Verses 1-8

This has been called 'one of the finest lyrics in literature.' Probably it is a post-exilic psalm wherein, under the figure of the old exodus from Egypt, the Psalmist chants the return from Babylon. In all ages of the Church it has been used to celebrate the release from the bondage of sin. Hence it is a hymn for Easter night.

1. Strange language] i.e. unintelligible speech—foreign.

2. Was] RV 'became.'

3. Saw it] i.e. the presence of God. The allusion is to the dividing of the Red Sea and of Jordan, the opening and closing events of the deliverance from Egypt.

4. Skipped] i.e. trembled: cp. Sinai, Exodus 19:18.

5. What ailed?] The answer is, the presence of God.

8. Cp. Exodus 17:6; Numbers 20:11