2 Samuel 22
22
1David sang the words of this song to the Lord on the day when the Lord saved him from all his enemies, and from Saul.#22:1. This passage parallels Psalms 18. 2He sang:
“The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my Savior.
3He is my God, my rock who protects me. He shields me from harm, his power saves me,#22:3. Literally, “horn of my salvation.” he keeps me safe. He is my protector; he is my savior; he saves me from violence.
4I call for help from the Lord, who should be praised, and he saves me from those who hate me.
5The waves of death swept over me; surging waters of destruction flooded over me;
6The grave wound its ropes around me; death set snares for me.
7In my despair I called on the Lord; I called out to my God. He heard my voice from his Temple; my cry for help reached his ears.
8The earth shook to and fro; the foundations of the heavens trembled, shaking because of his anger.
9Smoke came out of his nostrils, and fire from his mouth, burning coals that blazed before him.
10He pushed aside the heavens and came down, with dark clouds beneath his feet.
11Riding on a heavenly being#22:11. Literally, “cherub,” but in English this has become associated with an angelic baby. he flew, swooping on the wings of the wind.
12He hid himself in darkness, covering himself with black rainclouds.
13Burning coals blazed out of his brightness.
14The Lord thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded.
15He fired his arrows, scattering his enemies,#22:15. Implied. he routed them with his lightning bolts.
16The Lord roared, and by the wind from the breath of his nostrils the valleys of the sea could be seen and the foundations of the earth were uncovered.
17He reached down his hand from above and grabbed hold of me. He dragged me out of the deep water.
18He rescued me from my powerful enemies, from those who hated me and who were much stronger than me.
19They came at me at my worst possible moment,#22:19. Literally, “my day of disaster.” but the Lord supported me.
20He set me free,#22:20. Literally, “brought me out to a spacious place.” he rescued me because he's happy with me.#22:20. Or “he delights in me.”
21The Lord rewarded me because I do what's right; he repaid me because I am innocent.#22:21. Literally, “because of the cleanness of my hands.”
22For I have followed the Lord's ways; I have not sinned by turning away from my God.
23I have kept all his laws in mind; I have not ignored his commandments.
24I am blameless in his sight; I keep myself from sinning.
25The Lord rewarded me for doing what's right. I am innocent in his sight.
26You show trust to those who are trusting; you show integrity to those with integrity,#22:26. The word used here means “complete” or “sound.”
27You show yourself pure to those who are pure, but you show yourself astute to those who are crafty.
28You save the humble, but your eyes watch the proud to bring them down.
29You, Lord, are my lamp. The Lord lights up my darkness.
30With you, I can charge down a troop of soldiers; with you, my God, I can climb a fortress wall.
31God's way is absolutely right.#22:31. The word used here, often translated as “perfect,” is the same as in 18:25. What the Lord says is trustworthy. He is a shield to all who come to him for protection.
32For who is God except the Lord? Who is a Rock, except our God?
33God makes me strong and keeps me safe.
34He makes me surefooted like the deer, able to walk the heights in safety.
35He teaches me how to fight in battle; he gives me the strength to draw a bronze bow.
36You protect me with the shield of your salvation; your help has made me great.
37You gave me room to walk, and prevented my feet from slipping.
38I chased my enemies, and caught up with them. I did not turn around until I had destroyed them.
39I struck them down—they couldn't get up. They fell at my feet.
40You made me strong for the battle; you made those who rose up against me kneel low before me.
41You made my enemies run away; I destroyed all my enemies.
42They cried out for help, but no one came to rescue them. They even called out to the Lord, but he did not answer them.
43I ground them into dust, like the dust of the earth. I crushed them and threw them out like mud in the street.
44You rescued me from rebellious people; you have kept me as ruler over nations—people I didn't know now serve me.
45Foreigners cower before me; as soon as they hear of me, they obey.
46They lose heart, and come trembling in surrender from their strongholds.
47The Lord lives! Blessed be my Rock! May the God who saves me be praised!
48God avenges me, he puts peoples under me,
49He frees me from those who hate me. You keep me safe from those who rebel against me, you save me from violent men.
50That's why I will praise you among the nations, Lord; I will sing praises about who you are.#22:50. “About who you are”: literally, “to your name”: the concept of name in Hebrew is far more than a simple designation; it refers to the character of the person.
51You have saved the king so often,#22:51. Or “You have given many victories to the king.” showing your trustworthy love to David, your anointed, and to his descendants forever.”
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2 Samuel 22: FBV
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com