Israel Walks out of Egypt
The exodus told almost as comedy: the sea takes one look and runs, the Jordan backs up, mountains skip like rams. The psalm then interrogates them — why did you flee? — and lets the answer be our Father's presence, which turned rock into water.
114 1When Israel came out of Egypt, the house of Jacob from a foreign-speaking people, 2Judah became our Father's sanctuary, Israel his dominion.
3The sea looked and fled; the Jordan turned back. 4The mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs.
5Why, sea, did you flee? Why, Jordan, did you turn back? 6Why, mountains, did you skip like rams? Why, hills, like lambs?
7Tremble, earth, at the presence of the Sovereign Father, at the presence of the God of Jacob, 8who turned the rock into a pool of water, the flint into a flowing spring.
