22:1 David sang to the Lord the words of this song when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul.
22:2 He said: “The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
22:3 my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield* and the horn** of my salvation. He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior - from violent people you save me. / *Or sovereign / **Horn here symbolizes strength.
22:4 “I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and have been saved from my enemies.
22:5 The waves of death swirled about me; the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me.
22:6 The cords of the grave coiled around me; the snares of death confronted me.
22:7 “In my distress I called to the Lord; I called out to my God. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came to his ears.
22:8 The earth trembled and quaked, the foundations of the heavens* shook; they trembled because he was angry. / *Hebrew; Vulgate and Syriac (see also Psalm 18:7) mountains
22:9 Smoke rose from his nostrils; consuming fire came from his mouth, burning coals blazed out of it.
22:10 He parted the heavens and came down; dark clouds were under his feet.
22:11 He mounted the cherubim and flew; he soared* on the wings of the wind. / *Many Hebrew manuscripts (see also Psalm 18:10); most Hebrew manuscripts appeared
22:12 He made darkness his canopy around him - the dark* rain clouds of the sky. / *Septuagint (see also Psalm 18:11); Hebrew massed
22:13 Out of the brightness of his presence bolts of lightning blazed forth.
22:14 The Lord thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded.
22:15 He shot his arrows and scattered the enemy, with great bolts of lightning he routed them.
22:16 The valleys of the sea were exposed and the foundations of the earth laid bare at the rebuke of the Lord, at the blast of breath from his nostrils.
22:17 “He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters.
22:18 He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes, who were too strong for me.
22:19 They confronted me in the day of my disaster, but the Lord was my support.
22:20 He brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me.
22:21 “The Lord has dealt with me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands he has rewarded me.
22:22 For I have kept the ways of the Lord; I am not guilty of turning from my God.
22:23 All his laws are before me; I have not turned away from his decrees.
22:24 I have been blameless before him and have kept myself from sin.
22:25 The Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness, according to my cleanness* in his sight. / *Hebrew; Septuagint and Vulgate (see also Psalm 18:24) to the cleanness of my hands
22:26 “To the faithful you show yourself faithful, to the blameless you show yourself blameless,
22:27 to the pure you show yourself pure, but to the devious you show yourself shrewd.
22:28 You save the humble, but your eyes are on the haughty to bring them low.
22:29 You, Lord, are my lamp; the Lord turns my darkness into light.
22:30 With your help I can advance against a troop*; with my God I can scale a wall. / *Or can run through a barricade
22:31 “As for God, his way is perfect: The Lord’s word is flawless; he shields all who take refuge in him.
22:32 For who is God besides the Lord? And who is the Rock except our God?
22:33 It is God who arms me with strength* and keeps my way secure. / *Dead Sea Scrolls, some Septuagint manuscripts, Vulgate and Syriac (see also Psalm 18:32); Masoretic Text who is my strong refuge
22:34 He makes my feet like the feet of a deer; he causes me to stand on the heights.
22:35 He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
22:36 You make your saving help my shield; your help has made* me great. / *Dead Sea Scrolls; Masoretic Text shield; / you stoop down to make
22:37 You provide a broad path for my feet, so that my ankles do not give way.
22:38 “I pursued my enemies and crushed them; I did not turn back till they were destroyed.
22:39 I crushed them completely, and they could not rise; they fell beneath my feet.
22:40 You armed me with strength for battle; you humbled my adversaries before me.
22:41 You made my enemies turn their backs in flight, and I destroyed my foes.
22:42 They cried for help, but there was no one to save them - to the Lord, but he did not answer.
22:43 I beat them as fine as the dust of the earth; I pounded and trampled them like mud in the streets.
22:44 “You have delivered me from the attacks of the peoples; you have preserved me as the head of nations. People I did not know now serve me,
22:45 foreigners cower before me; as soon as they hear of me, they obey me.
22:46 They all lose heart; they come trembling* from their strongholds. / *Some Septuagint manuscripts and Vulgate (see also Psalm 18:45); Masoretic Text they arm themselves
22:47 “The Lord lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be my God, the Rock, my Savior!
22:48 He is the God who avenges me, who puts the nations under me,
22:49 who sets me free from my enemies. You exalted me above my foes; from a violent man you rescued me.
22:50 Therefore I will praise you, Lord, among the nations; I will sing the praises of your name.
22:51 “He gives his king great victories; he shows unfailing kindness to his anointed, to David and his descendants forever.”