Psalm chapter 18

English Standard Version

1I love you, O Lord, my strength. 2The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. 3I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies. 4 The cords of death encompassed me; the torrents of destruction assailed me; 5 the cords of Sheol entangled me; the snares of death confronted me. 6 In my distress I called upon the Lord; to my God I cried for help. From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears. 7Then the earth reeled and rocked; the foundations also of the mountains trembled and quaked, because he was angry. 8Smoke went up from his nostrils, and devouring fire from his mouth; glowing coals flamed forth from him. 9He bowed the heavens and came down; thick darkness was under his feet. 10He rode on a cherub and flew; he came swiftly on the wings of the wind. 11He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him, thick clouds dark with water. 12Out of the brightness before him hailstones and coals of fire broke through his clouds. 13The Lord also thundered in the heavens, and the Most High uttered his voice, hailstones and coals of fire. 14And he sent out his arrows and scattered them; he flashed forth lightnings and routed them. 15Then the channels of the sea were seen, and the foundations of the world were laid bare at your rebuke, O Lord, at the blast of the breath of your nostrils. 16He sent from on high, he took me; he drew me out of many waters. 17He rescued me from my strong enemy and from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me. 18They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my support. 19He brought me out into a broad place; he rescued me, because he delighted in me. 20The Lord dealt with me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me. 21For I have kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God. 22For all his rules were before me, and his statutes I did not put away from me. 23I was blameless before him, and I kept myself from my guilt. 24So the Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight. 25With the merciful you show yourself merciful; with the blameless man you show yourself blameless; 26with the purified you show yourself pure; and with the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous. 27For you save a humble people, but the haughty eyes you bring down. 28For it is you who light my lamp; the Lord my God lightens my darkness. 29For by you I can run against a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall. 30This God — his way is perfect; the word of the Lord proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him. 31For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God? — 32the God who equipped me with strength and made my way blameless. 33He made my feet like the feet of a deer and set me secure on the heights. 34He trains my hands for war, so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze. 35You have given me the shield of your salvation, and your right hand supported me, and your gentleness made me great. 36You gave a wide place for my steps under me, and my feet did not slip. 37I pursued my enemies and overtook them, and did not turn back till they were consumed. 38I thrust them through, so that they were not able to rise; they fell under my feet. 39For you equipped me with strength for the battle; you made those who rise against me sink under me. 40You made my enemies turn their backs to me, and those who hated me I destroyed. 41 They cried for help, but there was none to save; they cried to the Lord, but he did not answer them. 42I beat them fine as dust before the wind; I cast them out like the mire of the streets. 43You delivered me from strife with the people; you made me the head of the nations; people whom I had not known served me. 44As soon as they heard of me they obeyed me; foreigners came cringing to me. 45 Foreigners lost heart and came trembling out of their fortresses. 46The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be the God of my salvation — 47the God who gave me vengeance and subdued peoples under me, 48who rescued me from my enemies; yes, you exalted me above those who rose against me; you delivered me from the man of violence. 49 For this I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations, and sing to your name. 50Great salvation he brings to his king, and shows steadfast love to his anointed, to David and his offspring forever.
New International Version

New American Standard Bible

1 'I love You, Lord, my strength.' 2The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my savior, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. 3I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, And I am saved from my enemies. 4The ropes of death encompassed me, And the torrents of destruction terrified me. 5The ropes of Sheol surrounded me; The snares of death confronted me. 6In my distress I called upon the Lord, And cried to my God for help; He heard my voice from His temple, And my cry for help before Him came into His ears. 7Then the earth shook and quaked; And the foundations of the mountains were trembling And were shaken, because He was angry. 8Smoke went up out of His nostrils, And fire from His mouth was devouring; Coals burned from it. 9He also bowed the heavens down low, and came down With thick darkness under His feet. 10He rode on a cherub and flew; And He sped on the wings of the wind. 11He made darkness His hiding place, His canopy around Him, Darkness of waters, thick clouds. 12From the brightness before Him passed His thick clouds, Hailstones and coals of fire. 13The Lord also thundered in the heavens, And the Most High uttered His voice, Hailstones and coals of fire. 14He sent out His arrows, and scattered them, And lightning flashes in abundance, and routed them. 15Then the channels of water appeared, And the foundations of the world were exposed By Your rebuke, Lord, At the blast of the breath of Your nostrils. 16He sent from on high, He took me; He drew me out of many waters. 17He saved me from my strong enemy, And from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me. 18They confronted me in the day of my disaster, But the Lord was my support. 19He also brought me out into an open place; He rescued me, because He delighted in me. 20The Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness; According to the cleanness of my hands He has repaid me. 21For I have kept the ways of the Lord, And have not acted wickedly against my God. 22For all His judgments were before me, And I did not put away His statutes from me. 23I was also blameless with Him, And I kept myself from my wrongdoing. 24Therefore the Lord has repaid me according to my righteousness, According to the cleanness of my hands in His eyes. 25With the faithful You show Yourself faithful; With the blameless You prove Yourself blameless; 26With the pure You show Yourself pure, And with the crooked You show Yourself astute. 27For You save an afflicted people, But You humiliate haughty eyes. 28For You light my lamp; The Lord my God illumines my darkness. 29For by You I can run at a troop of warriors; And by my God I can leap over a wall. 30As for God, His way is blameless; The word of the Lord is refined; He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him. 31For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God, 32The God who encircles me with strength, And makes my way blameless? 33He makes my feet like deer’s feet, And sets me up on my high places. 34He trains my hands for battle, So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze. 35You have also given me the shield of Your salvation, And Your right hand upholds me; And Your gentleness makes me great. 36You enlarge my steps under me, And my feet have not slipped. 37I pursued my enemies and overtook them, And I did not turn back until they were consumed. 38I shattered them, so that they were not able to rise; They fell under my feet. 39For You have encircled me with strength for battle; You have forced those who rose up against me to bow down under me. 40You have also made my enemies turn their backs to me, And I destroyed those who hated me. 41They cried for help, but there was no one to save, They cried to the Lord, but He did not answer them. 42Then I beat them fine like the dust before the wind; I emptied them out like the mud of the streets. 43You have rescued me from the contentions of the people; You have placed me as head of the nations; A people whom I have not known serve me. 44As soon as they hear, they obey me; Foreigners pretend to obey me. 45Foreigners lose heart, And come trembling out of their fortresses. 46The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock; And exalted be the God of my salvation, 47The God who executes vengeance for me, And subdues peoples under me. 48He rescues me from my enemies; You indeed lift me above those who rise up against me; You rescue me from a violent man. 49Therefore I will give thanks to You among the nations, Lord, And I will sing praises to Your name. 50He gives great salvation to His king, And shows faithfulness to His anointed, To David and his descendants forever.
Christian Standard Bible

New Living Translation

King James Version

New King James Version

1{To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David the servant of the Lord, who spoke to the Lord the words of this song on the day that the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. And he said:} I will love You, O Lord, my strength. 2The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. 3I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; So shall I be saved from my enemies. 4 The pangs of death surrounded me, And the floods of ungodliness made me afraid. 5The sorrows of Sheol surrounded me; The snares of death confronted me. 6In my distress I called upon the Lord, And cried out to my God; He heard my voice from His temple, And my cry came before Him, even to His ears. 7 Then the earth shook and trembled; The foundations of the hills also quaked and were shaken, Because He was angry. 8Smoke went up from His nostrils, And devouring fire from His mouth; Coals were kindled by it. 9 He bowed the heavens also, and came down With darkness under His feet. 10 And He rode upon a cherub, and flew; He flew upon the wings of the wind. 11He made darkness His secret place; His canopy around Him was dark waters And thick clouds of the skies. 12 From the brightness before Him, His thick clouds passed with hailstones and coals of fire. 13The Lord thundered from heaven, And the Most High uttered His voice, Hailstones and coals of fire. 14 He sent out His arrows and scattered the foe, Lightnings in abundance, and He vanquished them. 15Then the channels of the sea were seen, The foundations of the world were uncovered At Your rebuke, O Lord, At the blast of the breath of Your nostrils. 16 He sent from above, He took me; He drew me out of many waters. 17He delivered me from my strong enemy, From those who hated me, For they were too strong for me. 18They confronted me in the day of my calamity, But the Lord was my support. 19 He also brought me out into a broad place; He delivered me because He delighted in me. 20 The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness; According to the cleanness of my hands He has recompensed me. 21For I have kept the ways of the Lord, And have not wickedly departed from my God. 22For all His judgments were before me, And I did not put away His statutes from me. 23I was also blameless before Him, And I kept myself from my iniquity. 24 Therefore the Lord has recompensed me according to my righteousness, According to the cleanness of my hands in His sight. 25 With the merciful You will show Yourself merciful; With a blameless man You will show Yourself blameless; 26With the pure You will show Yourself pure; And with the devious You will show Yourself shrewd. 27For You will save the humble people, But will bring down haughty looks. 28 For You will light my lamp; The Lord my God will enlighten my darkness. 29For by You I can run against a troop, By my God I can leap over a wall. 30 As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him. 31 For who is God, except the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God? 32 It is God who arms me with strength, And makes my way perfect. 33 He makes my feet like the feet of deer, And sets me on my high places. 34 He teaches my hands to make war, So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze. 35You have also given me the shield of Your salvation; Your right hand has held me up, Your gentleness has made me great. 36You enlarged my path under me, So my feet did not slip. 37I have pursued my enemies and overtaken them; Neither did I turn back again till they were destroyed. 38I have wounded them, So that they could not rise; They have fallen under my feet. 39For You have armed me with strength for the battle; You have subdued under me those who rose up against me. 40You have also given me the necks of my enemies, So that I destroyed those who hated me. 41They cried out, but there was none to save; Even to the Lord, but He did not answer them. 42Then I beat them as fine as the dust before the wind; I cast them out like dirt in the streets. 43You have delivered me from the strivings of the people; You have made me the head of the nations; A people I have not known shall serve me. 44As soon as they hear of me they obey me; The foreigners submit to me. 45 The foreigners fade away, And come frightened from their hideouts. 46The Lord lives! Blessed be my Rock! Let the God of my salvation be exalted. 47 It is God who avenges me, And subdues the peoples under me; 48He delivers me from my enemies. You also lift me up above those who rise against me; You have delivered me from the violent man. 49 Therefore I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the Gentiles, And sing praises to Your name. 50 Great deliverance He gives to His king, And shows mercy to His anointed, To David and his descendants forevermore.

What does Psalm chapter 18 mean?

Psalm 18 is the fourth longest psalm in the book of Psalms. Second Samuel chapter 22 contains a nearly identical speech; the text found here may be an adapted version of David's praise, to be used for worship. The introduction refers to the fact that David made this statement as an expression of his love for God (Psalm 18:1).

The first section in David's song of praise thanks God for providing rescue. At times in David's life, he was hunted and persecuted. The imagery in this section relates those experiences to the feeling of being tied up or drowning. In response to David's prayers for help, God intervened. David evokes images of earthquakes, fire, storms, and lightning to depict the power of the Lord's intercession. The result of that rescue was David's victory and security (Psalm 18:2–19).

David credits God with rescuing him and praises the Lord for rewarding his righteousness. While not a perfect man, the pattern of David's life was to honor and obey God (1 Samuel 13:14). This part of Psalm 18 declares that David's intent was to humble himself before God. In response to those who are merciful, God shows mercy. Those who are arrogant and proud can expect to be ruined (Psalm 18:20–27).

After thanking the Lord for rescue, David turns to a celebration of his God-empowered victories (2 Samuel 22:1). Scripture certainly supports the idea that David's military success was impressive (2 Samuel 8:1–8, 14). This passage uses metaphors such as being agile as a deer, strong enough to bend a bronze bow, having a wide and clear path, and so forth. While God responded to David's pleas, those who hated God saw no help when facing destruction. As a result of this divine intervention, Israel was safe from her enemies, and many avoided war entirely by submitting to David (Psalm 18:28–45).

The psalm closes by summarizing the themes already mentioned. God is the ultimate foundation of David's life, and the reason for all his success. In response, David will praise and celebrate the Lord (Psalm 18:46–50).
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