Through the Sea by an Unseen Path

The psalm’s remembered miracle becomes vivid: waters tremble, clouds pour rain, thunder rolls, lightning flashes, and God makes a path through the sea. Yet the final line is striking—God’s footprints are not seen. Israel is led like a flock through Moses and Aaron even when the path of the divine Shepherd remains hidden.

The manuscript associated the sea with Christian baptism and Jesus the Shepherd. Those are possible canonical applications, but the text itself is recalling the Exodus. Its enduring lesson is stronger when the history is preserved: God can lead decisively even when the route and his “footprints” cannot be traced by the people being led.