2 Samuel 22:2–3

Footnotes

1. 6 Traditionally “is my rock”; “mighty rock”; “is my protector.” This metaphor pictures God as a rocky, relatively inaccessible summit, where one would be able to find protection from enemies. See 1 Sam 23:25, 28.
2. 7 Traditionally “my fortress”; “my strong fortress”; “my protection.” My stronghold. David often found safety in such strongholds. See 1 Sam 22:4–5; 24:22; 2 Sam 5:9, 17; 23:14.
3. 8 The translation (along with many English versions, e.g., , , , ) follows the in reading אֱלֹהִי (’elohi, “my God”) rather than ’s אֱלֹהֵי (’elohe, “the God of”). See Ps 18:2.
4. 9 Or “in whom.”
5. 10 Heb “the horn of my salvation,” or “my saving horn.” Though some see “horn” as referring to a horn-shaped peak of a hill, or to the “horns” of an altar where one could find refuge, it is more likely that the horn of an ox underlies the metaphor (see Deut 33:17; 1 Kgs 22:11; Ps 92:10). The horn of the wild ox is frequently a metaphor for military strength; the idiom “exalt the horn” signifies military victory (see 1 Sam 2:10; Pss 89:17, 24; 92:10; Lam 2:17). In the ancient Near East powerful warrior-kings would sometimes compare themselves to a goring bull that uses its horns to kill its enemies. For examples, see P. Miller, “El the Warrior,” 60 (1967): 422–25, and R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological Study of Psalm 18/2 Samuel 22” (Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983), 135–36. 2 Sam 22:3 uses the metaphor of the horn in a slightly different manner. Here the Lord himself is compared to a horn. He is to the psalmist what the horn is to the ox, a source of defense and victory.
6. 11 The parallel version of the song in Ps 18 does not include this last line.