Hallel explained – 2

Tehillim – 114

Now the Poet proceeds to prove from the Exodus from Egypt itself all of the above concepts concerning the way Hashem directs the World: בְּצֵאת יִשְׂרָאֵל מִמִּצְרָיִם-When Klal Yisrael went out of Egypt, when בֵּית יַעֲקֹב-the house of Yaakov went out מֵעַם לֹעֵז-from a nation who speak a foreign tongue, which is not Leshon HaKodesh (the Holy Tongue) הָיְתָה יְהוּדָה לְקָדְשׁוֹ-Yehudah was His Holy one, for Yehudah had always been the holiest and preferred tribe, as kings over the other tribes, and they were the ones who sprang first into the waters of the Red Sea and sanctified Hashem’s Name, and יִשְׂרָאֵל מַמְשְׁלוֹתָיו-Yisrael were His subjects. And given that both Yehudah and Yisrael were holy before the L-rd, הַיָּם רָאָה וַיָּנֹס-the sea saw and fled, like someone who runs away and flees from one who is stronger than himself, and so too הַיַּרְדֵּן יִסֹּב לְאָחוֹר-the Jordan turned backwards, when Yehoshua Bin Nun and Klal Yisrael arrived to cross it in order to enter Eretz Yisrael. הֶהָרִים רָקְדוּ כְאֵילִים-The hills danced like rams, at the time of the Giving of the Torah, when all the hills melted away because of Hashem, and the whole of Mount Sinai trembled because Hashem had descended upon it, and גְּבָעוֹת כִּבְנֵי צֹאן-the mountains also (danced) like young sheep. And the Poet asks מַה לְּךָ הַיָּם כִּי תָנוּס הַיַּרְדֵּן תִּסֹּב לְאָחוֹר-“Sea, why do you flee? Jordan, why do you turn backwards?” הֶהָרִים תִּרְקְדוּ כְאֵילִים גְּבָעוֹת כִּבְנֵי צֹאן-“Hills, why do you dance like rams? Mountains, why do you (dance) like young sheep?” “Surely this is not your natural normal behavior?” And they answer him, that in actual fact it was not done naturally, rather the transformation effected at the Splitting of the Red Sea and the parting of the Jordan were (directly) מִלִּפְנֵי אָדוֹן-because of the Master of the World Who created all and Who rules over all,חוּלִי אָרֶץ-Who created the World and established it. It was מִלִּפְנֵי אֱלוֺקַ יַעֲקֹב-because of the G-d of Yaakov, and being that He acted as a G-d towards Yaakov, He attacked the Laws of Nature and nullified them, in order to save His people Yisrael from the hands of the Egyptians. One must not wonder about this metamorphosis, for inasmuch as at the time of the Creation of the World Hashem created land from water, so too He can now reverse the process, הַהֹפְכִי הַצּוּר אֲגַם מָיִם-Who transforms the stone to a puddle of water-He can change even לְמַעְיְנוֹ מָיִם חַלָּמִישׁ-the strongest stone into a spring of water, and at the Splitting of the Sea Hashem changed the water into stone, to enable Klal Yisrael to cross over, whereas in the Desert He made water from a stone, to enable Klal Yisrael to drink.