2 Samuel 22

1 After Yahweh had rescued David from Saul and his other enemies, David sang a song to Yahweh.

And David spoke to the Lord the words of this song, in the day in which the Lord rescued him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul.

2 [This is what] he sang: Yahweh, you are like a [huge overhanging] rock [under which I can hide] [MET]; you are like my fortress, and you rescue me.

And the song was thus: O Lord, my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer,

3 Yahweh, you protect me; you are like a shield; you are the powerful one [MET] who saves me; you are like a place where I (find refuge/am safe). You save me from those who act violently toward me.

my God; he shall be to me my guard, I will trust in him: [he is] my protector, and the horn of my salvation, my helper, and my sure refuge; you shall save me from the unjust man.

4 I call out to you, Yahweh; you deserve to be praised, and you rescue me from my enemies.

I will call upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised, and I shall be saved from my enemies.

5 “almost died [PRS]; it was like [MET] a huge wave had crashed over me, and almost destroyed me like a flood.

For the troubles of death compassed me, the floods of iniquity amazed me:

6 I thought that I would die; it was as though death wrapped ropes around me; it was as though I was in a trap where I would surely die. [PRS, MET] (Sheol h7585)

the pangs of death surrounded me, the agonies of death prevented me. (Sheol h7585)

7 But when I was (very distressed/in great trouble), I called out to you, Yahweh; I cried out to you, my God. And from your temple you heard me; you listened when I called to you to help me.

When I am afflicted I will call upon the Lord, and will cry to my God, and he shall hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry shall come into his ears.

8 “Then [it was as though] the earth quaked and shook; [it was as though] the foundations that ([held up/supported]) the sky trembled, because you were angry.

And the earth was troubled and quaked, and the foundations of heaven were confounded and torn asunder, because the Lord was angry with them.

9 [It was as though] smoke poured out of your nostrils and burning coals and fire that burns everything came out of your mouth.

There went up a smoke in his wrath, and fire out of his mouth devours: coals were kindled at it.

10 You tore open the sky and came down; there was a thick dark [cloud] under your feet.

And he bowed the heavens, and came down, and [there was] darkness under his feet.

11 You rode [through the sky] on a winged creature; the wind enabled you to travel [swiftly] [MET], like a bird.

And he rode upon the cherubs and did fly, and was seen upon the wings of the wind.

12 The darkness surrounded you, like a blanket; thick clouds that were full of water also surrounded you.

And he made darkness his hiding-place; his tabernacle round about him was the darkness of waters, he condensed it with the clouds of the air.

13 Out of the lightning in front of you fire from burning coals flamed.

At the brightness before him coals of fire were kindled.

14 Then, Yahweh, you spoke like thunder from the sky; it was your voice, God, you who are greater than all other gods, that was heard.

The Lord thundered out of heaven, and the Most High uttered his voice.

15 When you sent flashes of lightning, [it was as though] [MET] you shot your arrows and scattered your enemies.

And he sent forth arrows, and scattered them, and he flashed lightning, and dismayed them.

16 Then the bottom of the ocean was uncovered; the foundations of the world could be seen when you rebuked [your enemies] with a snort from your nostrils.

And the channels of the sea were seen, and the foundations of the world were discovered, at the rebuke of the Lord, at the blast of the breath of his anger.

17 “Yahweh, you reached down from heaven and lifted me up; you pulled me up from the deep water.

He sent from above and took me; he drew me out of many waters.

18 You rescued me from my strong enemies, from those who hated me; [I could not defeat them because] they were very strong.

He delivered me from my strong enemies, from them that hated me, for they were stronger than I.

19 They attacked me when I was experiencing troubles/difficulties, but Yahweh, you protected me.

The days of my affliction prevented me; but the Lord was my stay.

20 You brought me to a place where I was safe; you rescued me because you were pleased with me.

And he brought me into a wide place, and rescued me, because he delighted in me.

21 “Yahweh, you rewarded me because I do what is right; you did good things for me because I (was innocent/had not done things that are wrong).

And the Lord recompensed me according to my righteousness; even according to the purity of my hands did he recompense me.

22 Yahweh, I have obeyed your laws; I have not turned away from you, my God.

Because, I kept the ways of the Lord, and did not wickedly depart from my God.

23 All of your regulations were in my mind, and I did not turn away from [obeying] all your statutes.

For all his judgments and his ordinances [were] before me: I departed not from them.

24 You know that I have not done anything that is evil; I have kept myself from doing things for which I should be punished.

And I shall be blameless before him, and will keep myself from my iniquity.

25 So you have rewarded me in return for my doing what is right, because [you know that] I (am innocent of doing/have not done) wrong things.

And the Lord will recompense me according to my righteousness, and according to the purity of my hands in his eye-sight.

26 “Yahweh, you are faithful/loyal to those who always trust in you; you always do what is good to those whose behavior is always good.

With the holy you will be holy, and with the perfect man you will be perfect,

27 You act sincerely toward those whose inner beings are pure, but you are hostile to those who are perverse/wicked.

and with the excellent you will be excellent, and with the froward you will be froward.

28 You rescue those who are humble, but you watch [MTY] those who are proud and humiliate them.

And you will save the poor people, and will bring down the eyes of the haughty.

29 Yahweh, you are [like] [MET] a lamp that causes it to become light when I am in the dark.

For you, Lord, [are] my lamp, and the Lord shall shine forth to me in my darkness.

30 With your strength/help I can run through a line of enemy soldiers and I can climb over the wall [that surrounds their city].

For by you shall I run [as] a girded man, and by my God shall I leap over a wall.

31 “My God whom I worship, everything that you do is perfect; you always do what you promise that you will do. You are like a shield [MET] to all those who request you to protect them.

As for the Mighty One, his way [is] blameless: the word of the Lord [is] strong [and] tried in the fire: he is a protector to all that put their trust in him.

32 Yahweh, you are [RHQ] the only one who is God; only you are like a huge rock [MET] [under which we are protected/safe].

Who [is] strong, but the Lord? and who will be a Creator except our God?

33 God, you [whom I worship] are a strong refuge for me; you keep me safe on the roads that I [walk on].

[It is] the Mighty One who strengthens me with might, and has prepared my way without fault.

34 [When I walk] in the mountains, you enable me to walk safely, without stumbling [MET] like a deer runs.

He makes my feet like hart's feet, and sets me upon the high places.

35 You teach me [how to fight] in a battle in order that I can shoot arrows well from a very strong bow.

He teaches my hands to war, and has broken a brazen bow by my arm.

36 [It is as though] [MET] you have given me a shield by which you have saved/rescued me, and you have answered my prayers and caused me to become famous/great.

And you have given me the shield of my salvation, and your propitious dealing has increased me,

37 You have not allowed [my enemies] to capture me [IDM], and I have not fallen down [during battles].

so as to make room under me for my going, and my legs did not totter.

38 “pursued my enemies and defeated them; I did not stop [fighting them] until they were all killed.

I will pursue my enemies, and will utterly destroy them; and I will not turn again till I have consumed them.

39 I struck them down; I stabbed them with my sword; they fell down at my feet and did not stand up again.

And I will crush them, and they shall not rise; and they shall fall under my feet.

40 You have given me strength for fighting battles and caused those who were attacking me to fall down, and I trampled on them.

And you shall strengthen me with power for the war; you shall cause them that rise up against me to bow down under me.

41 You caused my enemies to turn and run away from me; I destroyed those who hated me.

And you have caused mine enemies to flee before me, even them that hated me, and you have slain them.

42 They (looked for/wanted) someone to rescue them, but no one did. They cried out to you, Yahweh, [for help, ] but you did not answer them.

They shall cry, and there shall be no helper; to the Lord, but he hearkens not to them.

43 I crushed them, and as a result they became like [SIM] tiny particles of dust. I trampled them, and they became like [SIM] mud in the streets.

And I ground them as the dust of the earth, I beat them small as the mire of the streets.

44 “You rescued me from those who tried to rebel [against me], and you appointed me to rule many nations; people whom I did not know previously are now (under my authority/my slaves).

And you shall deliver me from the striving of the peoples, you shall keep me [to be] the head of the Gentiles: a people which I knew not served me.

45 Foreigners humbly bowed down in front of me; as soon as they heard about me, they obeyed me.

The strange children feigned [obedience] to me; they listened to me as soon as they heard.

46 They became afraid, and they came to me, trembling, from the places where they were hiding.

The strange children shall be cast away, and shall be overthrown out of their hiding places.

47 “Yahweh, you are alive! I praise you! You are like [MET] a [huge overhanging] rock under which I am safe/protected! You are the one who rescues me [MET]. Everyone should exalt/honor/praise you.

The Lord lives, and blessed [be] my guardian, and my God, my strong keeper, shall be exalted.

48 You enable me to conquer my enemies; you cause people of [other] nations to be (under my authority/my slaves).

The Lord who avenges me [is] strong, chastening the nations under me,

49 You delivered me from my enemies; you caused me to be honored more than they were; you rescued me from men who [always] acted violently.

and bringing me out from my enemies: and you shall set me on high from among those that rise up against me: you shall deliver me from the violent man.

50 Because of all that, I exalt you among many people-groups and I sing to praise you.

Therefore will I confess to you, O Lord, among the Gentiles, and sing to your name.

51 You enable me, whom you appointed to be king, to powerfully conquer [my enemies]; you faithfully love me, David, and you will love my descendants forever.

He magnifies the salvation of his king, and works mercy for his anointed, even for David and for his seed for ever.