Cantor Hutchings

The Song of the Sea Shirat HaYam; also known as Az Yashir Moshe and Song of Moses, or Mi Chamocha) is a poem that appears in the Book of Exodus of the Hebrew Bible, at Exodus 15:1–18.

It is followed in verses 20 and 21 by a much shorter song sung by Miriam and the other women. The Song of the Sea was reputedly sung by the Israelites after their crossing the Red Sea in safety, and celebrates their freedom after generations of slavery and oppression by the Egyptians.

The poem is included in Jewish prayer books, and recited daily in the morning shacharit services.

In Judaism, the poem forms part of the sixteenth weekly Torah portion, or parshat Beshalach. The Sabbath on which it is read is known as Sabbath of the Song.

It is one of only two sections of the Sefer Torah (Torah scroll) that is written with a different layout from the normal simple columns.

The other section written differently is the Song of Moses at the end of Deuteronomy, in the 53rd weekly portion, or  parshat Ha'azinu.