Psalms 18
1 For the end, [a Psalm] of David, the servant of the Lord; [the words] which he spoke to the Lord, [even] the words of this Song, in the day in which the Lord delivered him out the hand of all his enemies, and out the hand of Saul: and he said: I will love you, O Lord, my strength.
To the music director. A psalm of David the servant of the Lord, who sang the words of this song to the Lord on the day when the Lord saved him from all his enemies, and from Saul. He sang: I love you, Lord. You are my strength.
2 The Lord is my firm support, and my refuge, and my deliverer; my God is my helper, I will hope in him; [he is] my defender, and the horn of my salvation, and my helper.
The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my Savior. He is my God, my rock who protects me. He shields me from harm, his power protects me, he keeps me safe.
3 I will call upon the Lord with praises, and I shall be saved from mine enemies.
I call for help from the Lord who should be praised, and he saves me from those who hate me.
4 The pangs of death compassed me, and the torrents of ungodliness troubled me exceedingly.
Ropes of death encircled me, surging waters of destruction flooded over me;
The grave wound its ropes around me; death set snares for me. (Sheol h7585)
6 And when I was afflicted I called upon the Lord, and cried to my God: he heard my voice out of this holy temple, and my cry shall enter before him, [even] into his ears.
In my despair I called on the Lord—I cried out to my God for help. He heard my voice from his Temple—my cry for help reached his ears.
7 Then the earth shook and quaked, and the foundations of the mountains were disturbed, and were shaken, because God was angry with them.
The earth shook to and fro; the foundations of the mountains trembled, shaking because of his anger.
8 There went up a smoke in his wrath, and fire burst into a flame at his presence: coals were kindled at it.
Smoke came out of his nostrils, and fire came from his mouth; burning coals blazed before him.
9 And he bowed the heaven, and came down: and thick darkness was under his feet.
He parted the heavens and came down, with dark clouds beneath his feet.
10 And he mounted on cherubs and flew: he flew on the wings of winds.
Riding on an angel he flew, swooping on the wings of the wind.
11 And he made darkness his secret place: round about him was his tabernacle, [even] dark water in the clouds of the air.
He hid himself in darkness, covering himself with black thunderclouds.
12 At the brightness before him the clouds passed, hail and coals of fire.
Hailstones and burning coals flew out from his brightness, passing through his thick clouds.
13 The Lord also thundered from heaven, and the Highest uttered his voice.
The Lord thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High sounded among the hailstones and burning coals.
14 And he sent forth [his] weapons, and scattered them; and multiplied lightnings, and routed them.
He fired his arrows, scattering his enemies; he routed them with his lightning bolts.
15 And the springs of waters appeared, and the foundations of the world were exposed, at your rebuke, O Lord, at the blasting of the breath of your wrath.
You roared, Lord, and by the wind from the breath of your nostrils the valleys of the sea were exposed and the foundations of the earth were uncovered.
16 He sent from on high and took me, he drew me to himself out of many waters.
He reached down his hand from above and grabbed hold of me. He pulled me out of the deep water.
17 He will deliver me from my mighty enemies, and from them that hate me; for they are stronger than I.
He rescued me from my powerful enemies, from those who hated me and who were much stronger than me.
18 They prevented me in the day of mine affliction: but the Lord was my stay against [them].
They came at me at my worst possible moment, but the Lord supported me.
19 And he brought me out into a wide place: he will deliver me, because he has pleasure in me.
He set me free, he rescued me because he's my friend.
20 And the Lord will recompense me according to my righteousness; even according to the purity of my hands will he recompense me.
The Lord rewarded me because I do what's right; he repaid me because I am innocent.
21 For I have kept the way of the Lord and have not wickedly departed from my God.
For I have followed the Lord's ways; I have not sinned by turning away from my God.
22 For all his judgments were before me, and his ordinances departed not from me.
I have kept all his laws in mind; I have not ignored his commandments.
23 And I shall be blameless with hem, and shall keep myself from mine iniquity.
I am blameless in his sight; I keep myself from sinning.
24 And the Lord shall recompense me according to my righteousness, and according to the purity of my hands before his eyes.
The Lord rewarded me for doing what's right. I am innocent in his sight.
25 With the holy you will be holy; and with the innocent man you will be innocent.
You show trust to those who trust; you show integrity to those with integrity,
26 And with the excellent [man] you will be excellent; and with the perverse you will show frowardness.
You show yourself pure to those who are pure, but you show yourself smart to those who are crafty.
27 For you will save the lowly people, and will humble the eyes of the proud.
You save the humble, but you bring down the proud.
28 For you, O Lord, will light my lamp: my God, you will lighten my darkness.
You light my lamp! Lord, my God, you light up my darkness!
29 For by you shall I be delivered from a troop; and by my God I will pass over a wall.
With you, I can charge down a troop of soldiers; with you, my God, I can climb a fortress wall.
30 [As for] my God, his way is perfect: the oracles of the Lord are tried in the fire; he is a protector of all them that hope in him.
God's way is absolutely right. What the Lord says is trustworthy. He is a shield to all who come to him for protection.
31 For who is God but the Lord? and who is a God except our God?
For who is God except the Lord? Who is the rock, except our God?
32 [It is] God that girds me with strength, and has made my way blameless:
God makes me strong and keeps me safe.
33 who strengthens my feet as hart's feet, and sets me upon high places.
He makes me surefooted like the deer, able to walk the heights in safety.
34 He instructs my hands for war: and you have made my arms [as] a brazen bow.
He teaches me how to fight in battle; he gives me the strength to draw a bronze bow.
35 And you have made me secure in my salvation: and your right hand has helped me, and your correction has upheld me to the end; yes, your correction itself shall instruct me.
You protect me with the shield of your salvation; you support me with your powerful right hand; your help has made me great.
36 You has made room for my goings under me, and by footsteps did not fail.
You gave me space in which to walk, and prevented my feet from slipping.
37 I will pursue mine enemies, and overtake them; and I will not turn back until they are consumed.
I chased my enemies, and caught up with them. I did not turn around until I had destroyed them.
38 I will dash them to pieces and they shall not be able to stand: they shall fall under my feet.
I struck them down—they couldn't get up. They fell at my feet.
39 For you have girded me with strength for war: you have beaten down under me all that rose up against me.
You made me strong for battle; you made those who rose up against me kneel down before me.
40 And you has made mine enemies turn their backs before me; and you have destroyed them that hated me.
You made my enemies run away; I destroyed all my enemies.
41 They cried, but there was no deliverer: [even] to the Lord, but he listened not to them.
They cried out for help, but no one came to rescue them. They even called out to the Lord, but he did not answer them.
42 I will grind them as the mud of the streets: and I will beat them small as dust before the wind.
I ground them into dust, like dust in the wind. I threw them out like mud in the street.
43 Deliver me from the gain sayings of the people: you shall make me head of the Gentiles: a people whom I knew not served me,
You rescued me from rebellious people; you made me ruler over nations—people I didn't know now serve me.
44 at the hearing of the ear they obeyed me: the strange children lied to me.
As soon as they hear of me, they obey; foreigners cringe before me.
45 The strange children waxed old, and fell away from their paths through lameness.
They lose heart, and come trembling in surrender from their strongholds.
46 The Lord lives; and blessed [be] my God; and let the God of my salvation be exalted.
The Lord lives! Blessed be my rock! May the God who saves me be praised!
47 [It is] God that avenges me, and has subdued the nations under me;
God avenges me, he subdues peoples under me,
48 my deliverer from angry enemies: you shall set me on high above them that rise up against me: you shall deliver me from the unrighteous man.
he rescues me from those who hate me. You keep me safe from those who rebel against me, you save me from violent men.
49 Therefore will I confess to you, O Lord, among the Gentiles, and sing to your name.
That's why I will praise you among the nations, Lord; I will sing praises about who you are.
50 [God] magnifies the deliverances of his king; and deals mercifully with David his anointed, and his seed, for ever.
You have saved the king so often, showing your trustworthy love to David, your anointed, and to his descendants forever.
