From the Song of the Well to a New Song for the Age of Redemption

Attorney Shalom Vesterail argues that the biblical Song of the Well should be understood as part of a broader tradition of Israelite songs of thanksgiving, and that modern Israel should likewise sing for the miracles and fulfilled prophecies of its own era. He says the Song of the Well in Numbers 21 was a spontaneous public outburst of praise, unlike the Song of the Sea, where Moses led the people in song. In his reading, the well song came after a double miracle at the Arnon, where Israel’s enemies were crushed in the canyon and their bodies rose into the well, prompting Israel to thank God.

He reviews ten songs identified by rabbinic tradition, from Adam’s Sabbath psalm through the Song of Songs, and distinguishes between communal songs of gratitude and individual songs by leaders such as Moses, Joshua, David, Hannah, Jehoshaphat, and Solomon. Some are tied to war, some to divine rescue, and some, like Hannah’s, to personal salvation. He notes that the Song of the Well came just before Israel entered the Land of Israel and was sung after nearly 40 years, without Moses as the lead voice.

The article then shifts to the present, arguing that people today rarely express enough public praise for the visible fulfillment of prophecy after 2,000 years of exile. Vesterail, citing Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, says the era should speak in “prophetic language,” even in conversations with Christians and Muslims, because biblical predictions are unfolding one by one. He lists examples including the survival of the Jewish people, the return from exile, the Balfour Declaration and UN backing for statehood, military victories against far larger foes, the decline of hostile populations, technological advances such as missile defense and laser systems, economic strength, agricultural abundance, renewed settlement of the land, rising life expectancy, and the growth of Torah learning.

He concludes that since almost all these prophecies have materialized and songs existed even before the Temple was built, there is every reason to sing a new song now. He cites Isaiah’s call, “Sing to the Lord a new song,” and David’s similar words in Psalms, asking why Israel should not respond to its era with renewed praise.