Why, mountains, did you leap like rams, you hills, like lambs? Tremble, earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob.
PSALM 114:6–7
Have you watched rams and lambs? Or seen videos online? Sheep can jump surprisingly well. Lambs leap, kick, buck, and twist across a field! Their legs almost seem to be spring-loaded as they jump, bounce, and run. It’s surprising and comical to see the energy that surges through them.
This verse can bring to mind a silly cartoon, with legs and hooves sprouting beneath mountain peaks, then bouncing across the screen and off into the distance. But think of the mountains you know best, whether they are the red rock of the desert, rolling green hills, snow-capped peaks, or something else entirely! Whether you admire them from a distance or have hiked every trail, can you imagine them skipping like lambs? It no longer feels silly—surreal, perhaps, but also frightening.
Psalm 114 is talking about the power of our God, displayed in various ways when He brought Israel out of Egypt and into the Promised Land. Verses 6 and 7 refer to Exodus 19: “Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the LORD descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled violently” (v. 18). God descended to Mount Sinai to speak to Moses in front of all the Israelites, to give them the Ten Commandments and other instructions. That’s what made the mountains leap!
How mighty is our God! We are blessed to know Him, to worship One so strong and so loving.