Analysis of Psalm 114

Isaac Watts 1674 (Southampton, Hampshire) – 1748 (Stoke Newington, Middlesex)



Miracles attending Israel's journey.

When Isr'el, freed from Pharaoh's hand,
Left the proud tyrant and his land,
The tribes with cheerful homage own
Their King, and Judah was his throne.

Across the deep their journey lay;
The deep divides to make them way;
Jordan beheld their march, and fled
With backward current to his head.

The mountains shook like frighted sheep,
Like lambs the little hillocks leap;
Not Sinai on her base could stand,
Conscious of sovereign power at hand.

What power could make the deep divide?
Make Jordan backward roll his tide?
Why did ye leap, ye little hills?
And whence the fright that Sinai feels?

Let every mountain, every flood,
Retire and know th' approaching God,
The King of Isr'el: see him here;
Tremble, thou earth, adore and fear.

He thunders, and all nature mourns;
The rock to standing pools he turns;
Flints spring with fountains at his word,
And fires and seas confess the Lord.


Scheme X AABB CCDD EEAA FFXX XXXX XXXX
Poetic Form Tetractys  (20%)
Metre 1000101010 111111 10110011 01110101 11010111 01011101 01011111 1011101 11010111 0101111 1101011 1110111 101101011 110110101 11010111 11111101 0101111 1100101001 0101110101 0111111 10110101 11001101 01110111 11110111 010010101
Closest metre Iambic tetrameter
Characters 904
Words 160
Sentences 11
Stanzas 7
Stanza Lengths 1, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 25
Letters per line (avg) 29
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 104
Words per stanza (avg) 23
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Submitted on May 13, 2011

Modified on March 05, 2023

49 sec read
120

Isaac Watts

Isaac Watts was an English Christian minister (Congregational), hymn writer, theologian, and logician. He was a prolific and popular hymn writer and is credited with some 750 hymns. He is recognized as the "Godfather of English Hymnody"; many of his hymns remain in use today and have been translated into numerous languages. more…

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