Psalm 18:1–50

¹I love you, Lord, my strength.

²The Lord is my rock,

my fortress, and my deliverer,^t

my God, my rock where I seek refuge,

my shield^u and the horn of my salvation,^v

my stronghold.

³I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise,^w

and I was saved from my enemies.^x

⁴The ropes of death were wrapped around me;

the torrents of destruction terrified me.^y

⁵The ropes of Sheol entangled me;

the snares of death confronted me.^z

⁶I called to the Lord in my distress,

and I cried to my God for help.

From his temple he heard my voice,^aa

and my cry to him reached his ears.^ab

⁷Then the earth shook and quaked;

the foundations of the mountains trembled;^ac

they shook because he burned with anger.

⁸Smoke rose from his nostrils,

and consuming fire came from his mouth;

coals were set ablaze by it.^Had

⁹He bent the heavens and came down,^ae

total darkness beneath his feet.

¹⁰He rode on a cherub and flew,

soaring on the wings of the wind.^af

¹¹He made darkness his hiding place,

dark storm clouds his canopy around him.^ag

¹²From the radiance of his presence,^ah

his clouds swept onward with hail and blazing coals.

¹³The Lord thundered from^A heaven;

the Most High made his voice heard.^Bai

¹⁴He shot his arrows and scattered them;

he hurled^C lightning bolts and routed them.^aj

¹⁵The depths of the sea became visible,

the foundations of the world were exposed,

at your rebuke, Lord,

at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.^a

¹⁶He reached down from on high

and took hold of me;

he pulled me out of deep water.^b

¹⁷He rescued me from my powerful enemy

and from those who hated me,

for they were too strong for me.^c

¹⁸They confronted me in the day of my calamity,

but the Lord was my support.^d

¹⁹He brought me out to a spacious place;^e

he rescued me because he delighted in me.^f

²⁰The Lord rewarded me

according to my righteousness;^g

he repaid me

according to the cleanness of my hands.^h

²¹For I have kept the ways of the Lord

and have not turned from my God to wickedness.ⁱ

²²Indeed, I let all his ordinances guide me^D

and have not disregarded his statutes.^j

²³I was blameless toward him^k

and kept myself from my iniquity.

²⁴So the Lord repaid me

according to my righteousness,^l

according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.^m

²⁵With the faithful

you prove yourself faithful,

with the blameless

you prove yourself blameless,

²⁶with the pure

you prove yourself pure,

but with the crooked

you prove yourself shrewd.ⁿ

²⁷For you rescue an oppressed people,^o

but you humble those with haughty eyes.^p

²⁸Lord, you light my lamp;

my God illuminates my darkness.^q

²⁹With you I can attack a barricade,^E

and with my God I can leap over a wall.^r

³⁰God—his way is perfect;^s

the word of the Lord is pure.^t

He is a shield to all who take refuge in him.^u

³¹For who is God besides the Lord?^v

And who is a rock? Only our God.^w

³²God—he clothes me with strength^x

and makes my way perfect.

³³He makes my feet like the feet of a deer^y

and sets me securely on the heights.^Az

³⁴He trains my hands for war;^aa

my arms can bend a bow of bronze.^ab

³⁵You have given me the shield of your salvation;

your right hand upholds me,^ac

and your humility exalts me.

³⁶You make a spacious place beneath me for my steps,^ad

and my ankles do not give way.^ae

³⁷I pursue my enemies and overtake them;

I do not turn back until they are wiped out.^af

³⁸I crush them, and they cannot get up;

they fall beneath my feet.^ag

³⁹You have clothed me with strength for battle;^ah

you subdue my adversaries beneath me.^ai

⁴⁰You have made my enemies retreat before me;^Baj

I annihilate those who hate me.^ak

⁴¹They cry for help, but there is no one to save them^al—

they cry to the Lord, but he does not answer them.^am

⁴²I pulverize them like dust before the wind;^an

I trample them^C like mud in the streets.^ao

⁴³You have freed me from the feuds among the people;

you have appointed me the head of nations;^ap

a people I had not known serve me.^aq

⁴⁴Foreigners submit to me cringing;

as soon as they hear they obey me.^a

⁴⁵Foreigners lose heart

and come trembling from their fortifications.^b

⁴⁶The Lord lives—blessed be my rock!

The God of my salvation is exalted.^c

⁴⁷God—he grants me vengeance^d

and subdues peoples under me.^e

⁴⁸He frees me from my enemies.

You exalt me above my adversaries;

you rescue me from violent men.^f

⁴⁹Therefore I will give thanks to you among the nations, Lord;

I will sing praises about your name.^g

⁵⁰He gives great victories to his king;^h

he shows loyalty to his anointed,

to David and his descendants forever.ⁱ