Exodus 15:7
ESV
In the greatness of your majesty you overthrow your adversaries; you send out your fury; it consumes them like stubble.
NIV
"In the greatness of your majesty you threw down those who opposed you. You unleashed your burning anger; it consumed them like stubble.
NASB
And in the greatness of Your excellence You overthrow those who rise up against You; You send out Your burning anger, and it consumes them like chaff.
CSB
You overthrew your adversaries by your great majesty. You unleashed your burning wrath; it consumed them like stubble.
NLT
In the greatness of your majesty, you overthrow those who rise against you. You unleash your blazing fury; it consumes them like straw.
KJV
And in the greatness of thine excellency thou hast overthrown them that rose up against thee: thou sentest forth thy wrath, which consumed them as stubble.
NKJV
And in the greatness of Your excellence You have overthrown those who rose against You; You sent forth Your wrath; It consumed them like stubble.
What does Exodus 15:7 mean?
Moses speaks of the Lord as an invincible king. The English word "majesty" refers to something impressive and beautiful (Psalm 29:5; 45:3; 68:34). It is most often used as a reference to royalty. Translations such as the KJV and NASB use "excellence." This is part of an extended response (Exodus 15:1–6) to Israel's recent miraculous rescue at the Red Sea (Exodus 14:21–29). There, those who opposed God—"adversaries" in the form of Egyptian soldiers (Exodus 14:5–9)—were utterly defeated by God's majestic power.The word "fury" describes anger which produces drastic results. It can also refer to the actions themselves. The Hebrew term implies a face which turns red from anger. It is almost always associated with the Lord's intense anger, typically against those who defy Him. Many translations call this "burning anger."
Stubble is the plant stalks leftover after a harvest. These quickly become dry and burn easily. God's wrath is compared to how a blazing fire would destroy stubble in a field. The reference is also a clever reminder of Egypt's cruel treatment of Israel, when they were forced to make bricks (Exodus 1:11–14) and when Pharaoh spitefully withheld straw for that work (Exodus 5:10–12).
