Psalms 18
1 TO THE OVERSEER. BY A SERVANT OF YHWH, BY DAVID, WHO HAS SPOKEN TO YHWH THE WORDS OF THIS SONG IN THE DAY YHWH DELIVERED HIM FROM THE HAND OF ALL HIS ENEMIES, AND FROM THE HAND OF SAUL, AND HE SAYS: I love You, O YHWH, my strength.
For the Leader. A Psalm of David the servant of the LORD, who spoke unto the LORD the words of this song in the day that the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul; And he said: I love thee, O LORD, my strength.
2 YHWH [is] my rock, and my bulwark, And my deliverer, My God [is] my rock, I trust in Him: My shield, and the horn of my salvation, My high tower.
The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my rock, in Him I take refuge; my shield, and my horn of salvation, my high tower.
3 I call on YHWH, the Praised One, And I am saved from my enemies.
Praised, I cry, is the LORD, and I am saved from mine enemies.
4 Cords of death have surrounded me, And streams of the worthless make me afraid.
The cords of Death compassed me, and the floods of Belial assailed me.
The cords of Sheol surrounded me; the snares of Death confronted me. (Sheol h7585)
6 In my adversity I call YHWH, And I cry to my God. He hears my voice from His temple, And My cry comes into His ears before Him.
In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God; out of His temple He heard my voice, and my cry came before Him unto His ears.
7 And the earth shakes and trembles, And foundations of hills are troubled, And they shake—because He has wrath.
Then the earth did shake and quake, the foundations also of the mountains did tremble; they were shaken, because He was wroth.
8 Smoke has gone up from His nostrils, And fire from His mouth consumes, Coals have been kindled by it.
Smoke arose up in His nostrils, and fire out of His mouth did devour; coals flamed forth from Him.
9 And He inclines the heavens, and comes down, And thick darkness [is] under His feet.
He bowed the heavens also, and came down; and thick darkness was under His feet.
10 And He rides on a cherub, and flies, And He flies on wings of wind.
And He rode upon a cherub, and did fly; yea, He did swoop down upon the wings of the wind.
11 He makes darkness His secret place, Around Him His dwelling place, Darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies.
He made darkness His hiding-place, His pavilion round about Him; darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies.
12 From the brightness before Him His thick clouds have passed on, Hail and coals of fire.
At the brightness before Him, there passed through His thick clouds hailstones and coals of fire.
13 And YHWH thunders in the heavens, And the Most High gives forth His voice, Hail and coals of fire.
The LORD also thundered in the heavens, and the Most High gave forth His voice; hailstones and coals of fire.
14 And He sends His arrows and scatters them, And much lightning, and crushes them.
And He sent out His arrows, and scattered them; and He shot forth lightnings, and discomfited them.
15 And the streams of waters are seen, And foundations of the earth are revealed, From Your rebuke, O YHWH, From the breath of the wind of Your anger.
And the channels of waters appeared, and the foundations of the world were laid bare, at Thy rebuke, O LORD, at the blast of the breath of Thy nostrils.
16 He sends from above—He takes me, He draws me out of many waters.
He sent from on high, He took me; He drew me out of many waters.
17 He delivers me from my strong enemy, And from those hating me, For they have been stronger than I.
He delivered me from mine enemy most strong, and from them that hated me, for they were too mighty for me.
18 They go before me in a day of my calamity And YHWH is for a support to me.
They confronted me in the day of my calamity; but the LORD was a stay unto me.
19 And He brings me forth to a large place, He draws me out, because He delighted in me.
He brought me forth also into a large place; He delivered me, because He delighted in me.
20 YHWH repays me According to my righteousness, According to the cleanness of my hands, He returns to me.
The LORD rewarded me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands hath He recompensed me.
21 For I have kept the ways of YHWH, And have not done wickedly against my God.
For I have kept the ways of the LORD, and have not wickedly departed from my God.
22 For all His judgments [are] before me, And I do not turn His statutes from me.
For all His ordinances were before me, and I put not away His statutes from me.
23 And I am perfect with Him, And I keep myself from my iniquity.
And I was single-hearted with Him, and I kept myself from mine iniquity.
24 And YHWH returns to me, According to my righteousness, According to the cleanness of my hands, Before His eyes.
Therefore hath the LORD recompensed me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in His eyes.
25 With the kind You show Yourself kind, With a perfect man You show Yourself perfect.
With the merciful Thou dost show Thyself merciful, with the upright man Thou dost show Thyself upright;
26 With the pure You show Yourself pure, And with the perverse You show Yourself a wrestler,
With the pure Thou dost show Thyself pure; and with the crooked Thou dost show Thyself subtle.
27 For You save a poor people, And cause the eyes of the high to fall.
For Thou dost save the afflicted people; but the haughty eyes Thou dost humble.
28 For You light my lamp, My God YHWH enlightens my darkness.
For Thou dost light my lamp; the LORD my God doth lighten my darkness.
29 For by You I run [against] a troop! And by my God I leap a wall.
For by Thee I run upon a troop; and by my God do I scale a wall.
30 God—perfect [is] His way, The saying of YHWH is tried, He [is] a shield to all those trusting in Him.
As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the LORD is tried; He is a shield unto all them that take refuge in Him.
31 For who [is] God besides YHWH? And who [is] a rock except our God?
For who is God, save the LORD? And who is a Rock, except our God?
32 God—who is girding me [with] strength, And He makes my way perfect.
The God that girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way straight;
33 Making my feet like does, And on my high places causes me to stand.
Who maketh my feet like hinds', and setteth me upon my high places;
34 Teaching my hands for battle, And a bow of bronze was brought down by my arms.
Who traineth my hands for war, so that mine arms do bend a bow of brass.
35 And You give to me the shield of Your salvation, And Your right hand supports me, And Your lowliness makes me great.
Thou hast also given me Thy shield of salvation, and Thy right hand hath holden me up; and Thy condescension hath made me great.
36 You enlarge my step under me, And my ankles have not slipped.
Thou hast enlarged my steps under me, and my feet have not slipped.
37 I pursue my enemies, and overtake them, And do not turn back until they are consumed.
I have pursued mine enemies, and overtaken them; neither did I turn back till they were consumed.
38 I strike them, and they are not able to rise, They fall under my feet,
I have smitten them through, so that they are not able to rise; they are fallen under my feet.
39 And You gird me [with] strength for battle, You cause my withstanders to bow under me.
For Thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle; Thou hast subdued under me those that rose up against me.
40 As for my enemies—You have given to me the neck, As for those hating me—I cut them off.
Thou hast also made mine enemies turn their backs unto me, and I did cut off them that hate me.
41 They cry, and there is no savior, On YHWH, and He does not answer them.
They cried, but there was none to save; even unto the LORD, but He answered them not.
42 And I beat them as dust before wind, I empty them out as mire of the streets.
Then did I beat them small as the dust before the wind; I did cast them out as the mire of the streets.
43 You deliver me From the strivings of the people, You place me for a head of nations, A people I have not known serve me.
Thou hast delivered me from the contentions of the people; Thou hast made me the head of the nations; a people whom I have not known serve me.
44 At the hearing of the ear they listen to me, Sons of a stranger feign obedience to me,
As soon as they hear of me, they obey me; the sons of the stranger dwindle away before me.
45 Sons of a stranger fade away, And are slain out of their close places.
The sons of the stranger fade away, and come trembling out of their close places.
46 YHWH lives—and blessed [is] my rock, And exalted is the God of my salvation.
The LORD liveth, and blessed be my Rock; and exalted be the God of my salvation;
47 God—who is giving vengeance to me, And He subdues peoples under me,
Even the God that executeth vengeance for me, and subdueth peoples under me.
48 My deliverer from my enemies, You raise me above my withstanders, Deliver me from a man of violence.
He delivereth me from mine enemies; yea, Thou liftest me up above them that rise up against me; Thou deliverest me from the violent man.
49 Therefore I confess You among nations, O YHWH, And I sing praise to Your Name,
Therefore I will give thanks unto Thee, O LORD, among the nations, and will sing praises unto Thy name.
50 Magnifying the salvation of His king, And doing kindness to His anointed, To David, and to his seed—for all time!
Great salvation giveth He to His king; and showeth mercy to His anointed, to David and to his seed, for evermore.
