Inner Will and Divine Praise

אז ישיר כו' ברש"י עלה בלבו שישיר וכן עשה כו'.

“Then he sang…” Rashi explains: it arose in his heart to sing, and so he did.

The Sefat Emet begins by emphasizing that the essential moment was the arising of the desire in the heart to sing praise. The act of singing followed naturally from this inner awakening.

כי איך בשכל אנושי שכל ישראל יאמרו מלה במלה בלי שינוי.

For how, by human intellect, could all Israel say word for word without deviation?

The unity of the nation’s speech cannot be explained by ordinary human ability; something beyond the natural must have occurred.

וגם איך לומר דברים הכתובים בתורה.

And furthermore: how could they say words that are written in the Torah?

The song they recited later became part of the Torah, raising the question of how they could speak words that were not yet revealed.

וגם אותן שאמרו מקודם המבלי אין קברים כו'.

And even those who had earlier said: “Is it because there are no graves…?”

Even those who had previously complained or doubted were included in the singing of the Shirah.

ורק בא הכתוב להגיד כי ע"י שעלה בלבם לומר השירה ורצו באמת בכל לב ונפש לתת להקב"ה שבח ושירה הראויה עלתה להם.

Rather, Scripture comes to teach that because it arose in their hearts to sing, and they truly desired with all their heart and soul to offer God the proper praise and song, it was granted to them.

The decisive element was their sincere inner desire. Because their hearts were fully aligned toward praising God, they merited that the song emerged perfectly through them.

וזה עצמו האמונה להאמין כי השי"ת כל יכול ויכול אדם לבוא עד למדריגה עליונה אם רוצה בלב שלם.

And this itself is faith: to believe that the Holy One, blessed be He, is all‑powerful, and that a person can reach the highest level if he desires it with a whole heart.

Faith means trusting that sincere desire can elevate a person beyond natural limitations, because God grants the ability to rise higher than one’s own capacity.

וזה הרצון נחשב להקב"ה יותר מגוף השירה שהרי עי"ז זכו לומר השירה.

And this desire is considered by God even more than the song itself, for by it they merited to say the song.

The inner will is more precious than the external act. The act of singing was only possible because of their pure desire.

וז"ש ישיר אשירה.

And this is the meaning of “He will sing — I will sing.”

The doubling hints that everything depends on the inner will of the heart, which is the true source of the song.

שהכל על הרצון בלב שלם כנ"ל.

For everything depends on wholehearted desire, as explained above.

The essence of the Shirah is not vocal expression but perfect inner willingness directed toward God.

Summary: The Sefat Emet teaches that the miracle of the Shirah came from the people’s pure desire to praise God. Their inner will, not their natural ability, enabled them to sing in perfect unity. This sincere desire is valued even more than the song itself and represents the true essence of faith.