The Song of Moses (Cantemus Domino)
Exodus 15:1-6, 11-13, 17-18. Especially suitable for use in Easter Season.
Contemporary (Canticle 8)
Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 85
I will sing to the Lord, for he is lofty and uplifted; *
the horse and its rider has he hurled into the sea.
The Lord is my strength and my refuge; *
the Lord has become my Savior.
This is my God and I will praise him, *
the God of my people and I will exalt him.
The Lord is a mighty warrior; *
Yahweh is his Name.
The chariots of Pharaoh and his army has he hurled into the sea; *
the finest of those who bear armor have been drowned in the Red Sea.
The fathomless deep has overwhelmed them; *
they sank into the depths like a stone.
Your right hand, O Lord, is glorious in might; *
your right hand, O Lord, has overthrown the enemy.
Who can be compared with you, O Lord, among the gods? *
who is like you, glorious in holiness,
awesome in renown, and worker of wonders?
You stretched forth your right hand; *
the earth swallowed them up.
With your constant love you led the people you redeemed; *
with your might you brought them in safety to your holy dwelling.
You will bring them in and plant them *
on the mount of your possession,
The resting-place you have made for yourself, O Lord, *
the sanctuary, O Lord, that your hand has established.
The Lord shall reign *
for ever and for ever.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: *
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
History
Moses and the Israelites sang this song after crossing the Red Sea, and it is often counted among the oldest poems in the Bible. The church has long heard it as an Easter song, about passing through water from slavery to freedom. It is sung after the Red Sea reading at the Easter Vigil.
In the medieval Roman office it was sung at Lauds on Thursdays. It first appeared in an American prayer book in 1979, which calls it especially suitable for the Easter season. In Revelation the redeemed sing “the song of Moses … and the song of the Lamb,” and their song is the canticle called The Song of the Redeemed.
Sources: Book of Common Prayer (1979), The Great Vigil of Easter; “Canticle,” Wikipedia; Book of Common Prayer (1979), Morning Prayer: Rite Two.
When it is sung
- Thursday, October 22, 2026Morning Prayer
- Monday, October 26, 2026Evening Prayer
- Thursday, October 29, 2026Morning Prayer
- Monday, November 2, 2026Evening Prayer
- Thursday, November 5, 2026Morning Prayer
- Monday, November 9, 2026Evening Prayer
- Thursday, November 12, 2026Morning Prayer
- Monday, November 16, 2026Evening Prayer