David’s Song of Deliverance
(Psalm 18:1–50)

1And David sang this song to the LORD on the day the LORD had delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. 2He said:

“The LORD is my rock,

my fortress, and my deliverer.

3My God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,

my shield, and the horn of my salvation.

My stronghold, my refuge, and my Savior,

You save me from violence.

4I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised;

so shall I be saved from my enemies.

5For the waves of death engulfed me;

the torrents of chaos overwhelmed me.

6The cords of Sheol entangled me;

the snares of death confronted me.

7In my distress I called upon the LORD;

I cried out to my God.

And from His temple He heard my voice,

and my cry for help reached His ears.

8Then the earth shook and quaked;

the foundations of the heavensa trembled;

they were shaken because He burned with anger.

9Smoke rose from His nostrils,

and consuming fire came from His mouth;

glowing coals blazed forth.

10He parted the heavens and came down

with dark clouds beneath His feet.

11He mounted a cherub and flew;

He soaredb on the wings of the wind.

12He made darkness a canopy around Him,

a gathering of water and thick clouds.

13From the brightness of His presence

coals of firec blazed forth.

14The LORD thundered from heaven;

the voice of the Most High resounded.

15He shot His arrows and scattered the foes;

He hurled lightning and routed them.

16The channels of the sea appeared,

and the foundations of the world were exposed

at the rebuke of the LORD,

at the blast of the breath of His nostrils.

17He reached down from on high and took hold of me;

He drew me out of deep waters.

18He rescued me from my powerful enemy,

from foes too mighty for me.

19They confronted me in my day of calamity,

but the LORD was my support.

20He brought me out into the open;

He rescued me because He delighted in me.

21The LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness;

He has repaid me according to the cleanness of my hands.

22For I have kept the ways of the LORD

and have not wickedly departed from my God.

23For all His ordinances are before me;

I have not disregarded His statutes.

24And I have been blameless before Him

and kept myself from iniquity.

25So the LORD has repaid me according to my righteousness,

according to my cleanness in His sight.d

26To the faithful You show Yourself faithful,

to the blameless You show Yourself blameless;

27to the pure You show Yourself pure,

but to the crooked You show Yourself shrewd.

28You save an afflicted people,

but Your eyes are on the haughty to bring them down.

29For You, O LORD, are my lamp;

the LORD lights up my darkness.

30For in You I can charge an army;

with my God I can scale a wall.

31As for God, His way is perfect;

the word of the LORD is flawless.

He is a shield to all

who take refuge in Him.

32For who is God besides the LORD?

And who is the Rock except our God?

33God is my strong fortress

and He makes my way clear.

34He makes my feet like those of a deer

and stations me upon the heights.

35He trains my hands for battle;

my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

36You have given me Your shield of salvation,

and Your gentleness exalts me.e

37You broaden the path beneath me

so that my ankles do not give way.

38I pursued my enemies and destroyed them;

I did not turn back until they were consumed.

39I devoured and crushed them so they could not rise;

they have fallen under my feet.

40You have armed me with strength for battle;

You have subdued my foes beneath me.

41You have made my enemies retreat before me;

I put an end to those who hated me.

42They looked, but there was no one to save them—

to the LORD, but He did not answer.

43I ground them as the dust of the earth;

I crushed and trampled them like mud in the streets.

44You have delivered me from the strife of my people;

You have preserved me as the head of nations;

a people I had not known shall serve me.

45Foreigners cower before me;

when they hear me, they obey me.

46Foreigners lose heart

and come tremblingf from their strongholds.

47The LORD lives, and blessed be my Rock!

And may God, the Rock of my salvation, be exalted—

48the God who avenges me

and brings down nations beneath me,

49who frees me from my enemies.

You exalt me above my foes;

You rescue me from violent men.

50Therefore I will praise You, O LORD, among the nations;

I will sing praises to Your name.g

51Great salvation He brings to His king.

He shows loving devotion to His anointed,

to David and his descendants forever.”