Psalm 18
18
Psalm 18
For the director of music. A psalm of David, the servant of the Lord. He sang the words of this song to the Lord. He sang them when the Lord saved him. He saved him from the power of all his enemies and of Saul. David said,
1I love you, Lord.
You give me strength.
2The Lord is my rock and my place of safety. He is the God who saves me.
My God is my rock. I go to him for safety.
He is like a shield to me. He’s the power that saves me. He’s my place of safety.
3I called out to the Lord. He is worthy of praise.
He saved me from my enemies.
4The ropes of death were almost wrapped around me.
A destroying flood swept over me.
5The ropes of the grave were tight around me.
Death set its trap in front of me.
6When I was in trouble, I called out to the Lord.
I cried to my God for help.
From his temple he heard my voice.
My cry for help reached his ears.
7The earth trembled and shook.
The base of the mountains rocked back and forth.
It trembled because the Lord was angry.
8Smoke came out of his nose.
Flames of fire came out of his mouth.
Burning coals blazed out of it.
9He opened the heavens and came down.
Dark clouds were under his feet.
10He stood on the cherubim and flew.
The wings of the wind lifted him up.
11He covered himself with darkness.
The dark rain clouds of the sky were like a tent around him.
12Clouds came out of the brightness that was all around him.
They came with hailstones and flashes of lightning.
13The Lord thundered from heaven.
The voice of the Most High God was heard.
14He shot his arrows and scattered our enemies.
He sent great flashes of lightning and chased the enemies away.
15The bottom of the sea could be seen.
The foundations of the earth were uncovered.
Lord, it happened when your anger blazed out.
It came like a blast of breath from your nose.
16He reached down from heaven. He took hold of me.
He lifted me out of deep waters.
17He saved me from my powerful enemies.
He set me free from those who were too strong for me.
18They opposed me when I was in trouble.
But the Lord helped me.
19He brought me out into a wide and safe place.
He saved me because he was pleased with me.
20The Lord has been good to me because I do what is right.
He has rewarded me because I lead a pure life.
21I have lived the way the Lord wanted me to.
I am not guilty of turning away from my God.
22I keep all his laws in mind.
I haven’t turned away from his commands.
23He knows that I am without blame.
He knows I’ve kept myself from sinning.
24The Lord has rewarded me for doing what is right.
He has rewarded me because I haven’t done anything wrong.
25 Lord, to those who are faithful you show that you are faithful.
To those who are without blame you show that you are without blame.
26To those who are pure you show that you are pure.
But to those whose paths are crooked you show that you are clever.
27You save those who aren’t proud.
But you bring down those whose eyes are proud.
28 Lord, you keep the lamp of my life burning brightly.
You are my God. You bring light into my darkness.
29With your help I can attack a troop of soldiers.
With the help of my God I can climb over a wall.
30God’s way is perfect.
The Lord’s word doesn’t have any flaws.
He is like a shield
to all who go to him for safety.
31Who is God except the Lord?
Who is the Rock except our God?
32God gives me strength for the battle.
He keeps my way secure.
33He makes my feet like the feet of a deer.
He causes me to stand on the highest places.
34He trains my hands to fight every battle.
My arms can bend a bow of bronze.
35 Lord, you are like a shield that keeps me safe.
Your strong right hand keeps me going.
Your help has made me great.
36You give me a wide path to walk on
so that I don’t twist my ankles.
37I chased my enemies and caught them.
I didn’t turn back until they were destroyed.
38I crushed them so that they couldn’t get up.
They fell under my feet.
39 Lord, you gave me strength to fight the battle.
You made my enemies humble in front of me.
40You made them turn their backs and run away.
So I destroyed my enemies.
41They cried out for help. But there was no one to save them.
They called out to the Lord. But he didn’t answer them.
42I beat them as fine as dust blown by the wind.
I stomped on them like mud in the streets.
43You saved me when my own people attacked me.
You made me the ruler over nations.
People I didn’t know serve me now.
44People from other lands bow down to me in fear.
As soon as they hear me, they obey me.
45All of them give up hope.
They come trembling out of their hiding places.
46The Lord lives! Give praise to my Rock!
Give honor to God my Savior!
47He is the God who pays back my enemies.
He brings the nations under my control.
48He saves me from my enemies.
You have honored me more than them.
You have saved me from a man who wanted to hurt me.
49 Lord, I will praise you among the nations.
I will sing the praises of your name.
50The Lord helps his king win great battles.
He shows his faithful love to his anointed king.
He shows it to David and to his family forever.
Currently Selected:
Psalm 18: NIrV
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®
Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®
Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.