Psalm 114
When Israel went out of Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of strange language;
2Judah was his sanctuary, and Israel his dominion.
3The sea saw it, and fled: Jordan was driven back.
4The mountains skipped like rams, and the little hills like lambs.
5What ailed thee, O thou sea, that thou fleddest? thou Jordan, that thou wast driven back?
6Ye mountains, that ye skipped like rams; and ye little hills, like lambs?
7Tremble, thou earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob;
8Which turned the rock into a standing water, the flint into a fountain of waters.
The Psalmist refers to God's parting of the Red Sea in verse three, as well as the dividing of the river Jordan when the Israelites finally entered the Promised Land.
"3The sea saw it, and fled: Jordan was driven back.
Three speaks of divinity, and speaks of God's Almighty power, even when our circumstances appearing impossible, insurmountable, and unmanageable.
The Israelites faced the Red Sea as they were fleeing from Egypt. When they say the undivided sea in front of them, and the furious Pharoah and his minions pursuing them from behind, the Israelites cried out:
"10And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians marched after them; and they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto the LORD. 11And they said unto Moses, Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt? 12Is not this the word that we did tell thee in Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians? For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness." (Exodus 14: 10-12)
The LORD God had worked amazing miracles in the midst of His people, and yet they were fearful and angry, believing that they would die at the hands of their former masters.
God did not punish the Israelites or leave them to die, but instead:
"13And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever. 14The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace." (Exodus 14: 13-14)
The LORD directs us to see His salvation: Jesus! Just as God saved His people from the Egyptians, so too we can receive from Jesus our Savior help every day.
About the Jordan River, the Israelites were not fearful. They walked in faith:
"1And Joshua rose early in the morning; and they removed from Shittim, and came to Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they passed over. 2And it came to pass after three days, that the officers went through the host; 3And they commanded the people, saying, When ye see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then ye shall remove from your place, and go after it. 4Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure: come not near unto it, that ye may know the way by which ye must go: for ye have not passed this way heretofore." (Joshua 3: 1-4)
The second time, the Israelites had been purged of the unbelieving generation which refused to enter the Promised Land (Numbers 13-14). Without enemies behind them, the Israelites saw the ark of the Covenant before them. This altar, with its mercy seat, covered the major sins of man: rejection of God's supply (manna in jars), rejection of God's authority (the budded rod of Aaron), and the rejection of God's standard (the Ten Commandments).
Joshua instructed the Israelites to stand back and see the Salvation of the Lord once again, and as the priests stepped into the Jordan, the river was divided, just like that!
Just as Israel fled from Egypt and then entered into the Promised Land, so too we grow in grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus, who takes out of our dead lives and wrong beliefs, and brings us into greater glory, granting us power and strength to walk in victory and live as hyper-victors in Christ.