<b>The horse and his rider (Exod. 15:1).</b> Was there only one horse? (Of course not!) All the horses were considered by Him as one, as in the verse <i>When thou goest forth to battle against thine enemy, and seest a horse and chariot</i> (Deut. 20:1). All the horses were considered by Him as one in this instance as well. <i>And his rider</i>. Has it not already been stated that <i>He took six hundred chariots</i> (Exod. 14:7), and does not Scripture tell us <i>Pharaoh’s chariots and his hosts</i> (ibid. 15:4)? This indicates that when Israel performs the will of the Omnipotent One, all the nations are considered by Him as one horse and one chariot: <i>The horse and his rider hath He thrown into the sea</i> (ibid., v. 1). This verse informs us that the horse and the rider were joined together, and as Scripture tells us, they were cast (<i>yarah</i>) into the sea without separating. <i>He hath thrown</i> (<i>ramah</i>) <i>into the sea</i> and <i>He Hath cast</i> (<i>yarah</i>) <i>into the sea</i> imply that they were thrown into the depths of the sea. How can these two verses be reconciled? <i>Thrown</i> indicates that they were lifted up and then <i>cast</i> down. This indicates that they descended into the deep without separating.
Another explanation of <i>Hath he thrown into the sea</i>. That is, He saw the guardian angel of Egypt falling. You find that the Holy One, blessed be He, will exact retribution from nations in the future only after He has punished their guardian angels, as it is said: <i>And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord will punish the host of the high heaven on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth</i> (Isa. 24:21). Similarly, <i>How art thou fallen from heaven, O day star, son of the morning!</i> is followed by <i>How art thou cut down to the ground, that didst cast lots over the nations!</i> (ibid. 14:12). <i>And My sword hath drunk its fill in heaven</i> is followed by <i>Behold, it shall come down upon Edom</i> (ibid. 34:3).
Another explanation. As the Egyptians dealt with the Israelites, so they were dealt with. They said: <i>Every son that is born ye shall cast into the river</i> (Exod. 1:22), hence, <i>The deeps cover them</i> (ibid. 15:6). <i>They took six hundred chosen chariots</i> (ibid. 14:7), and therefore, <i>Pharaoh’s chariots … hath He thrown into the sea</i> (ibid. 15:4). <i>They made their lives bitter and with hard service, in mortar</i> (ibid. 1:14), and therefore, <i>Thou has trodden the sea with Thy horses, the foaming of mighty waters</i> (Hab. 3:15).