Psalms 18
18
# Psalm 18 This song is also found in 2 Sam. 22. To the director: A song of David, the Lord’s servant. He sang this song to the Lord when the Lord saved him from Saul and all his other enemies.
1I love you, Lord!
You are my strength.
2The Lord is my Rock, my fortress, my place of safety.
He is my God, the Rock I run to for protection.
He is my shield; by his power I am saved.#18:2 by his power I am saved Literally, “He is the horn of my salvation.”
He is my hiding place high in the hills.
3I called to the Lord for help,
and he saved me from my enemies!
He is worthy of my praise!
4Death had its ropes wrapped around me.
A deadly flood was carrying me away.
5The ropes of the grave wrapped around me.
Death set its trap right there in front of me.
6In my trouble I called to the Lord.
Yes, I cried out to my God for help.
There in his temple he heard my voice.
He heard my cry for help.
7The earth shook and shivered.
The foundations of the mountains trembled.
They shook because he was angry.
8Smoke came from his nose.
Burning flames came from his mouth.
Red-hot coals fell from him.
9He tore open the sky and came down!
He stood on a thick, dark cloud.
10He flew across the sky, riding on a Cherub angel
racing on the wings of the wind.
11He wrapped himself in darkness that covered him like a tent.
He was hidden by dark clouds heavy with water.
12Out of the brightness before him,
hail broke through the clouds with flashes of lightning.
13The Lord thundered from the sky;
God Most High let his voice be heard.#18:13 The ancient Greek version and some Hebrew copies add “with hailstones and bolts of lightning.”
14He scattered his enemies with his arrows—
the lightning bolts that threw them into confusion.
15Lord, you shouted your command,
and a powerful wind began to blow.#18:15 and … blow Or “and a blast of breath came from your nose.”
Then the bottom of the sea could be seen,
and the earth’s foundations were uncovered.
16He reached down from above and grabbed me.
He pulled me from the deep water.
17He saved me from my powerful enemies, who hated me.
They were too strong for me, so he saved me.
18They attacked me in my time of trouble,
but the Lord was there to support me.
19He was pleased with me, so he rescued me.
He took me to a safe place.
20The Lord rewarded me for doing what is right.
He was good to me because I am innocent.
21The Lord did this because I have obeyed him.
I have not turned against my God.
22I always remembered his laws.
I never rejected his rules.
23He knows I did nothing that was wrong.
I have kept myself from sinning.
24So the Lord rewarded me for doing what is right.
He could see that I am innocent.
25Lord, you are faithful to those who are faithful.
You are good to those who are good.
26You never do wrong to those who have done no wrong.
But you outsmart the wicked, no matter how clever they are.
27You help those who are humble,
but you humiliate the proud.
28Lord, you provide the flame for my lamp.
You, God, turn the darkness around me into light.
29With your help I can defeat an army.
If my God is with me, I can climb over enemy walls.
30God’s way is perfect.
The Lord’s promise always proves to be true.
He protects those who trust in him.
31There is no God except the Lord.
There is no Rock except our God.
32God is the one who gives me strength.
He clears the path I need to take.
33He makes my feet as steady as those of a deer.
Even on steep mountains he keeps me from falling.
34He trains me for war
so that my arms can bend the most powerful bow.
35Lord, you have given me your shield to protect me.
You support me with your right hand.
It is your help that has made me great.
36You cleared a path for my feet
so that I could walk without stumbling.
37I chased my enemies and caught them.
I did not stop until they were destroyed.
38I struck them down, and they could not get up again.
They fell under my feet.
39God, you made me strong in battle.
You made my enemies fall before me.
40You made my enemies turn and run away.
I destroyed those who hated me.
41They cried out for help,
but there was no one to save them.
They cried out to the Lord,
but he did not answer them.
42I beat them to pieces like dust blown by the wind.
I smashed them like mud in the streets.
43You saved me from those who fought against me.
You made me the ruler over nations.
People I never knew now serve me.
44As soon as they heard about me, they were ready to obey.
Those foreigners fall helpless before me!
45They lose all their courage
and come out of their hiding places shaking with fear.
46The Lord lives!
I praise my Rock, the God who saves me.
How great he is!
47He is the God who punishes my enemies for me,
the one who puts people under my control.
48He saves me from my enemies!
You, Lord, help me defeat those who attack me.
You save me from cruel people.
49Lord, that is why I praise you among the nations.
That is why I sing songs of praise to your name.
50The Lord helps his king win battle after battle.
He shows his faithful love to his chosen one,#18:50 his chosen one Literally, “his anointed one.”
to David and his descendants forever.
Currently Selected:
Psalms 18: ERV
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Psalms 18
18
Psalm 18#18:0 Psalm 18 is virtually identical in wording to 2 Samuel 22.
For the choir director; by David, the servant of the Lord. He sang this song to the Lord when the Lord rescued him from all his enemies, especially from Saul. He said,
1I love you, O 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 strength of my salvation,
my stronghold.
3The Lord should be praised.
I called on him, and I was saved from my enemies.
4The ropes of death had become tangled around me.
The torrents of destruction had overwhelmed me.
5The ropes of the grave had surrounded me.
The clutches of death had confronted me.
6I called on the Lord in my distress.
I cried to my God for help.
He heard my voice from his temple,
and my cry for help reached his ears.
7Then the earth shook and quaked.
Even the foundations of the mountains trembled.
They shook violently because he was angry.
8Smoke went up from his nostrils,
and a raging fire came out of his mouth.
Glowing coals flared up from it.
9He spread apart the heavens
and came down with a dark cloud under his feet.
10He rode on one of the angels #18:10 Or “cherubim.” as he flew,
and he soared on the wings of the wind.
11He made the darkness his hiding place,
the dark rain clouds his covering.
12Out of the brightness in front of him,
those rain clouds passed by with hailstones and lightning.
13The Lord thundered in the heavens.
The Most High made his voice heard with hailstones and lightning.
14He shot his arrows and scattered them.
He flashed streaks of lightning and threw them into confusion.
15Then the ocean floor could be seen.
The foundations of the earth were laid bare
at your stern warning, O Lord,
at the blast of the breath from your nostrils.
16He reached down from high above and took hold of me.
He pulled me out of the raging water.
17He rescued me from my strong enemy
and from those who hated me,
because they were too strong for me.
18On the day when I faced disaster, they confronted me,
but the Lord came to my defense.
19He brought me out to a wide-open place.
He rescued me because he was pleased with me.
20The Lord rewarded me
because of my righteousness,
because my hands are clean.
He paid me back
21because I have kept the ways of the Lord
and I have not wickedly turned away from my God,
22because all his judgments are in front of me
and I have not turned away from his laws.
23I was innocent as far as he was concerned.
I have kept myself from guilt.
24The Lord paid me back
because of my righteousness,
because he can see that my hands are clean.
25 ⌞In dealing⌟ with faithful people you are faithful,
with innocent people you are innocent,
26with pure people you are pure.
⌞In dealing⌟ with devious people you are clever.
27You save humble people,
but you bring down a conceited look.
28O Lord, you light my lamp.
My God turns my darkness into light.
29With you I can attack a line of soldiers.
With my God I can break through barricades.
30God’s way is perfect!
The promise of the Lord has proven to be true.
He is a shield to all those who take refuge in him.
31Who is God but the Lord?
Who is a rock except our God?
32God arms me with strength
and makes my way perfect.
33He makes my feet like those of a deer
and gives me sure footing on high places.
34He trains my hands for battle
so that my arms can bend an ⌞archer’s⌟ bow of bronze.
35You have given me the shield of your salvation.
Your right hand supports me.
Your gentleness makes me great.
36You make a wide path for me to walk on
so that my feet do not slip.
37I chased my enemies and caught up with them.
I did not return until I had ended their lives.
38I wounded them so badly that they were unable to get up.
They fell under my feet.
39You armed me with strength for battle.
You made my opponents bow at my feet.
40You made my enemies turn their backs to me,
and I destroyed those who hated me.
41They cried out for help, but there was no one to save them.
They cried out to the Lord, but he did not answer them.
42I beat them into a powder as fine as the dust blown by the wind.
I threw them out as though they were dirt on the streets.
43You rescued me from my conflicts with the people.
You made me the leader of nations.
A people I did not know will serve me:
44As soon as they hear of me, they will obey me.
Foreigners will cringe in front of me.
45Foreigners will lose heart,
and they will tremble when they come out of their fortifications.
46The Lord lives!
Thanks be to my rock!
May God my Savior be honored.
47God gives me vengeance!
He brings people under my authority.
48He saves me from my enemies.
You lift me up above my opponents.
You rescue me from violent people.
49That is why I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the nations
and make music to praise your name.
50He gives great victories to his king.
He shows mercy to his anointed,
to David, and to his descendant #18:50 Or “to his descendants.” forever.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.