Unless otherwise stated the scriptures in this devotional are from the King James Version of the Bible located on http://www.biblegateway.com.
Context
Psalm 114 is poetic description of the Exodus from Egypt to the promise land; this psalm emphasizes:
- God’s power; see (verses 3-6),
- His provision; see (verse 8).
- Israel’s deliverance; see (verses 1-2),
- The permanence of Yahweh as Israel’s God; see (verse 7). Verse demonstrates that the power of Yah is never ending. It also warns the world about the fact that his protection over his people is permanent.
God can make any place His sancruary
1 When Israel went out of Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of strange language; 2 Judah was his sanctuary, and Israel his dominion.
The psalmist introduces this psalm by reminding the reader of God’s act of rescuing his people from Egyptian bondage. Deliverance from Egyptian rule came after the ten plagues. God prophecied to Abraham that his children would be enslaved. See Genesis 15:12-14. One must remember that the name “Jacob” identified the man Jacob as the father of the twelve children who were males. However, when the term “Israel” is used, it references that his twelve sons became a nation comprised of twelve tribes. That is one tribe for each of his 12 sons. The reader should note that the Egyptians did not speak the same language as the “Children of Israel – who spoke Hebrew. Thus, the reference to ” the house of Jacob from a people of strange language.” After the entry of the Children of Israel into the promised land, God removed the pagan worshipper, and he made the land of Canaan his holy habitation.
The mountains and the seas obey him.
3 The sea saw it, and fled: Jordan was driven back.4 During the travels of Israel from Egypt to the promised land, the sea parted twice. See Exodus 14:15-31 when Moses raised his rod, and the sea parted, and the same thing occurred 40 years later when Joshua raised his hand, and the Jodan River parted for the nation to enter the promised land. See Joshua 3:1-17. The mountains skipped like rams, and the little hills like lambs.5 What ailed thee, O thou sea, that thou fleddest? thou Jordan, that thou wast driven back?6 Ye mountains, that ye skipped like rams; and ye little hills, like lambs? Now the psalmist presents an idyllic picture of creation and inanimate objects frolicking and dancing before Yah. He ends this argument with a question. Then he answers the question by proclaiming that everything must reverence and bow down before the Lord.
Reverence God’s presence
7 Tremble, thou earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob;8 Which turned the rock into a standing water, the flint into a fountain of waters.
Psalm 104:32 declares. “He looketh on the earth, and it trembleth: he toucheth the hills, and they smoke.” This verse references the majestic power and grace encapsulated in the presence of God as experienced by all who the Holy Spirit leads. The same presence results in a level of awe and terror in the hearts of the people’s greatest enemies. It is a big deal to fall into the hands of the living God and to reverence him with a trembling spirit. So what does this psalm say to modern-day Christians? It tells us to look to Yah for protection. Jesus walked the same lands that the people of Israel walked. They did not see him as their Messiah or permanent Passover Lamb. Christians today must make that connection. Then we can become the sanctuary example that the world looks to today. What do they see when they see us?
You Are Not the Only One 
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