2 Samuel 22
Evangelical Heritage Version
A Psalm by David
(Psalm 18)[a]
22 David spoke the words of this song to the Lord on the day when the Lord had delivered him from the grasp of all his enemies, even from the grasp of Saul. 2 He said:
The Lord is my rocky cliff,
my stronghold, and my deliverer.
3 My God is my rock. I take refuge in him.
He is my shield and the horn of my salvation,
my high fortress, my refuge, and my savior.
You save me from violence.
4 I call to the Lord, who is worthy of praise,
and I am saved from my enemies.
5 The waves of death swirled around me.
Floodwaters of destruction[b] rolled over me.
6 The ropes of the grave wrapped around me.
The traps of death threatened me.
7 In my distress I called to the Lord.
To my God I cried out.
He heard my voice from his temple.
My cry for help reached his ears.
8 Then the earth shook and quaked,
and the foundations of the heavens[c] trembled.
They shook because the Lord was angry.
9 Smoke rose from his nostrils,
and fire out of his mouth devoured.
Coals were set on fire by it.
10 Then he tore open the heavens and came down.
A dark cloud was under his feet.
11 He rode upon a cherub,[d] and he flew.
He soared[e] on the wings of the wind.
12 He made the darkness around him his shelter,
the dark rain clouds of the sky.[f]
13 From the brightness in front of him, coals of fire burned.
14 Then the Lord thundered in the heavens.
The Most High raised his voice.
15 Then he shot his arrows and scattered the enemy.
He hurled great bolts of lightning and routed them.
16 Then the sources of the sea[g] were revealed,
and the foundations of the world were uncovered
by the rebuke of the Lord,
by the breath of wind from his nostrils.
17 He reached down from on high and took hold of me.
He drew me out of deep waters.
18 Because they were too strong for me,
he rescued me from my powerful enemies,
from those who hate me.
19 They confronted me on the day of my disaster,
but the Lord supported me.
20 Then he brought me out into a wide open space.
He rescued me because he delighted in me.
21 The Lord has dealt with me according to my righteousness.
According to the cleanness of my hands, he has repaid me,
22 because I have kept the ways of the Lord.
I have not done evil and departed from my God.
23 So all his just decrees remain before me,
and I have not turned away from his statutes.
24 I have been blameless with him.
I have kept myself from guilt.
25 The Lord has repaid me according to my righteousness,
according to the cleanness of my hands[h] in his sight.
26 To the merciful[i] you reveal yourself as merciful.
To the blameless person you reveal yourself as blameless.
27 To the pure you reveal yourself as pure,
but to the crooked you reveal yourself as crafty.[j]
28 Yes, you save humble people,
but your eyes are on the proud, and you bring them down.
29 Yes, you are my lamp, O Lord.
The Lord turns my darkness to light.
30 For with you I can charge against a battalion,[k]
and with my God I can jump over a wall.
31 This God—his way is blameless.
The speech of the Lord is pure.
He is a shield for all who take refuge in him.
32 For who is God besides the Lord?
And who is the Rock except our God?
33 This God wraps me with strength[l]
and makes my way smooth.[m]
34 By making my feet like those of a deer,
he enables me to stand on high places.
35 Because he trains my hands for battle,
my arms can draw a bronze bow.
36 Then you give me the shield of your salvation.
Your response makes me great.
37 You widen the path under my feet,
so that my ankles do not give way.
38 I pursued my enemies, and I destroyed them.
Yes, I did not turn back until they were wiped out.
39 I wiped them out. I crushed them.
They could not rise again.
They fell beneath my feet.
40 You wrapped me with strength for battle.
You made those who rose up against me bow down to me.
41 You made my enemies turn their backs and flee.
I destroyed those who hate me.
42 They cried for help, but there was no one to save them.
They cried to the Lord, but he did not answer them.
43 So I ground them as fine as dust of the earth.
I scattered them and trampled them down like mud in the streets.
44 You delivered me from the accusations of my people.
You preserved me as the head of nations.
A people I did not know serve me.
45 Foreigners cringe before me.
As soon as they hear me, they obey me.
46 Foreigners fall exhausted.
They come trembling from their strongholds.
47 The Lord lives! Blessed be my Rock!
May God, the Rock who saves me, be exalted!
48 This God, who avenges me, subdues peoples under me.
49 You delivered me from my enemies.
Yes, you exalted me above those who rose against me.
You rescued me from the violent man.
50 Therefore, I will thank you among the nations, Lord.
To your name I will make music.
51 By providing great salvation for his King,
he shows mercy to his Anointed One,
to David and to his Seed[n] forever.
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 22:1 This psalm is a parallel version of Psalm 18. The numerous differences suggest that these are two different editions of the same song by David, not simply two copies of the same edition. For the most part, this translation makes note of only those differences that are significant textual variants. Many minor variants, such as differences between the marginal Hebrew reading and the reading in the main text, are not cited in the footnotes. The book of Psalms contains several other examples of two parallel editions of psalms by David.
- 2 Samuel 22:5 Literally rivers of belial
- 2 Samuel 22:8 Some ancient versions and Psalm 18:7 have the variant mountains.
- 2 Samuel 22:11 The cherubim are the powerful angels who serve as God’s honor guard.
- 2 Samuel 22:11 The translation follows some Hebrew manuscripts, ancient versions, and Psalm 18:10. Most Hebrew manuscripts read he was seen.
- 2 Samuel 22:12 Literally a sieve or gathering of waters, clouds of a cloudy sky
- 2 Samuel 22:16 Sources of the waters is the reading in the parallel text in Psalm 18:15.
- 2 Samuel 22:25 The words of my hands are not in the Hebrew text, but are in some ancient versions and Psalm 18:24.
- 2 Samuel 22:26 Or faithful
- 2 Samuel 22:27 Reveal yourself as crafty follows the reading of a few Hebrew manuscripts and Psalm 18:26.
- 2 Samuel 22:30 Or run through a barrier
- 2 Samuel 22:33 The translation follows a variant from a Dead Sea Scroll, which is supported by Psalm 18:32. The main Hebrew text here reads who is my stronghold.
- 2 Samuel 22:33 Or blameless
- 2 Samuel 22:51 The retention of the literal term seed is intended to show the continuity to this passage from the promise to Eve, which was passed through Abraham and David to Christ, the promised Seed of the Woman. By preserving David and his royal line, God carries on the messianic line that will reach its goal in Jesus. Grammatically, this collective word seed could be translated as a plural his descendants. It is true that this term applies to all the kings in the line of David, but here it focuses on the Messiah, who is the culmination of that line.
2 Samuel 22
King James Version
22 And David spake unto the Lord the words of this song in the day that the Lord had delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul:
2 And he said, The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer;
3 The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence.
4 I will call on the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.
5 When the waves of death compassed me, the floods of ungodly men made me afraid;
6 The sorrows of hell compassed me about; the snares of death prevented me;
7 In my distress I called upon the Lord, and cried to my God: and he did hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry did enter into his ears.
8 Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations of heaven moved and shook, because he was wroth.
9 There went up a smoke out of his nostrils, and fire out of his mouth devoured: coals were kindled by it.
10 He bowed the heavens also, and came down; and darkness was under his feet.
11 And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly: and he was seen upon the wings of the wind.
12 And he made darkness pavilions round about him, dark waters, and thick clouds of the skies.
13 Through the brightness before him were coals of fire kindled.
14 The Lord thundered from heaven, and the most High uttered his voice.
15 And he sent out arrows, and scattered them; lightning, and discomfited them.
16 And the channels of the sea appeared, the foundations of the world were discovered, at the rebuking of the Lord, at the blast of the breath of his nostrils.
17 He sent from above, he took me; he drew me out of many waters;
18 He delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them that hated me: for they were too strong for me.
19 They prevented me in the day of my calamity: but the Lord was my stay.
20 He brought me forth also into a large place: he delivered me, because he delighted in me.
21 The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness: according to the cleanness of my hands hath he recompensed me.
22 For I have kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God.
23 For all his judgments were before me: and as for his statutes, I did not depart from them.
24 I was also upright before him, and have kept myself from mine iniquity.
25 Therefore the Lord hath recompensed me according to my righteousness; according to my cleanness in his eye sight.
26 With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful, and with the upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright.
27 With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure; and with the froward thou wilt shew thyself unsavoury.
28 And the afflicted people thou wilt save: but thine eyes are upon the haughty, that thou mayest bring them down.
29 For thou art my lamp, O Lord: and the Lord will lighten my darkness.
30 For by thee I have run through a troop: by my God have I leaped over a wall.
31 As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the Lord is tried: he is a buckler to all them that trust in him.
32 For who is God, save the Lord? and who is a rock, save our God?
33 God is my strength and power: and he maketh my way perfect.
34 He maketh my feet like hinds' feet: and setteth me upon my high places.
35 He teacheth my hands to war; so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms.
36 Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy gentleness hath made me great.
37 Thou hast enlarged my steps under me; so that my feet did not slip.
38 I have pursued mine enemies, and destroyed them; and turned not again until I had consumed them.
39 And I have consumed them, and wounded them, that they could not arise: yea, they are fallen under my feet.
40 For thou hast girded me with strength to battle: them that rose up against me hast thou subdued under me.
41 Thou hast also given me the necks of mine enemies, that I might destroy them that hate me.
42 They looked, but there was none to save; even unto the Lord, but he answered them not.
43 Then did I beat them as small as the dust of the earth, I did stamp them as the mire of the street, and did spread them abroad.
44 Thou also hast delivered me from the strivings of my people, thou hast kept me to be head of the heathen: a people which I knew not shall serve me.
45 Strangers shall submit themselves unto me: as soon as they hear, they shall be obedient unto me.
46 Strangers shall fade away, and they shall be afraid out of their close places.
47 The Lord liveth; and blessed be my rock; and exalted be the God of the rock of my salvation.
48 It is God that avengeth me, and that bringeth down the people under me.
49 And that bringeth me forth from mine enemies: thou also hast lifted me up on high above them that rose up against me: thou hast delivered me from the violent man.
50 Therefore I will give thanks unto thee, O Lord, among the heathen, and I will sing praises unto thy name.
51 He is the tower of salvation for his king: and sheweth mercy to his anointed, unto David, and to his seed for evermore.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.