22 David composed the following song of praise to the Eternal because He delivered him from all of his enemies and especially from Saul.
At last the day comes when David has conquered—at least, temporarily—all his enemies, and he marks this day by rejoicing. In the same way that he composed songs to lament Saul’s and Jonathan’s deaths, David composes a psalm of joy to the Lord who is his strong fortress and his security. He gives God the credit, but he also claims—and rightly, of course, in spite of his occasional transgressions—that he has tried to do what God asked him to do, has tried to keep the ways of God.
2 David: The Eternal is my rock, my fortress, and my savior;
3 He is my True God, my stronghold in whom I take refuge,
My strong shield, my horn that calls forth rescue,
my tall-walled tower and strong refuge,
My savior from violence.
4 I call on the Eternal, who is worthy to be praised,
and I have been rescued from my enemies.
5 The waves of death surrounded me;
the torrents of terror tugged at me.
6 The sorrows of the grave tightly tangled me;
the snares of death met me.
7 In my time of need I called upon the Eternal One;
I called to my True God for help.
He heard my voice from His temple,
and my cry came to His ears.
8 Because of His great anger,
the earth shook and staggered;
the foundations of the heavens trembled and quaked.
9 Smoke billowed out from His nostrils
and devouring fire from His mouth;
glowing coals flamed from Him.
10 He bent the heavens and descended;
darkness is beneath His feet.
11 He rode upon a heavenly creature, flying;
He soared swiftly on the wings of the wind.
12 He placed darkness around Him like a canopy
and made His home in dark watery clouds of the sky.
13 Out from His brightness,
hailstones and burning coals flared forth.
14 The Eternal thundered in the heavens,
the voice of the Most High speaking.
15 He shot forth His arrows and scattered the wicked;
He flung forth His lightning and struck them.
16 Then the deepest channels of the seas were revealed;
and the foundations of the world were uncovered
At Your rebuke, O Eternal One,
at the blast of wind breathed from Your nostrils.
17 He reached down from above me, He held me;
He pulled me from the raging waters.
18 He rescued me from my strong enemy
and from all those who hated me,
for they would have overwhelmed me.
19 When my enemies came for me on the day of my destruction,
the Eternal stepped in to support me.
20 He led me out onto a broad plain;
He delivered me because of His delight in me.
21 The Eternal One rewarded me because I sought righteousness;
He rewarded me because I kept my hands clean.
22 He rewarded me because I kept the ways of the Eternal
and have not walked away from my True God in wickedness.
23 For all His laws were there before me,
and I did not push His statutes away.
24 I made myself blameless before Him;
I kept myself from guilt and shame.
25 That’s why the Eternal has rewarded me for seeking righteousness;
He’s rewarded me because He sees I have remained pure.
26 To the good, You show Your goodness;
to the blameless, You prove to be blameless;
27 To the pure, You show Your purity;
to the crooked, You make Yourself twisted.
28 For You rescue weak people,
but the proud You bring low.
29 You are the lamp who lights my way, O Eternal One,
the Eternal, who lights up my darkness.
30 With Your help, I can conquer an army;
with Your help, I can vault over walls.
31 God has made an upright way;
the promise of the Eternal rings true;
He stands and shields all who hide in Him.
32 Who is the True God except the Eternal One?
Who stands like a rock except our God?
33 The True God who circled me with strength
puts the upright on His way.
34 He made me sure-footed as a deer
and placed me high up and safe.
35 He teaches me to fight
so that my arms can bend a bronze bow.
36 You have given me the shield of Your salvation,
and Your support has made me strong.
37 You taught me how to walk with care
so my feet would not slip.
38 I pursued my enemies and defeated them
and did not stop until all were destroyed.
39 When I eliminated them, they fell down beneath my feet
so they could not rise again.
40 For You equipped me with strength for battle,
and You made my enemies fall beneath me.
41 You made my enemies turn and run,
and all who hated me, I destroyed.
42 They looked everywhere, but no one came to save them;
they asked the Eternal for help, but He did not answer them.
43 I beat them until they were as small as the dust of the earth;
I flung them away and beat them down like mud in the gutters.
44 You delivered me from conflict with the peoples;
you raised me up to rule over nations;
people whom I did not know came to serve me.
45 Strangers came to me, cringing and afraid;
as soon as they heard about me, they obeyed me.
46 Strangers had their courage shrivel before them
and came fearfully to me from behind their high walls.
47 The Eternal One is alive! May my Rock be blessed;
and the True God, the Rock of my deliverance be exalted,
48 The God who avenged me
and tamed the peoples under me,
49 Who rescued me from all my foes.
You raised me up above my enemies;
You saved me from the violent ones.
50 For this, I will praise You, O Eternal One, among the nations
and sing praises to Your name.
51 He is a tower of salvation for His king
and shows His loyal love to His anointed,
to David and his descendants, continually.
Footnotes
- 22:6
- 22:11
- 22:50
- 22:2–51
