Psalms 18
1 “To the chief musician, by the servant of the Lord, by David, who spoke unto the Lord the words of this song on the day that the Lord had delivered him out of the power of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul; And he said,” I ever love thee, O Lord, my strength.
To the chief music-maker. Of the servant of the Lord, of David, who said the words of this song to the Lord on the day when the Lord made him free from the hand of all his haters, and from the hand of Saul; and he said, I will give you my love, O Lord, my strength.
2 The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my rock, in whom I trust; my shield, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.
The Lord is my Rock, my walled town, and my saviour; my God, my Rock, in him will I put my faith; my breastplate, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.
3 Praised, I cried, be the Lord, and from my enemies was I saved.
I will send up my cry to the Lord, who is to be praised; so will I be made safe from those who are against me.
4 The bonds of death encompassed me, and the floods of destruction made me afraid.
The cords of death were round me, and the seas of evil put me in fear.
The cords of hell were round me: the nets of death came on me. (Sheol h7585)
6 [When] in my distress I called upon the Lord, and unto my God I cried: he heard from his temple my voice, and my complaint came before him, even into his ears.
In my trouble my voice went up to the Lord, and my cry to my God: my voice came to his hearing in his holy Temple, and my prayer came before him, even into his ears.
7 Then shook and trembled the earth; and the foundations of the mountains were moved; and they were shaken, because he was wroth.
Then trouble and shock came on the earth; and the bases of the mountains were moved and shaking, because he was angry.
8 Smoke went up in his anger and consuming fire out of his mouth: coals flamed forth from him.
There went up a smoke from his nose, and a fire of destruction from his mouth: flames were lighted by it.
9 And he bent the heavens, and came down: and thick darkness was under his feet:
The heavens were bent, so that he might come down; and it was dark under his feet.
10 And he rode upon a cherub, and flew along, and he flitted by upon the wings of the wind.
And he went in flight through the air, seated on a storm-cloud: going quickly on the wings of the wind.
11 He made darkness his hiding-place, round about him as his pavilion, dark waters, thick clouds of the skies.
He made the dark his secret place; his tent round him was the dark waters and thick clouds of the skies.
12 From the brightness before him his thick clouds passed away, [with] hail-stones and coals of fire.
Before his shining light his dark clouds went past, raining ice and fire.
13 And the Lord thundered in the heavens, and the Most High uttered forth his voice, [with] hail-stones and coals of fire.
The Lord made thunder in the heavens, and the voice of the Highest was sounding out: a rain of ice and fire.
14 And he sent out his arrows, and scattered them; and he shot forth lightnings, and discomfited them.
He sent out his arrows, driving them in all directions; by his flames of fire they were troubled.
15 And then were seen the channels of the waters, and there were laid open the foundations of the world, through thy rebuke, O Lord, through the blast of the breath of thy nostrils.
Then the deep beds of the waters were seen, and the bases of the world were uncovered, because of your words of wrath, O Lord, because of the breath from your mouth.
16 He stretched out from above [his hand], he took me; he drew me out from mighty waters.
He sent from on high, he took me, pulling me out of great waters.
17 He delivered me from my enemy, the strong, and from those that hated me, when they were too mighty for me.
He made me free from my strong hater, and from those who were against me, because they were stronger than I.
18 They overcame me on the day of my calamity; but the Lord became my stay.
They came on me in the day of my trouble; but the Lord was my support.
19 And he brought me forth into a large space; he delivered me, because he had delight in me.
He took me out into a wide place; he was my saviour because he had delight in me.
20 The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness; according to the purity of my hands did he recompense me.
The Lord gives me the reward of my righteousness, because my hands are clean before him.
21 For I have kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God.
For I have kept the ways of the Lord; I have not been turned away in sin from my God.
22 For all his ordinances were before me, and his statutes had I not put away from me.
For all his decisions were before me, and I did not put away his laws from me.
23 I was also upright with him, and I guarded myself against my iniquity.
And I was upright before him, and I kept myself from sin.
24 Therefore did the Lord recompense me according to my righteousness, according to the purity of my hands before his eyes.
Because of this the Lord has given me the reward of my righteousness, because my hands are clean in his eyes.
25 With the kind thou wilt show thyself kind; with the upright man thou wilt show thyself upright;
On him who has mercy you will have mercy; to the upright you will be upright;
26 With the pure thou wilt show thyself pure; and with the perverse thou wilt wage a contest.
He who is holy will see that you are holy; but to the man whose way is not straight you will be a hard judge.
27 For thou wilt indeed save the afflicted people; but haughty eyes wilt thou bring down.
For you are the saviour of those who are in trouble; but eyes full of pride will be made low.
28 For thou wilt cause my light to shine: the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness.
You, O Lord, will be my light; by you, my God, the dark will be made bright for me.
29 For [aided] by thee I run through a troop; and [helped] by my God I leap over a wall.
By your help I have made a way through the wall which was shutting me in; by the help of my God I have gone over a wall.
30 As for God, —his way is perfect; the word of the Lord is tried: he is a shield to all those that trust in him.
As for God, his way is completely good; the word of the Lord is tested; he is a breastplate for all those who put their faith in him.
31 For who is God save the Lord? or who is a rock beside our God?
For who is God but the Lord? or who is a Rock but our God?
32 He is the God that girdeth me with strength, and rendereth my way unobstructed.
God puts a strong band about me, guiding me in a straight way.
33 He maketh my feet like those of the hinds, and upon my high-places he causeth me to stand.
He makes my feet like roes' feet, and puts me on high places.
34 He teacheth my hands for the war, so that a brazen bow is bent by my arms.
He makes my hands expert in war, so that a bow of brass is bent by my arms.
35 And thou gavest me the shield of thy salvation, and thy right hand supported me: and thy meekness hath made me great.
You have given me the breastplate of your salvation: your right hand has been my support, and your mercy has made me great.
36 Thou enlargest my steps under me, so that my joints do not slip.
You have made my steps wide under me, so that my feet are kept from slipping.
37 I pursue my enemies, and overtake them; and I return not again till I have made an end of them.
I go after my haters and overtake them; not turning back till they are all overcome.
38 I crush them that they are not able to rise: they fall under my feet.
I will give them wounds, so that they are not able to get up: they are stretched under my feet.
39 For thou hast girded me with strength for the war: thou subduest my opponents under me.
For I have been armed by you with strength for the fight: you have made low under me those who come out against me.
40 And my enemies thou causest to turn their back to me; and those that hate me, —that I may destroy them.
By you their backs are turned in flight, so that my haters are cut off.
41 They cry, but there is none to help; unto the Lord, —but he answereth them not.
They were crying out, but there was no one to come to their help: even to the Lord, but he gave them no answer.
42 And I beat them small as the dust before the wind: like the dirt in the streets do I cast them out.
Then they were crushed as small as dust before the wind; they were drained out like the waste of the streets.
43 Thou deliverest me from the contests of the people; thou appointest me to be the head of nations: a people that I know not shall serve me.
You have made me free from the fightings of the people; you have made me the head of the nations: a people of whom I had no knowledge will be my servants.
44 As soon as their ear heareth they shall be obedient to me: the children of the stranger shall utter flattery unto me.
From the time when my name comes to their ears they will be ruled by me: men of other countries will, with false hearts, put themselves under my authority.
45 The children of the stranger shall fade away, and come forth trembling out of their close places.
They will be wasting away, they will come out of their secret places shaking with fear.
46 The Lord liveth, and blessed be my Rock; and exalted be the God of my salvation;
The Lord is living; praise be to my Rock, and let the God of my salvation be honoured.
47 The God that granteth me vengeance, and subdueth nations under me;
It is God who sends punishment on my haters, and puts peoples under my rule.
48 That delivereth me from my enemies: also above my opponents thou liftest me up; thou deliverest me from the man of violence.
He makes me free from my haters; I am lifted up over those who come up against me: you have made me free from the violent man.
49 Therefore will I give thanks unto thee among the nations, O Lord, and unto thy name will I sing praises, —
Because of this I will give you praise, O Lord, among the nations, and will make a song of praise to your name.
50 [To him] that maketh great the salvation of his king, and who sheweth kindness to his anointed, to David, and to his seed for ever.
Great salvation does he give to his king; he has mercy on the king of his selection, David, and on his seed for ever.
