Psalm 114

W. van der Kamp, 1961

1. When Israel escaped from Egypt’s reach,
   And Jacob’s house from people of strange speech,
   The earth in terror trembled.
   God’s sanctuary Judah then became
   And Israel His dominion, in the Name
   Of Him, their LORD, assembled.
   
2. The waves rolled back, the sea fled at the sight,
   The Jordan turned its waters back in fright;
   Dread came on all creation.
   The mountains shook and skipped like frightened rams;
   The hills were tottering and hid like lambs
   In fear and consternation.
   
3. Why so afraid, why do you run, O sea?
   And Jordan, why do you turn back and flee
   At Israel’s vindication?
   Why, mountains, do you skip like frightened rams?
   Why, hills, are you upset like shivering lambs
   In fear and desolation?
   
4. Tremble, O earth, before the LORD, and fear,
   For Jacob’s God in glory did appear
   On Horeb’s holy mountain.
   He turns the rock into a sparkling stream;
   The granite cliffs He makes with cascades gleam
   From newborn spring and fountain.