Psalms 114:1-6

1 Alleluia. In the going out of Israel from Egypt; of the house of Jacob from the heathen people. (Alleluia. When Israel went out from Egypt, yea, the house of Jacob from a people with a strange language;)

2 Judah was made the hallowing of him; Israel the power of him. (Judah was made the Lord's sanctuary; and Israel was made his dominion.)

3 The sea saw, and fled; Jordan was turned aback. (The Red Sea, or the Sea of Reeds, saw it, and fled away; the Jordan River turned back, or backed away.)

4 Mountains full out joyed as rams; and little hills as the lambs of sheep. (The mountains rejoiced like rams; and the little hills like the lambs of sheep.)

5 Thou sea, what was to thee, for thou fleddest; and thou, Jordan, for thou were turned aback? (O Red Sea/O Sea of Reeds, what happened to thee, that thou fleddest away? and O Jordan, why hast thou turned back?)

6 Mountains, ye made full out joy as rams; and little hills, as the lambs of sheep. (O mountains, why did ye rejoice like rams? and ye little hills, like the lambs of sheep?)

Psalms 114:1-6 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO PSALM 114

The title of this psalm in the Arabic version is "hallelujah", as in some preceding ones; it is part of the great "Hallel" sung at the passover, and with great propriety; since the subject matter of it is the departure of the children of Israel out of Egypt, typical of our spiritual redemption by Christ; and of the effectual calling of God's elect out of a state of nature into a state of grace; and particularly of the conversion of the Gentiles, and the bringing of them from Paganism to Christianity: the inscription of the Syriac version is,

``a psalm without a name, out of the ancient writing; concerning Moses, who sung praise at the sea; but unto us the calling of the Gospel, by which we become a new people; spiritual to God, who is incarnate; to Jesus Christ, who redeemed us by his blood from the curse of the Scripture (the law), and hath cleansed us from sin by his Spirit.''