At a cocktail party, one woman said to another, “Aren’t you wearing your wedding ring on the wrong finger?”

The other replied, “Yes, I am, and it’s because I married the wrong man!”

The Talmud makes an astonishing statement about God. The Talmud relates that for God to bring two individuals together in marriage is as “difficult” for Him as the miracle of splitting the Red Sea, mentioned in this week’s Torah portion.

Why is God’s “effort” to help a person find and marry the “Right One” compared to the particular miracle of splitting the Red Sea?

There are many beautiful commentaries that discuss the reason for this comparison and the lessons that we can learn from it.

My favourite explanation for the link between the crossing of the Red Sea and matrimony requires two brief introductions. These introductions, when understood properly, radically change the way most of us perceive the miracle of the crossing of the Red Sea.

Firstly, many of us mistakenly think that the Jewish People crossed the Red Sea. We picture the Jews beginning on one side of the sea and traversing the water until they reached the opposite side.

A quick study of a map of the region will show that the Jews could not have crossed the sea at all. Their journey took them from the area of Goshen, where they lived during the Egyptian exile, and their goal was to end up at the foot of Mount Sinai, where they would receive the Torah. Both their departure and destination are on the same side of the Red Sea! This implies that they must have entered the sea and exited on the same shore.

Now, picture the path that they would have taken. Since they entered and exited the same bank of the Red Sea, their journey would lead them in a semi-circular arc through the sea.

The second point that we need to explore together is a fascinating midrash that relates how each of the 12 tribes walked along its own pathway. This means that some tribes moved more on the inside of the semi-circular path, while others travelled on the outer edge. Elementary geometry explains that those on the inner edge of the circle were in the sea for a shorter period of time than those on the outer circles, since they had a shorter distance to travel.

In our personal journeys that we embark on to find a suitable spouse, each person spends different amounts of time in the turbulent “dating” sea.

Some spend a relatively short time before they find “The One.” Others need to be on the singles scene for longer before they meet their life partner. The comforting message implied by the Red Sea miracle is that ultimately, all of us get to dry land and find our intended.

In truth, not only does this inspirational message apply to singles looking for a match, it applies to all of us who have faced life’s inevitable challenges.

Some of us are blessed to overcome our travails relatively quickly. Others may need to face the tumultuous waters for a longer period of time. Regardless of how difficult our challenges seem, we always need to trust in God and believe that He will ultimately bring each and every one of us to the dry, sure shore.

This Shabbat is called Shabbat Shirah – the Sabbath of Song. May we all merit to sing songs of joy when we reach our personal shores of happiness. May we collectively merit to sing the ultimate song of joy when all mankind leaves behind the turbulent waters and reaches the era of peace, prosperity and spiritual growth for all.

Rabbi Avrohom Jacks is spiritual leader of Congregation Zichron Kedoshim in Montreal.