodus 15:11), a verse woven into the daily liturgy. Miriam the prophetess then leads the women in song and dance with timbrels (Exodus 15:20–21). A widespread Shabbat Shirah custom in some communities is feeding the birds.