Psalms 18
1 [For the Chief Musician. By David the servant of YHWH, who spoke to YHWH the words of this song in the day that YHWH delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. He said, ] I love you, YHWH, my strength.
For the leader. Of David, the servant of the Lord, who recited the words of this song to the Lord after the Lord had saved him from the power of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said: I love you, O Lord, my strength.
2 YHWH 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.
The Lord is my rock, my fortress, deliverer, my God, my rock, where I take refuge, my shield, my defender, my tower.
3 I call on YHWH, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies.
Worthy of praise is the Lord whom I call on, he rescues me from all my foes.
4 The waves of death surrounded me, and the currents of ungodliness overwhelmed me.
The waves of death broke about me, fearful floods of chaos.
Sheol threw cords around me, snares of death came to meet me. (Sheol h7585)
6 In my distress I called upon YHWH, and cried out to my God. He heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry before him came into his ears.
In distress I cried to the Lord, and shouted for help to my God; in his temple he heard my voice, into his ears came my cry.
7 Then the earth shook and trembled. The foundations also of the mountains quaked and were shaken, because he was angry.
Then the earth shook and quaked, mountains trembled to their foundations, and quaked because of his wrath.
8 Smoke went out of his nostrils. Consuming fire came out of his mouth. Coals were kindled by it.
Smoke went up from his nostrils, devouring fire from his mouth, coals were kindled by it.
9 He bowed the heavens also, and came down. Thick darkness was under his feet.
Then he bent the sky 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.
He rode on a cherub and flew, darting on wings of wind,
11 He made darkness his hiding place, his canopy around him thick clouds dark with water.
with his screen of darkness about him, in thick dark clouds of water.
12 From the brightness before him his thick clouds passed on, with hailstones and coals of fire.
At the radiance before him there passed hailstones and coals of fire.
13 YHWH also thundered in the sky. The Most High uttered his voice.
The Lord thundered from heaven, the Most High uttered his voice.
14 And he sent out arrows and scattered them, and he shot lightning bolts and routed them.
He shot his arrows and scattered them, flashed lightnings, and routed them.
15 And the depths of the sea appeared. The foundations of the world were laid bare at your rebuke, YHWH, at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.
The channels of the sea were revealed, the world was laid bare to its base, at your rebuke, O Lord, 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.
He stretched from on high, he seized me, drew me up from the mighty waters,
17 He delivered me from my strong enemy, from those who hated me; for they were too mighty for me.
and saved me from those who hated me – fierce foes, too mighty for me.
18 They came on me in the day of my calamity, but YHWH was my support.
In my day of distress they assailed me, but the Lord proved my support.
19 He brought me forth also into a large place. He delivered me, because he delighted in me.
To a spacious place he brought me, and, for love of me, he saved me.
20 YHWH has rewarded me according to my righteousness. According to the cleanness of my hands has he recompensed me.
The Lord repays my innocence, he rewards my cleanness of hands.
21 For I have kept the ways of YHWH, and have not wickedly departed from my God.
For I kept the ways of the Lord, nor have wickedly strayed from my God.
22 For all his ordinances were before me. I did not put away his statutes from me.
His commandments were all before me, his statutes I put not away.
23 I was also blameless with him. I kept myself from my iniquity.
And I was blameless before him, guarding myself from sin.
24 Therefore YHWH has rewarded me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in his eyesight.
So the Lord repaid my innocence, my cleanness of hands in his sight.
25 With the faithful you show yourself faithful. With the innocent you show yourself innocent.
With the loyal you are loyal, and with the blameless blameless.
26 With the pure you show yourself pure. And with the crooked you show yourself tortuous.
With the pure you show yourself pure, but shrewd with the devious.
27 For you will save a humble people, but the eyes of the proud you will bring low.
For the lowly people you save, but haughty eyes you abase.
28 For you light my lamp. YHWH my God lights up my darkness.
You are my lamp, Lord, my God who enlightens my darkness.
29 For by you, I advance through a troop. By my God, I leap over a wall.
With you I can storm a rampart, with my God I can leap a wall.
30 As for God, his way is perfect. The word of YHWH is pure. He is a shield to all those who take refuge in him.
As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the Lord is pure. He is shield to all who take refuge in him.
31 For who is God, except YHWH? Who is a rock, besides our God,
For who is God but the Lord? And who is a rock but our God?
32 the God who girds me with strength, and makes my way blameless?
The God who arms me with strength, who cleared and smoothed my way.
33 He makes my feet like deer's feet, and sets me on my high places.
He made my feet like hinds’ feet, and set me up on the heights.
34 He teaches my hands to war, so that my arms bend a bow of bronze.
He taught my hands how to fight, and my arms how to bend a bronze bow.
35 You have also given me the shield of your salvation, and your right hand holds me up, and your help has made me great.
The shield of your help you gave me, your right hand supports me, you stoop down to make me great.
36 You have enlarged my steps under me, My feet have not slipped.
In your strength I took giant strides, and my feet never slipped.
37 I pursued my enemies and overtook them, and I did not turn back until they were destroyed.
So I chased the foe till I caught them, and turned not, till I made an end of them.
38 I struck them through, so that they did not rise. They fell beneath my feet.
I smashed them, they could not rise, they fell beneath my feet.
39 For you have equipped me with strength for the battle. You have subdued under me those who rose up against me.
You did arm me with strength for war, you did bow my assailants beneath me.
40 You have also made my enemies turn their backs to me, that I might cut off those who hate me.
You made my foes turn their back to me, and those who did hate me I finished.
41 They cried, but there was none to save; even to YHWH, but he did not answer them.
They cried for help, but none saved them; to the Lord, but he answered them not.
42 Then I ground them as fine as the dust on the surface of a path. Like the mud in the streets, I trampled them.
I beat them like dust of the market-place, stamped them like mud 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.
From the strife of the peoples you saved me, you made me head of the nations, peoples I knew not did serve me.
44 As soon as they hear of me they obey me. Foreigners come cringing to me;
On the instant they hear, they obey me, foreigners come to me cringing.
45 they are not bound in chains.
Foreigners lose courage, and come out of their strongholds trembling.
46 YHWH lives; and blessed be my rock. Exalted be the God of my salvation,
The Lord is alive! Blest be my rock! Exalted be God, my protector!
47 even the God who executes vengeance for me, and subdues peoples under me.
The God who gave me revenge, and brought down nations beneath 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.
who saved me from angry foes, and set me above my assailants, safe from the violent.
49 Therefore I will praise you, YHWH, among the nations, and will sing praises to your name.
For this I will praise you among the nations, making music, O Lord, to your name:
50 He gives great deliverance to his king, and shows loving kindness to his anointed, to David and to his descendants, until forever.
for great triumphs he grants to his king, and faithful love he shows his anointed, to David and his seed evermore.
