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Psalms 114

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1When Israel went forth out of Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of foreign language;

2Judah became his sanctuary, Israel his dominion.

3The sea saw it, and fled. The Jordan was driven back.

4The mountains skipped like rams, the little hills like lambs.

5What was it, you sea, that you fled? You Jordan, that you turned back?

6You mountains, that you skipped like rams; you little hills, like lambs?

7Tremble, you earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob,

8who turned the rock into a pool of water, the flint into a spring of waters.

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Matthew Henry Concise Commentary

Pastoral and devotional reflections focused on spiritual formation and application.

Psalms 114:1-999 Chapter 114

An exhortation to fear God. --Let us acknowledge God's power and goodness in what he did for Israel, applying it to that much greater work of wonder, our redemption by Christ; and encourage ourselves and others to trust in God in the greatest straits. When Christ comes for the salvation of his people , he redeems them from the power of sin and Satan, separates them from an ungodly world, forms them to be his people, and becomes their King. There is no sea, no Jordan, so deep, so broad, but, when God's time is come, it shall be divided and driven back. Apply this to the planting the Christian church in the world. What ailed Satan and his idolatries, that they trembled as they did? But especially apply it to the work of grace in the heart. What turns the stream in a regenerate soul? What affects the lusts and corruptions, that they fly back; that prejudices are removed, and the whole man becomes new? It is at the presence of God's Spirit. At the presence of the Lord, not only mountains, but the earth itself may well tremble, since it has lain under a curse for man's sin. As the Israelites were protected, so they were provided for by miracles; such was that fountain of waters into which the flinty rock was turned, and that rock was Christ. The Son of God, the Rock of ages, gave himself to death, to open a fountain to wash away sins, and to supply believers with waters of life and consolation; and they need not fear that any blessing is too great to expect from his love. But let sinners fear before their just and holy Judge. Let us now prepare to meet our God, that we may have boldness before him at his coming.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary

Historical, contextual, and verse-level study notes for deeper biblical exploration.

Psalms 114:1-8 The writer briefly and beautifully celebrates God's former

care of His people, to whose benefit nature was miraculously made to contribute. 1-4. of strange language--(compare Ps 81:5).

Psalms 114:4 The writer briefly and beautifully celebrates God's former

skipped ... rams--(Ps 29:6), describes the waving of mountain forests, poetically representing the motion of the mountains. The poetical description of the effect of God's presence on the sea and Jordan alludes to the history (Ex 14:21; Jos 3:14-17). Judah is put as a parallel to Israel, because of the destined, as well as real, prominence of that tribe. 5-8. The questions place the implied answers in a more striking form.

Psalms 114:7 The writer briefly and beautifully celebrates God's former

at the presence of--literally, "from before," as if affrighted by the wonderful display of God's power. Well may such a God be trusted, and great should be His praise. PSALM 115

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Earthquakes: At Sinai Psalm 114:4–7

the mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs. / Why was it, O sea, that you fled, O Jordan, that you turned back, / O mountains, that you skipped like rams, O hills, like lambs?

God: Power of Psalm 114:3–8

The sea observed and fled; the Jordan turned back; / the mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs. / Why was it, O sea, that you fled, O Jordan, that you turned back,

Language: Egyptian Psalm 114:1

When Israel departed from Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of foreign tongue,

Mountains: God: Causes, to Skip Psalm 114:4, 6

the mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs. / O mountains, that you skipped like rams, O hills, like lambs?

Sheep: Agile Psalm 114:4, 6

the mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs. / O mountains, that you skipped like rams, O hills, like lambs?

The Lamb: Playful Psalm 114:4, 6

the mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs. / O mountains, that you skipped like rams, O hills, like lambs?

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Bible Dictionary

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Sanctuary Denotes, (1) the Holy Land (Ex. 15:17; comp. Ps. 114:2);… Fountain (Heb. ain; i.e., "eye" of the water desert), a natural… Jordan Heb. Yarden, "the descender;" Arab. Nahr-esh-Sheriah, "the watering-place" the chief… Israel The name conferred on Jacob after the great prayer-struggle at… House Till their sojourn in Egypt the Hebrews dwelt in tents.… Judah Praise, the fourth son of Jacob by Leah. The name… Flint Abounds in all the plains and valleys of the wilderness… Earth (1.) In the sense of soil or ground, the translation… Egypt The land of the Nile and the pyramids, the oldest… Jacob One who follows on another's heels; supplanter, (Gen. 25:26; 27:36;… Lord There are various Hebrew and Greek words so rendered. (1.)… Rock (Heb. tsur), employed as a symbol of God in the… Pool A pond, or reservoir, for holding water (Heb. berekhah; modern…