Psalm 114
Psalm 114, The Mighty Presence of God Delivers His People From Egypt
Psalm 114 is the second psalm in the Egyptian Hallel, Psalms 113 to 118, the collection sung in connection with the Passover. Psalm 113 praised the LORD who stoops from the highest heaven to lift the poor and needy. Psalm 114 now praises the LORD whose mighty presence delivered Israel from Egypt, ruled over the sea, turned back the Jordan, shook the mountains, and brought water from the rock.
This psalm is short, but powerful. It celebrates the Exodus, the central act of redemption under the Old Covenant. God brought Israel out of Egypt, separated them from a foreign people, made them His sanctuary and dominion, led them through the Red Sea, brought them across the Jordan, revealed Himself at Sinai, and supplied water from the rock in the wilderness.
The psalm does not merely describe natural events. It presents creation itself as responding to the presence of God. The sea flees. The Jordan turns back. The mountains skip like rams. The little hills skip like lambs. The earth is commanded to tremble before the Lord. The point is clear, the God who redeemed Israel is not a local tribal deity. He is Lord over creation itself.
Psalm 114 also has deep meaning when remembered in connection with Christ. Jesus likely sang this psalm with His disciples on the night He was betrayed. He sang of Israel’s deliverance from Egypt while preparing to accomplish the greater deliverance of His people through His death and resurrection. At the cross, creation itself responded again, darkness covered the land, the earth quaked, and the veil of the temple was torn.
A. Introduction, God’s Deliverance of Israel From Egypt
Psalm 114:1, Delivered From a Foreign Land
Psalm 114:1, “When Israel went out of Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of strange language;”
The psalm begins with the Exodus, “When Israel went out of Egypt.” This was the great redemptive event of the Old Covenant. God’s people had been enslaved in Egypt, oppressed under Pharaoh, and unable to free themselves. The LORD delivered them by His mighty hand, through judgments upon Egypt, the blood of the Passover lamb, and the crossing of the Red Sea.
The Exodus was to be remembered continually by Israel. It was not merely a political escape or national migration. It was redemption. God brought His covenant people out of bondage so they might belong to Him, worship Him, serve Him, and eventually enter the land He promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
Exodus 6:6, “Wherefore say unto the children of Israel, I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with a stretched out arm, and with great judgments:”
Exodus 6:7, “And I will take you to me for a people, and I will be to you a God, and ye shall know that I am the LORD your God, which bringeth you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.”
The psalm also says, “the house of Jacob from a people of strange language.” Egypt was not Israel’s true home. Even though Israel had lived there for generations, they remained strangers in a land of bondage. The strange language emphasizes alienation, oppression, and foreignness. Israel was surrounded by a people whose speech, gods, customs, and power structures did not belong to the covenant promise.
This also recalls the language of the Ten Commandments, where God identifies Himself as the One who brought Israel out of bondage.
Exodus 20:1, “And God spake all these words, saying,”
Exodus 20:2, “I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.”
For believers under the New Covenant, the central act of redemption is not the Exodus from Egypt, but the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. As Israel was delivered from Pharaoh’s bondage, the believer is delivered from sin, death, judgment, and the power of darkness through Christ.
Colossians 1:12, “Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:”
Colossians 1:13, “Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:”
Colossians 1:14, “In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:”
Psalm 114:1 teaches that God’s redemption separates His people from bondage and from the world that is not their true home. Egypt was a land of strange language to Israel. In the same way, this present world is not the true home of those redeemed by Christ.
Philippians 3:20, “For our conversation is in heaven, from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ:”
The redeemed people of God may live in the world for a time, but they do not belong to its bondage, language, idols, or destiny. The LORD brings His people out so they may belong to Him.
Psalm 114:2, Delivered to Be His Dwelling Place and His Servants
Psalm 114:2, “Judah was his sanctuary, and Israel his dominion.”
Verse 2 describes the change in Israel’s status after redemption. In verse 1, Israel is pictured as a people coming out of Egypt, separated from a foreign people and a strange language. In verse 2, that same people is now described in relation to God, “Judah was his sanctuary, and Israel his dominion.”
“Judah was his sanctuary.” Judah is named because it was the leading tribe, the royal tribe, and the tribe from which David and ultimately the Messiah would come. Judah here represents the people of Israel as the dwelling place of God. God did not merely rescue Israel from Egypt and then leave them alone. He made His dwelling among them.
This dwelling was later symbolized by the tabernacle and then the temple. But the godly in Israel understood that the tabernacle and temple were not meant to contain God as though He were limited to a building. They were visible symbols of His covenant presence among His people.
Exodus 25:8, “And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.”
Exodus 29:45, “And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will be their God.”
Exodus 29:46, “And they shall know that I am the LORD their God, that brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them, I am the LORD their God.”
The Exodus was not only deliverance from something, but deliverance to something. Israel was delivered from bondage to become God’s dwelling place. Redemption brings relationship. God saves a people so that He may dwell among them and be honored by them.
The verse continues, “and Israel his dominion.” Where God dwells, God rules. Israel was not redeemed so that she could live independently under her own will. She was redeemed to become the dominion of the LORD. He was to be her King, Lawgiver, Master, and Lord.
This is a vital biblical principle. God’s presence and God’s authority belong together. Many people want God’s help, but not His rule. They want God as rescuer, but not as Lord. Psalm 114 does not allow that division. Israel became His sanctuary and His dominion.
Under the New Covenant, believers are likewise the dwelling place of God by the Spirit and are called to live under Christ’s lordship.
1 Corinthians 6:19, “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?”
1 Corinthians 6:20, “For ye are bought with a price, therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.”
The believer is redeemed by blood, indwelt by the Spirit, and owned by God. Redemption does not produce self rule. It produces consecration.
Psalm 114:2 teaches that God delivered Israel so that His people would be His sanctuary and His dominion. He dwells among the redeemed, and He rules over the redeemed.
B. The Great Works of God in Delivering Israel From Egypt
Psalm 114:3 to Psalm 114:6, God’s Authority Over the Waters and the Mountains
Psalm 114:3, “The sea saw it, and fled: Jordan was driven back.”
Psalm 114:4, “The mountains skipped like rams, and the little hills like lambs.”
Psalm 114:5, “What ailed thee, O thou sea, that thou fleddest? thou Jordan, that thou wast driven back?”
Psalm 114:6, “Ye mountains, that ye skipped like rams, and ye little hills, like lambs?”
Verse 3 personifies creation, “The sea saw it, and fled.” The sea is pictured as seeing the presence of God among His redeemed people and fleeing before Him. This refers to the Red Sea, where God opened the waters so Israel could pass through on dry ground.
Exodus 14:21, “And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the LORD caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.”
Exodus 14:22, “And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground, and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.”
Exodus 14:29, “But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea, and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.”
The psalmist does not treat the Red Sea as though it were merely a natural oddity. The sea fled because the Lord was present with His people. Creation recognized its Creator. The waters obeyed His will.
The verse also says, “Jordan was driven back.” This refers to the crossing of the Jordan River under Joshua, when Israel entered the promised land. The Red Sea marked the beginning of Israel’s journey out of Egypt. The Jordan marked the completion of that journey into Canaan.
Joshua 3:14, “And it came to pass, when the people removed from their tents, to pass over Jordan, and the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people;”
Joshua 3:15, “And as they that bare the ark were come unto Jordan, and the feet of the priests that bare the ark were dipped in the brim of the water, for Jordan overfloweth all his banks all the time of harvest,”
Joshua 3:16, “That the waters which came down from above stood and rose up upon an heap very far from the city Adam, that is beside Zaretan, and those that came down toward the sea of the plain, even the salt sea, failed, and were cut off, and the people passed over right against Jericho.”
Joshua 3:17, “And the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD stood firm on dry ground in the midst of Jordan, and all the Israelites passed over on dry ground, until all the people were passed clean over Jordan.”
The psalm places the Red Sea and the Jordan together, even though forty years separated them, because they are the opening and closing scenes of one great deliverance. God began the deliverance by bringing Israel through the sea, and He completed it by bringing Israel through the river. The beginning guaranteed the end.
This gives strong spiritual encouragement. The God who begins the work of redemption will complete it. The believer’s new birth and final entrance into glory are part of one salvation.
Philippians 1:6, “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:”
Verse 4 says, “The mountains skipped like rams, and the little hills like lambs.” This likely recalls the events at Mount Sinai, where God descended upon the mountain with fire, smoke, thunder, lightning, and earthquake. The mountains trembled before His presence.
Exodus 19:16, “And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud, so that all the people that was in the camp trembled.”
Exodus 19:17, “And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the nether part of the mount.”
Exodus 19:18, “And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire, and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly.”
The image of mountains skipping like rams and hills like lambs also carries a sense of joy. Creation trembles, but it also rejoices when the LORD reveals His glory and redeems His people. Nature is not indifferent to the presence of God.
Verses 5 and 6 turn the description into a question, “What ailed thee, O thou sea, that thou fleddest? thou Jordan, that thou wast driven back?” The psalmist challenges the sea and the river. Why did they flee? Why did they turn back? The implied answer is, because the Lord was there.
The questions continue, “Ye mountains, that ye skipped like rams, and ye little hills, like lambs?” What made the mountains and hills tremble and leap? Again, the answer is the presence of God.
The point is theological. If seas, rivers, mountains, and hills respond to the presence of the LORD, how much more should rational and accountable men respond? Inanimate creation obeyed and trembled. Yet sinful men often remain unmoved.
This makes unbelief especially shameful. The sea fled. Jordan turned back. Sinai trembled. But many men hear the Word of God, see the works of God, and still refuse to repent.
The New Testament shows that when Christ came, God came nearer than He did at Sinai or Jordan. The eternal Son took on flesh and dwelt among men. Yet many were not moved to faith.
John 1:10, “He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.”
John 1:11, “He came unto his own, and his own received him not.”
John 1:12, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:”
Psalm 114:3 to 6 teaches that God has absolute authority over creation. Waters divide. Rivers retreat. Mountains shake. Hills skip. Creation cannot resist the presence of the LORD. The only truly irrational rebellion is the rebellion of man, who sees God’s works and still refuses to bow.
Psalm 114:7 to Psalm 114:8, Calling the Earth to Honor the Lord
Psalm 114:7, “Tremble, thou earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob;”
Psalm 114:8, “Which turned the rock into a standing water, the flint into a fountain of waters.”
Verse 7 finally names the One before whom creation trembles, “the Lord,” and “the God of Jacob.” The psalm has built suspense by describing the sea fleeing, Jordan turning back, mountains skipping, and hills leaping before naming the cause directly. Now the answer is given. Creation trembles at the presence of Adonai, the God of Jacob.
“Tremble, thou earth, at the presence of the Lord.” This is a command to all the earth. The God of Jacob is not merely the God of one ethnic people in a local sense. He is Lord of all the earth. Egypt, the sea, Jordan, Sinai, the wilderness, the rock, the nations, and all creation stand under His authority.
The phrase “God of Jacob” emphasizes covenant mercy. Jacob was not chosen because he was naturally noble or morally superior. Jacob was a schemer, weak and flawed in many ways, yet God set His covenant love upon him. To call the LORD “the God of Jacob” is to remember His covenant faithfulness to an undeserving people.
Exodus 3:6, “Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God.”
The God who made the earth tremble is also the God who bound Himself by promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. His power serves His covenant purposes. His might works for the deliverance and preservation of His people.
Verse 8 says He “turned the rock into a standing water, the flint into a fountain of waters.” This recalls God’s provision of water from the rock in the wilderness. Israel was thirsty and helpless, but God brought water from what seemed impossible.
Exodus 17:5, “And the LORD said unto Moses, Go on before the people, and take with thee of the elders of Israel, and thy rod, wherewith thou smotest the river, take in thine hand, and go.”
Exodus 17:6, “Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb, and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.”
This is a fitting final image. The psalm has shown God’s power over waters and mountains, but it ends with His compassion toward thirsty Israel. His power is not merely for display. His power blesses His people. The same God who divides the sea also gives drink in the wilderness.
The New Testament connects the rock in the wilderness to Christ.
1 Corinthians 10:1, “Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;”
1 Corinthians 10:2, “And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;”
1 Corinthians 10:3, “And did all eat the same spiritual meat;”
1 Corinthians 10:4, “And did all drink the same spiritual drink, for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ.”
Christ is the true Rock from whom living water comes. He was smitten, and from Him flows life for His people.
John 7:37, “In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.”
John 7:38, “He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.”
John 7:39, “But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive, for the Holy Ghost was not yet given, because that Jesus was not yet glorified.”
Psalm 114 ends without a direct moral exhortation beyond the command for the earth to tremble. It does not need to explain everything. The works of God speak. The Exodus speaks. The sea speaks. The Jordan speaks. Sinai speaks. The rock speaks. The presence of the LORD among His people is enough to demand worship, fear, trust, and praise.
When Jesus sang this psalm with His disciples, He was preparing to accomplish the greater Exodus. He would deliver His people not merely from Egypt, but from sin and death. At His crucifixion, creation again responded.
Matthew 27:45, “Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour.”
Matthew 27:50, “Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.”
Matthew 27:51, “And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom, and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;”
The God who shook Sinai and divided the sea shook the earth at the death of His Son. The Exodus pointed forward to Christ. The Passover pointed forward to Christ. The rock pointed forward to Christ. The greater deliverance is found in Christ.
Psalm 114 teaches that the LORD delivered Israel from Egypt, made His people His sanctuary and dominion, ruled the Red Sea and Jordan, shook the mountains at His presence, commanded the earth to tremble, and provided water from the rock. His presence is mighty, His redemption is complete, His power governs creation, and His mercy provides for His people.
