Lifting the needy from the ash heap

Psalms 113 and 114:  Psalm 113 is the first of six Egyptian Hallel psalms, sung at the festivals and before and after Passover meals. Hallel comes from the Hebrew hallelu which is a plural imperative of praise and from a shortened name of God, Yah. Hallelujah appears 23 times in the Psalms, from 104 to 150. Holliday says the phrase had a special significance and was the highest form of praise. These two are short psalms, only 8 or 9 verses, with 113 opening with praise and adoration of God who is seated on high. What's interesting about this psalm  are the three inversions at the end, instances of the first being last and the last first that Christians are familiar with from the Gospels. In this psalm, God raised the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap (v. 7) to sit with prince. God also is a God of fertility and blessing, giving a home to the barren woman and making her a mother. Barren women at the time had no place in Hebrew extended families, since their current and future support came from having children. A woman without children had no status and the Old Testament is full of women who were determined to become mothers--Sarah, Tamar, and Ruth to name a few.
Psalm 114 is a brief and succint theological history of the Hebrews, telling the story of the exodus from Egypt and the kingship, and construction of the temple right at the beginning. This short bit of Hebrew poetry is constructed in pairs, but as James Mays points out in his commentary, it is playful and exuberant, with mountains skipping like rams and hills skipping like lambs. There's even a bit of alliteration in the English translation!
In the final line, the earth trembles at the presence of the Lord, an image that runs through the psalms as creation and nations and other gods quake at the sight of the Almighty Yahweh. And my classmates might be interested in the creation theme running through this psalm, with lots of  images of flora and fauna. God turns rock into water, a life-giving sustenance, a sign of growth and goodness.