January 30
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TREMBLE AT THE PRESENCE OF THE LORD
When Israel went out from Egypt,
The house of Jacob from a people of strange language,
2 Judah became his sanctuary, Israel his dominion.
3 The sea looked and fled; Jordan turned back.
4 The mountains skipped like rams, the hills like lambs.
5 What ails you, O sea, that you flee? O Jordan, that you turn back?
6 O mountains, that you skip like rams? O hills, like lambs?
7 Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord,
At the presence of the God of Jacob,
8 Who turns the rock into a pool of water,
The flint into a spring of water. -Psalm 114:1-8
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This hymn praises what God has done for the Israelites. Verse 3 recalls those two times that the Red Sea and the river Jordan was parted just so the Israelites can run and be rescued from their enemies. It is a reminder how God takes care of his people and how powerful he is that he can command any of his creation to turn into something that it isn’t. The flint in verse 8 is a very hard variety of quartz that was abundant in those times and could be broken into sharp pieces and used to make tools, knives and weapons. Even something as hard as this, God can turn into a spring of water. Let us tremble at the presence of such power.
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ADORATION: Praise the Lord who is mighty and powerful, who can turn anything into something else. O come, let us adore the God who protects and faithfully loves his people.
CONFESSION: Forgive me Lord whenever I do not tremble at your presence and take all that you have done for me for granted.
THANKSGIVING: I am so grateful for your thoughtfulness and generosity at providing for all things that I need even before I ask for it.
SUPPLICATION: May we never forget the miracles or the little things we don’t recognize that are the ways that God protects and cares for his people.
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REFLECTION
• What happens when we don’t tremble at the presence of the Lord?