22:1 Now David spoke the words of this song to the LORD on the day that the LORD had saved him from the ①hand of all his enemies and from the ②hand of Saul.
▷ ①Lit palm ②Lit palm
22:2 He said,
“The LORD is my ①rock and my fortress and my deliverer;
▷ ①Lit crag
22:3 ①My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge;
My savior, You save me from violence.
▷ ①As in LXX; MT God of my rock
22:4 I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised,
And I am saved from my enemies.
22:5 For the waves of death encompassed me;
The floods of ①destruction terrified me;
▷ ①Or wickedness; Heb Belial
22:6 The ropes of ①Sheol surrounded me;
The snares of death confronted me.
▷ ①I.e., the netherworld
22:7 In my distress I called upon the LORD,
Yes, I called out to my God;
And from His temple He heard my voice,
And my cry for help came into His ears.
22:8 Then the earth shook and quaked,
The foundations of heaven were trembling
And were shaken, because He was angry.
22:9 Smoke went up ①out of His nostrils,
And fire from His mouth was devouring;
Coals were kindled by it.
▷ ①I.e., in his anger
22:10 He also bowed the heavens down low, and came down
With thick darkness under His feet.
22:11 He rode on a cherub and flew;
He ①appeared on the wings of the wind.
▷ ①Many mss glided
22:12 He made darkness canopies around Him,
A mass of waters, thick clouds of the sky.
22:13 From the brightness before Him
Coals of fire were kindled.
22:14 The LORD thundered from heaven,
And the Most High uttered His voice.
22:15 And He shot arrows and scattered them,
Lightning, and ①routed them.
▷ ①Lit confused
22:16 Then the channels of the sea appeared,
The foundations of the world were exposed
By the rebuke of the LORD,
From the blast of the breath of His nostrils.
22:17 He sent from on high, He took me;
He drew me out of many waters.
22:18 He rescued me from my strong enemy,
From those who hated me, for they were too strong for me.
22:19 They confronted me on the day of my disaster,
But the LORD was my support.
22:20 He also brought me out into an open place;
He rescued me, because He delighted in me.
22:21 The LORD has treated me in accordance with my righteousness;
In accordance with the cleanliness of my hands He has repaid me.
22:22 For I have kept the ways of the LORD,
And have not acted wickedly against my God.
22:23 For all His ordinances were before me,
And as for His statutes, I did not deviate from ①them.
▷ ①Lit it
22:24 I was also ①blameless toward Him,
And I have kept myself from my wrongdoing.
▷ ①Lit complete; or having integrity
22:25 So the LORD has repaid me in accordance with my righteousness,
In accordance with my cleanliness before His eyes.
22:26 With the one who is faithful You show Yourself faithful,
With the ①blameless one You prove Yourself ②blameless;
▷ ①Lit complete; or having integrity ②Lit complete; or having integrity
22:27 With the one who is pure You show Yourself pure,
But with the perverted You ①show Yourself astute.
▷ ①As in two Heb mss and Ps 18:26; MT pretend stupidity
22:28 And You save an afflicted people;
But Your eyes are on the haughty whom You humiliate.
22:29 For You are my lamp, LORD;
And the LORD illuminates my darkness.
22:30 For by You I can run at a ①troop of warriors;
By my God I can leap over a wall.
▷ ①Or wall
22:31 As for God, His way is ①blameless;
The word of the LORD is refined;
He is a shield to all who take refuge in Him.
▷ ①Lit complete; or having integrity
22:32 For who is God, except the LORD?
And who is a rock, except our God?
22:33 God is my strong fortress;
And He ①sets the ②blameless on ③His way.
▷ ①Or sets free ②Lit complete; or having integrity ③Another reading is my
22:34 He makes ①my feet like deer’s feet,
And sets me on my high places.
▷ ①Another reading is His
22:35 He trains my hands for battle,
So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
22:36 You have also given me the shield of Your salvation,
And Your ①help makes me great.
▷ ①Lit answering
22:37 You enlarge my steps under me,
And my ①feet have not slipped.
▷ ①Lit ankles
22:38 I pursued my enemies and eliminated them,
And I did not turn back until they were finished off.
22:39 And I have devoured them and smashed them, so that they would not rise;
And they fell under my feet.
22:40 For You have encircled me with strength for battle;
You have forced those who rose up against me to bow down under me.
22:41 You have also made my enemies turn their backs to me,
And I ①destroyed those who hated me.
▷ ①Or silenced
22:42 They looked, but there was no one to save them;
Even to the LORD, but He did not answer them.
22:43 Then I pulverized them as the dust of the earth;
I crushed and trampled them like the mud of the streets.
22:44 You have also saved me from the contentions of my people;
You have kept me as head of the nations;
A people I have not known serve me.
22:45 Foreigners pretend to obey me;
As soon as they hear, they obey me.
22:46 Foreigners lose heart,
And ①come trembling out of their fortresses.
▷ ①Reading based on Ps 18:45; MT belt up themselves
22:47 The LORD lives, and blessed be my Rock;
And exalted be ①my God, the rock of my salvation,
▷ ①As in LXX; MT the God of the rock
22:48 The God who executes vengeance for me,
And brings down peoples under me,
22:49 Who also brings me out from my enemies;
You also raise me above those who rise up against me;
You rescue me from the violent person.
22:50 Therefore I will ①give thanks to You, LORD, among the nations,
And I will sing praises to Your name.
▷ ①Or praise
22:51 He is a tower of ①salvation to His king,
And shows favor to His anointed,
To David and his ②descendants forever.”
▷ ①Lit acts of salvation ②Lit seed