Psalm 18
World English Bible
For the Chief Musician. By David the servant of Yahweh, who spoke to Yahweh the words of this song in the day that Yahweh delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. He said,
18 I love you, Yahweh, my strength.
2 Yahweh is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer;
my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge;
my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower.
3 I call on Yahweh, who is worthy to be praised;
and I am saved from my enemies.
4 The cords of death surrounded me.
The floods of ungodliness made me afraid.
5 The cords of Sheol[a] were around me.
The snares of death came on me.
6 In my distress I called on Yahweh,
and cried to my God.
He heard my voice out of his temple.
My cry before him came into his ears.
7 Then the earth shook and trembled.
The foundations also of the mountains quaked and were shaken,
because he was angry.
8 Smoke went out of his nostrils.
Consuming fire came out of his mouth.
Coals were kindled by it.
9 He bowed the heavens also, and came down.
Thick darkness was under his feet.
10 He rode on a cherub, and flew.
Yes, he soared on the wings of the wind.
11 He made darkness his hiding place, his pavilion around him,
darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies.
12 At the brightness before him his thick clouds passed,
hailstones and coals of fire.
13 Yahweh also thundered in the sky.
The Most High uttered his voice:
hailstones and coals of fire.
14 He sent out his arrows, and scattered them.
He routed them with great lightning bolts.
15 Then the channels of waters appeared.
The foundations of the world were laid bare at your rebuke, Yahweh,
at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.
16 He sent from on high.
He took me.
He drew me out of many waters.
17 He delivered me from my strong enemy,
from those who hated me; for they were too mighty for me.
18 They came on me in the day of my calamity,
but Yahweh was my support.
19 He brought me out also into a large place.
He delivered me, because he delighted in me.
20 Yahweh has rewarded me according to my righteousness.
According to the cleanness of my hands, he has recompensed me.
21 For I have kept the ways of Yahweh,
and have not wickedly departed from my God.
22 For all his ordinances were before me.
I didn’t put away his statutes from me.
23 I was also blameless with him.
I kept myself from my iniquity.
24 Therefore Yahweh has rewarded me according to my righteousness,
according to the cleanness of my hands in his eyesight.
25 With the merciful you will show yourself merciful.
With the perfect man, you will show yourself perfect.
26 With the pure, you will show yourself pure.
With the crooked you will show yourself shrewd.
27 For you will save the afflicted people,
but the arrogant eyes you will bring down.
28 For you will light my lamp, Yahweh.
My God will light up my darkness.
29 For by you, I advance through a troop.
By my God, I leap over a wall.
30 As for God, his way is perfect.
Yahweh’s word is tried.
He is a shield to all those who take refuge in him.
31 For who is God, except Yahweh?
Who is a rock, besides our God,
32 the God who arms me with strength, and makes my way perfect?
33 He makes my feet like deer’s feet,
and sets me on my high places.
34 He teaches my hands to war,
so that my arms bend a bow of bronze.
35 You have also given me the shield of your salvation.
Your right hand sustains me.
Your gentleness has made me great.
36 You have enlarged my steps under me,
My feet have not slipped.
37 I will pursue my enemies, and overtake them.
I won’t turn away until they are consumed.
38 I will strike them through, so that they will not be able to rise.
They shall fall under my feet.
39 For you have armed me with strength to the battle.
You have subdued under me those who rose up against me.
40 You have also made my enemies turn their backs to me,
that I might cut off those who hate me.
41 They cried, but there was no one to save;
even to Yahweh, but he didn’t answer them.
42 Then I beat them small as the dust before the wind.
I cast them out as the mire of the streets.
43 You have delivered me from the strivings of the people.
You have made me the head of the nations.
A people whom I have not known shall serve me.
44 As soon as they hear of me they shall obey me.
The foreigners shall submit themselves to me.
45 The foreigners shall fade away,
and shall come trembling out of their strongholds.
46 Yahweh lives! Blessed be my rock.
Exalted be the God of my salvation,
47 even the God who executes vengeance for me,
and subdues peoples under me.
48 He rescues me from my enemies.
Yes, you lift me up above those who rise up against me.
You deliver me from the violent man.
49 Therefore I will give thanks to you, Yahweh, among the nations,
and will sing praises to your name.
50 He gives great deliverance to his king,
and shows loving kindness to his anointed,
to David and to his offspring,[b] forever more.
Psalm 18
International Standard Version
To the Director: By the servant of the Lord, David, who spoke the words of this song to the Lord on the day when the Lord delivered him from the hands of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul.
Gratitude for Victory
18 He said:
“I love you, Lord, my strength.
2 The Lord is my rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my God,
my stronghold[a] in whom I take refuge, my shield, the glory[b]
of my salvation, and my high tower.”
3 I cried out to the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,
and I was delivered from my enemies.
4 The cords of death entangled me;
the rivers of Belial[c] made me afraid.
5 The cords of Sheol[d] surrounded me;
the snares of death confronted me.
6 In my distress I cried to the Lord;
to my God I cried for help.
From his Temple he heard my voice;
my cry reached his ears.
7 The world shook and trembled;
the foundations of the mountains quaked,
they shook because he was angry.
8 In his anger smoke poured out of his nostrils,
and consuming fire from his mouth;
coals were lit from it.
9 He bent the sky and descended,
and darkness was under his feet.
10 He rode upon a cherub and flew;
he soared upon the wings of the wind.
11 He made darkness his hiding place,
his canopy surrounding him was dark waters and thick clouds.
12 The brightness before him scattered the thick clouds,
with hail stones and flashes of fire.
13 Then the Lord thundered in[e] the heavens,
and the Most High sounded aloud,
calling for hail stones and flashes of fire.[f]
14 He shot his arrows and scattered them;
with many lightning bolts he frightened them.
15 Then the channels of the sea could be seen,
and the foundations of the earth were uncovered
because of your rebuke, Lord,
because of the blast from the breath of your nostrils.
16 He reached down and took me;
he drew me from many waters.
17 He delivered me from my strong enemies,
from those who hated me because
they were stronger than I.
18 They confronted me in the day of my calamity,
but the Lord was my support.
19 He brought me out to a spacious place;
he delivered me, for in me he takes delight.
God’s Reward to the Righteous
20 The Lord will reward me because I am righteous;
because my hands are clean he will restore me;
21 because I have kept the ways of the Lord,
and I have not wickedly departed from my God;
22 because all his judgments were always before me,
and I did not cast off his statutes.
23 I was upright[g] before him,
and I kept myself from iniquity.
24 So the Lord restored me according to my righteousness,
because my hands were clean in his sight.
25 To the holy, you show your gracious love,
to the upright, you show yourself upright;
26 to the pure, you show yourself pure,
and to the morally corrupt, you appear to be perverse.
27 Indeed, you deliver the oppressed,[h]
but you bring down those who exalt themselves
in their own eyes.
28 For you, Lord, make my lamp shine;
my God enlightens my darkness.
29 With your help[i] I will run through an army,
with help from[j] my God I leap over walls.
30 As for God, his way is upright;[k]
the word of God is pure;
he is a shield to all those who take refuge in him.
The Acts of God for the Righteous
31 For who is God but the Lord,
and who is a Rock other than our God?—
32 the God who clothes me with strength,
and who makes my way upright;[l]
33 who makes my feet swift as the deer;
who makes me stand on high places;
34 who teaches my hands to make war,
and my arms to bend a bronze bow.
35 You have given to me the shield of your deliverance,
and your right hand holds me up;
your gentleness made me great.
36 You make a broad place for my steps,
so my feet[m] won’t slip.
37 I pursued my enemies and overtook them;
I did not turn around until they were utterly defeated.
38 I struck them down,
so they are not able to rise up;
they fell under my feet.
39 You clothed me with strength for war;
you will subdue under me those who rise up against me.
40 You have made my enemies turn their back to me,
and I will destroy those who hate me.
41 They cried out for deliverance,
but there was no one to deliver;
they cried out[n] to the Lord,
but he did not answer them.
42 I ground them like wind-swept dust;
I emptied them out[o] like dirt in the street.
43 You rescued me from conflict with the people;
you made me head of the nations.
People who did not know me will serve me.
44 When they hear of me,[p] they will obey me;
foreigners will submit to me.
45 Foreigners will wilt away;
they will come trembling out of their stronghold.
46 The Lord lives!
Blessed be my Rock!
May the God of my deliverance be exalted!
47 He is the God who executes vengeance on my behalf;
who destroys peoples under me;
48 who delivers me from my enemies.
Truly you will exalt me above those who oppose me;
you will deliver me from the violent person.
49 Therefore, I will give thanks to you among the nations, Lord;
I will sing praises to your name.
50 He is the one who gives victories to his king;
who shows gracious love to his anointed,
to David and his seed forever.
Footnotes
- Psalm 18:2 Lit. rock
- Psalm 18:2 Lit. horn
- Psalm 18:4 I.e. the forces of death and destruction
- Psalm 18:5 I.e. the realm of the dead
- Psalm 18:13 So MT DSS 4QPsc; LXX Targ Vg (cf. 2 Sam 22:14) reads from
- Psalm 18:13 So MT DSS 4QPsc; LXX lacks calling for hail stones and flashes of fire
- Psalm 18:23 Or blameless
- Psalm 18:27 Or poor
- Psalm 18:29 The Heb. lacks help
- Psalm 18:29 The Heb. lacks help from
- Psalm 18:30 Or blameless
- Psalm 18:32 Or blameless
- Psalm 18:36 Lit. ankle
- Psalm 18:41 The Heb. lacks they cried out
- Psalm 18:42 So MT DSS 5/6HevPs; LXX reads I will grind them down
- Psalm 18:44 Lit. At the hearing of the ear
2 Samuel 22
World English Bible
22 David spoke to Yahweh the words of this song in the day that Yahweh delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul, 2 and he said:
“Yahweh is my rock,
my fortress,
and my deliverer, even mine;
3 God is my rock in whom I take refuge;
my shield, and the horn of my salvation,
my high tower, and my refuge.
My savior, you save me from violence.
4 I call on Yahweh, who is worthy to be praised;
So shall I be saved from my enemies.
5 For the waves of death surrounded me.
The floods of ungodliness made me afraid.
6 The cords of Sheol[a] were around me.
The snares of death caught me.
7 In my distress, I called on Yahweh.
Yes, I called to my God.
He heard my voice out of his temple.
My cry came into his ears.
8 Then the earth shook and trembled.
The foundations of heaven quaked and were shaken,
because he was angry.
9 Smoke went up out of his nostrils.
Consuming fire came out of his mouth.
Coals were kindled by it.
10 He bowed the heavens also, and came down.
Thick darkness was under his feet.
11 He rode on a cherub, and flew.
Yes, he was seen on the wings of the wind.
12 He made darkness a shelter around himself:
gathering of waters, and thick clouds of the skies.
13 At the brightness before him,
coals of fire were kindled.
14 Yahweh thundered from heaven.
The Most High uttered his voice.
15 He sent out arrows and scattered them,
lightning and confused them.
16 Then the channels of the sea appeared.
The foundations of the world were laid bare by Yahweh’s rebuke,
at the blast of the breath of his nostrils.
17 He sent from on high and he took me.
He drew me out of many waters.
18 He delivered me from my strong enemy,
from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me.
19 They came on me in the day of my calamity,
but Yahweh was my support.
20 He also brought me out into a large place.
He delivered me, because he delighted in me.
21 Yahweh rewarded me according to my righteousness.
He rewarded me according to the cleanness of my hands.
22 For I have kept Yahweh’s ways,
and have not wickedly departed from my God.
23 For all his ordinances were before me.
As for his statutes, I didn’t depart from them.
24 I was also perfect toward him.
I kept myself from my iniquity.
25 Therefore Yahweh has rewarded me according to my righteousness,
According to my cleanness in his eyesight.
26 With the merciful you will show yourself merciful.
With the perfect man you will show yourself perfect.
27 With the pure you will show yourself pure.
With the crooked you will show yourself shrewd.
28 You will save the afflicted people,
But your eyes are on the arrogant, that you may bring them down.
29 For you are my lamp, Yahweh.
Yahweh will light up my darkness.
30 For by you, I run against a troop.
By my God, I leap over a wall.
31 As for God, his way is perfect.
Yahweh’s word is tested.
He is a shield to all those who take refuge in him.
32 For who is God, besides Yahweh?
Who is a rock, besides our God?
33 God is my strong fortress.
He makes my way perfect.
34 He makes his feet like hinds’ feet,
and sets me on my high places.
35 He teaches my hands to war,
so that my arms bend a bow of bronze.
36 You have also given me the shield of your salvation.
Your gentleness has made me great.
37 You have enlarged my steps under me.
My feet have not slipped.
38 I have pursued my enemies and destroyed them.
I didn’t turn again until they were consumed.
39 I have consumed them,
and struck them through,
so that they can’t arise.
Yes, they have fallen under my feet.
40 For you have armed me with strength for the battle.
You have subdued under me those who rose up against me.
41 You have also made my enemies turn their backs to me,
that I might cut off those who hate me.
42 They looked, but there was no one to save;
even to Yahweh, but he didn’t answer them.
43 Then I beat them as small as the dust of the earth.
I crushed them as the mire of the streets, and spread them abroad.
44 You also have delivered me from the strivings of my people.
You have kept me to be the head of the nations.
A people whom I have not known will serve me.
45 The foreigners will submit themselves to me.
As soon as they hear of me, they will obey me.
46 The foreigners will fade away,
and will come trembling out of their close places.
47 Yahweh lives!
Blessed be my rock!
Exalted be God, the rock of my salvation,
48 even the God who executes vengeance for me,
who brings down peoples under me,
49 who brings me away from my enemies.
Yes, you lift me up above those who rise up against me.
You deliver me from the violent man.
50 Therefore I will give thanks to you, Yahweh, among the nations,
and will sing praises to your name.
51 He gives great deliverance to his king,
and shows loving kindness to his anointed,
to David and to his offspring, forever more.”
Footnotes
- 22:6 Sheol is the place of the dead.
2 Samuel 22
International Standard Version
David’s Psalm of Deliverance
22 David composed the words of this song to the Lord the very day the Lord delivered him from the domination[a] of all of his enemies, including from Saul’s hands. 2 This is what[b] he said:
Lord, you are[c] my stone stronghold
and my fortified place;
you are continuously delivering[d] me.
3 He is my God,
my strong stone—
in him I will find my refuge—
my shield,
the strength[e] of my salvation,
my high tower,
my way of escape,
and the one who is saving me.
You will save me from violence.
4 As I am praising him,[f]
I will call out to the Lord,
and I will be saved from my enemies.
5 Because deadly breakers[g] engulfed me,
while torrents of abuse[h] from the ungodly overwhelmed[i] me.
6 Binding ropes from Sheol entangled me
while lethal snares hindered me.
7 I cried out to the Lord in the middle of my troubles;
I cried out to my God.
He listened to my voice from his sanctuary,
and my call for help was heard.
8 Just then the earth shook and trembled!
The foundations of heaven reeled and quaked
because the Lord[j] was angry.
9 Smoke poured out of his nostrils,
and fire from his mouth
kindling coals to flame by it.
10 He deformed heaven itself as he descended.
Thick darkness enveloped his feet.
11 He rode on a cherub and flew,
soaring on the wings of the wind!
12 The darkness around him was his canopies—
amassed water was his overhanging clouds!
13 From the shining light[k] that was his presence[l]
coals of fire blazed into flame!
14 The Lord roared from heaven!
The Most High let his voice be heard!
15 He launched his arrows and scattered them—
his lightning routed them.
16 The currents of the sea were revealed
and the foundations of the world were exposed
at the rebuke of the Lord
and at the blazing breath from his nostrils!
17 He sent for me from on high!
He grabbed hold of me,
drawing me out of deep water.
18 He rescued me from my strong enemy—
from those who hate me continually,
since they were stronger than I.
19 They confronted me when I was in trouble,[m]
but the Lord remained my support!
20 He brought me to a wide open area,
rescuing me because he was pleased with me!
21 The Lord dealt with me according to my righteousness,
rewarding me according to the degree of my innocence,[n]
22 because I have kept the Lord’s way—
I haven’t willfully abandoned my God—
23 and because all of his decrees remain in my thoughts,[o]
I have not turned aside from his statutes,
24 I have been innocent before him,
and I’ve kept myself from incurring[p] guilt.
25 The Lord has repaid me according to my righteousness,
that is, according to my clean standing as he[q] looks at me.[r]
26 In the company of the gracious
you demonstrate your gracious love.
In the company of the blamelessly valiant
you demonstrate your blamelessness.
27 In the company of the pure
you demonstrate your purity.
In the company of the perverted
you will appear to be perverse.
28 You save the nation who is humble
but your eyes watch the proud,
to bring them down.
29 For you are my lamp, Lord,
the Lord who illuminates my darkness.
30 By you I devastate armies,
by my God I scale walls.
31 This God! His way is perfect!
What the Lord declares proves true.
He shields[s] everyone who flees for protection to him!
32 For who is God apart from the Lord?
And who is a Rock, apart from our God?
33 This God is my strong place of valor!
He has made my life[t] blameless.
34 He has made my feet like those of a deer,
setting me secure on his high places!
35 He has trained my hands for battle readiness—
I can bend a bow made out of bronze.
36 He has equipped me with the shield that is your salvation,
Your gentleness[u] has made me great.
37 You’ve made room beneath me for my footsteps,
and my feet didn’t slip.
38 I pursued my enemies and conquered them;
I didn’t return until they were consumed.
39 I devoured them,
striking them down
until they could not get up again.
They fell beneath my feet.
40 You strengthened me with valor sufficient for the battle;
you made those who rebelled against me fall beneath me.
41 You made my enemies turn and run—[v]
that is, those who hate me—
and I destroyed them!
42 They looked around, but there was no one to save[w] them[x]—
they looked[y] to the Lord, but he paid no attention!
43 I pulverized them to powder,
like the dust of the earth;
I crushed them,
stomping on them like mud on a street.
44 You delivered me from civil war among my own people.
You preserved me as head of the nations.
People whom I had never known served me!
45 Foreigners[z] came cringing to me;
they obeyed as soon as they heard[aa] me.
46 Foreigners[ab] lost their courage,
coming trembling from their strongholds.
47 The Lord lives!
Blessed be my Rock,
and may my God be exalted,
the Rock who is my salvation!
48 The God who keeps on avenging me,
subjugating people beneath me,
49 delivering me from my enemies.
You exalted me above those who rebelled against me,
delivering me from violent men.
50 Because of all of this I will praise you among the nations, Lord,
and I will sing praises to your name!
51 Great is the salvation he brings to his king,
showing gracious love to his anointed,
to David and to his offspring[ac] forever.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 22:1 Lit. hand
- 2 Samuel 22:2 The Heb. lacks This is what
- 2 Samuel 22:2 So LXX. MT reads The Lord is
- 2 Samuel 22:2 So MT LXX reads rescuing
- 2 Samuel 22:3 Lit. horn
- 2 Samuel 22:4 The Heb. lacks him
- 2 Samuel 22:5 Or currents
- 2 Samuel 22:5 The Heb. lacks of abuse
- 2 Samuel 22:5 Or terrified
- 2 Samuel 22:8 Lit. because he
- 2 Samuel 22:13 Or the brightness
- 2 Samuel 22:13 Or counterpart; MT word is perhaps a word play on the noun shining light
- 2 Samuel 22:19 Lit. in the day of my calamity
- 2 Samuel 22:21 Lit. the cleanness of my hands
- 2 Samuel 22:23 Lit. presence
- 2 Samuel 22:24 The Heb. lacks incurring
- 2 Samuel 22:25 Lit. standing to the counterpart
- 2 Samuel 22:25 Or standing in his eyes
- 2 Samuel 22:31 Lit. He is a shield for
- 2 Samuel 22:33 Lit. way
- 2 Samuel 22:36 So MT; LXX reads Obedience to you
- 2 Samuel 22:41 Lit. away their backs to me
- 2 Samuel 22:42 MT verb looked around sounds like MT verb to save
- 2 Samuel 22:42 The Heb. lacks them
- 2 Samuel 22:42 The Heb. lacks they looked
- 2 Samuel 22:45 Lit. Children of foreigners
- 2 Samuel 22:45 MT verbs obeyed and heard are identical in spelling
- 2 Samuel 22:46 Lit. Children of foreigners
- 2 Samuel 22:51 Lit. seed; MT is sing.
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