Catholic Commentary
The Exodus: Deliverance from Egypt
10to him who struck down the Egyptian firstborn, for his loving kindness endures forever;11and brought out Israel from among them, for his loving kindness endures forever;12with a strong hand, and with an outstretched arm, for his loving kindness endures forever;13to him who divided the Red Sea apart, for his loving kindness endures forever;14and made Israel to pass through the middle of it, for his loving kindness endures forever;15but overthrew Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea, for his loving kindness endures forever;
Psalms 136:10–15 recounts God's deliverance of Israel from Egypt through ten plagues culminating in the death of the firstborn, followed by the miraculous parting of the Red Sea. These verses celebrate God's power over oppressive earthly authorities and His covenant faithfulness, depicting salvation as both a display of divine might and an act of merciful liberation.
God strikes oppression at its root not as an enemy, but as a liberator—and calls his redeemed to pass through danger, not around it.
Commentary
Psalms 136:10 — "To him who struck down the Egyptian firstborn" This verse recalls the tenth and final plague (Exodus 12:29–30), the most devastating of God's signs against Pharaoh. The Hebrew participle makkeh ("one who strikes") is a timeless form, presenting God not as one who once acted but as the perpetual Striker-down of oppressive power. The death of the firstborn is an act of divine judgment that cuts to the heart of Egyptian society: the firstborn son embodied inheritance, dynasty, and divine favor in the ancient Near East. That God struck the firstborn of Pharaoh himself — the supposed "son of Ra" — is a theological declaration that Israel's God is sovereign over all pretenders to divine status. The refrain "for his mercy endures forever" attached to this verse is jarring by modern sensibilities, yet theologically precise: even judgment, properly understood, is an act of mercy toward those being oppressed. Liberation cannot be free if the oppressor faces no cost.
Psalms 136:11 — "And brought out Israel from among them" The verb yatza (to bring out, to lead forth) is the root of the very identity of God in the Decalogue: "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt" (Exodus 20:2). Israel's existence as a people is entirely constituted by this act of divine initiative. They did not escape; they were brought out. The passive nature of Israel's liberation is essential: salvation is gift, not achievement.
Psalms 136:12 — "With a strong hand, and with an outstretched arm" This iconic phrase (yad ḥazaqah u-zero'a netuyah) appears throughout Deuteronomy (5:15; 7:19; 26:8) as a creedal formula. "Strong hand" connotes God's power to overcome resistance; "outstretched arm" suggests both the reach of divine authority across all boundaries and the posture of an embrace. The two images together convey both might and tenderness — a warrior who also holds his child. The Church Fathers noticed that the "outstretched arm" prefigures the arms of Christ extended on the Cross, the definitive act of redemption.
*Psalms 136:13 — "To him who divided the Red Sea apart" The word gazar ("divided," "cut apart") is used elsewhere for the cutting of covenants (cf. Genesis 15:10). The dividing of the sea is a creative act parallel to God's separation of waters at Creation (Genesis 1:6–7), suggesting that the Exodus is a new creation for Israel. The "Red Sea" (Yam Suph, literally "Sea of Reeds") becomes the site of Israel's birth as a nation — a womb of water from which they emerge into new life.
Psalms 136:14 — "And made Israel to pass through the middle of it" The word middle (betokh) is emphatic: not along the edge but through the very heart of the divided sea. Israel's path to freedom runs directly through the place of danger. This is the pattern of all divine salvation: God does not route his people around the threatening waters but through them. The sea-walls stood as a guarantee — not merely a path but a covenant-space of protection.
Psalms 136:15 — "But overthrew Pharaoh and his army in the Red Sea" The verb ni'er ("overthrew," "shook off") is evocative — as one shakes off a cloak or flicks away an insect. It communicates the utter ease with which God disposes of the power that seemed insurmountable to Israel. Pharaoh's army, the most feared military force of the ancient world, is dispatched with a gesture. The same sea that was a womb of life for Israel becomes a tomb for the oppressor — the identical waters function differently according to one's relationship with God.
Catholic Commentary
Catholic tradition reads Psalms 136:10–15 on multiple levels simultaneously, and it is precisely this multilayered reading that distinguishes the Church's interpretive tradition.
Typology of Baptism: St. Paul explicitly identifies the crossing of the Red Sea as a type of Baptism: "all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea" (1 Corinthians 10:1–2). The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC 1221) develops this directly: "If water springing up from the earth symbolizes life, the water of the sea or river, on the contrary, symbolizes obstacles to be overcome with God's help, and also death and so purification." The divided sea is the font; Israel's passage is immersion; emergence on the far shore is new life in Christ. Every baptized Catholic has, in a real typological sense, "passed through the middle of it."
The Cross as Outstretched Arm: St. Justin Martyr (Dialogue with Trypho, ch. 86) and St. Irenaeus (Against Heresies IV.24) both read the "outstretched arm" of verse 12 as pointing forward to the crucifixion. The arms of Christ spread wide on the Cross are the eschatological fulfillment of this very posture. The Second Vatican Council's Dei Verbum (§15) affirms that the Old Testament events "contain a hidden presence of" Christ and "are a preparation for" his full revelation.
Judgment as Mercy: Catholic moral theology, following St. Thomas Aquinas (Summa Theologiae I–II, Q. 87), understands that divine justice and divine mercy are not opposed but unified in God's simplicity. The destruction of Pharaoh's army is the necessary completion of Israel's redemption. Pope Benedict XVI, in Verbum Domini (§42), insisted that the "dark passages" of the Old Testament must be read within the whole arc of salvation history, where even wrath serves merciful ends.
Eucharistic Resonance: The great Hallel (Psalms 113–118 and 136) was sung at Passover, the meal at which Jesus instituted the Eucharist. These very verses, or their equivalents, may have been on the lips of Christ at the Last Supper. The Church thus hears this psalm as intrinsically Eucharistic — a proclamation of the ḥesed that reaches its summit in the Body and Blood given "for the forgiveness of sins."
For Today
Contemporary Catholics live in a culture that frequently frames salvation as self-actualization — something achieved through therapy, discipline, or moral effort. Psalms 136:10–15 is a direct counter-proclamation: Israel was brought out, passed through, carried — the verbs are passive. The Catholic at prayer with this psalm is invited to audit their own spiritual life for the subtle idolatry of self-reliance.
More concretely: every Catholic faces their own "Pharaohs" — addictions, resentments, structural injustices, spiritual acedia — forces that hold us in bondage and that our own strength cannot overcome. This passage teaches that the pattern of God's action is consistent: he strikes at the root of oppression (v. 10), he personally leads us out (v. 11), he makes a way through the very thing we fear (vv. 13–14), and he disposes of our enemies with ease (v. 15). The Catholic who feels trapped is invited not to strategize but to pray through the obstacle, trusting the God whose mercy — ḥesed, steadfast covenantal love — endures not just for Israel, but forever. This psalm is also a powerful preparation for the Easter Vigil, where the Exodus reading and baptismal rites make this typology liturgically present and immediate.
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