Psalms 114:1-5

Psalm 114 ¹ 

114:1 When Israel left Egypt,

when the family of Jacob left a foreign nation behind, ² 

114:2 Judah became his sanctuary,

Israel his kingdom.

114:3 The sea looked and fled; ³ 

the Jordan River ⁴  turned back. ⁵ 

114:4 The mountains skipped like rams,

the hills like lambs. ⁶ 

114:5 Why do you flee, O sea?

Why do you turn back, O Jordan River?

[114:1]  ¹ sn Psalm 114. The psalmist recalls the events of the exodus and conquest and celebrates God’s kingship over his covenant people.

[114:1]  ² tn Heb “the house of Jacob from a nation speaking a foreign language.” The Hebrew verb לָעַז (la’at, “to speak a foreign language”) occurs only here in the OT.

[114:3]  ³ sn The psalmist recalls the crossing of the Red Sea (Exod 14:21).

[114:3]  ⁴ tn Heb “the Jordan” (also in v. 5). The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[114:3]  ⁵ sn The psalmist recalls the crossing of the Jordan River (Josh 3:13, 16).

[114:4]  ⁶ sn The mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs. This may recall the theophany at Sinai when the mountain shook before God’s presence (Exod 19:18).