Tremble, thou earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob;
Psalm 114 celebrates God's deliverance of Israel from Egypt. It belongs to a group of psalms associated with the return from captivity in Babylon under Cyrus, expressing the mixed emotions of the returning exiles over the rebuilding and dedication of the second temple and its triumphs. The verse opens the antistrophe of the psalm, paired with the lines about turning rock into water, with strophes and antistrophes sung or recited by leaders and groups with instrumental music in worship. The psalm was sung on Passover occasions, including by Jesus just before his betrayal and coming sufferings.
The verse commands the earth to tremble at the presence of the Lord, the God of Jacob. The Hebrew word for earth denotes the physical globe, and the word for tremble denotes quaking, including an earthquake. The verse uses personification by ascribing the action of trembling to the inanimate earth. God's power is so great that the earth trembles before him, and that power is exercised for the good of his people. In the account of deliverance from Egypt, the Lord's presence causes opposing powers to give way.
The physical earth trembles at the Lord's presence, showing that earthquakes and other terrestrial convulsions are acts of divine agency, ascribed to God or to angels acting under his commission. The closing words of the psalm point to Christ's second coming. The verse prophesies the Lord's last visible advent in consuming fire and the great convulsion of the globe at the end of the world.
Psalm 114 celebrates God's deliverance of Israel from Egypt. It belongs to a group of psalms associated with the return from captivity in Babylon under Cyrus, expressing the mixed emotions of the returning exiles over the rebuilding and dedication of the second temple and its triumphs. The verse opens the antistrophe of the psalm, paired with the lines about turning rock into water, with strophes and antistrophes sung or recited by leaders and groups with instrumental music in worship. The psalm was sung on Passover occasions, including by Jesus just before his betrayal and coming sufferings.
The verse commands the earth to tremble at the presence of the Lord, the God of Jacob. The Hebrew word for earth denotes the physical globe, and the word for tremble denotes quaking, including an earthquake. The verse uses personification by ascribing the action of trembling to the inanimate earth. God's power is so great that the earth trembles before him, and that power is exercised for the good of his people. In the account of deliverance from Egypt, the Lord's presence causes opposing powers to give way.
The physical earth trembles at the Lord's presence, showing that earthquakes and other terrestrial convulsions are acts of divine agency, ascribed to God or to angels acting under his commission. The closing words of the psalm point to Christ's second coming. The verse prophesies the Lord's last visible advent in consuming fire and the great convulsion of the globe at the end of the world.