< Kings II 22 >

1 And David spoke to the Lord the words of this song, in the day in which the Lord rescued him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul.
And David made a song to the Lord in these words, on the day when the Lord made him free from the hands of all his haters, and from the hand of Saul:
2 And the song was thus: O Lord, my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer,
And he said, The Lord is my Rock, my walled town, and my saviour, even mine;
3 my God; he shall be to me my guard, I will trust in him: [he is] my protector, and the horn of my salvation, my helper, and my sure refuge; you shall save me from the unjust man.
My God, my Rock, in him will I put my faith; my breastplate, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my safe place; my saviour, who keeps me safe from the violent man.
4 I will call upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised, and I shall be saved from my enemies.
I will send up my cry to the Lord, who is to be praised; so will I be made safe from those who are against me.
5 For the troubles of death compassed me, the floods of iniquity amazed me:
For the waves of death came round me, and the seas of evil put me in fear;
6 the pangs of death surrounded me, the agonies of death prevented me. (Sheol h7585)
The cords of hell were round me: the nets of death came on me. (Sheol h7585)
7 When I am afflicted I will call upon the Lord, and will cry to my God, and he shall hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry shall come into his ears.
In my trouble my voice went up to the Lord, and my cry to my God: my voice came to his hearing in his holy Temple, and my prayer came to his ears.
8 And the earth was troubled and quaked, and the foundations of heaven were confounded and torn asunder, because the Lord was angry with them.
Then the earth was moved with a violent shock; the bases of heaven were moved and shaking, because he was angry.
9 There went up a smoke in his wrath, and fire out of his mouth devours: coals were kindled at it.
There went up a smoke from his nose, and a fire of destruction from his mouth: coals were lighted by it.
10 And he bowed the heavens, and came down, and [there was] darkness under his feet.
The heavens were bent, so that he might come down; and it was dark under his feet.
11 And he rode upon the cherubs and did fly, and was seen upon the wings of the wind.
And he went through the air, seated on a storm-cloud: going quickly on the wings of the wind.
12 And he made darkness his hiding-place; his tabernacle round about him was the darkness of waters, he condensed it with the clouds of the air.
And he made the dark his tent round him, a mass of waters, thick clouds of the skies.
13 At the brightness before him coals of fire were kindled.
Before his shining light his dark clouds went past, raining ice and coals of fire.
14 The Lord thundered out of heaven, and the Most High uttered his voice.
The Lord made thunder in the heavens, and the voice of the Highest was sounding out.
15 And he sent forth arrows, and scattered them, and he flashed lightning, and dismayed them.
And he sent out his arrows, driving them in all directions; by his flames of fire they were troubled.
16 And the channels of the sea were seen, and the foundations of the world were discovered, at the rebuke of the Lord, at the blast of the breath of his anger.
Then the deep beds of the sea were seen, and the bases of the world were uncovered, because of the Lord's wrath, because of the breath of his mouth.
17 He sent from above and took me; he drew me out of many waters.
He sent from on high, he took me, pulling me out of great waters.
18 He delivered me from my strong enemies, from them that hated me, for they were stronger than I.
He made me free from my strong hater, from those who were against me, because they were stronger than I.
19 The days of my affliction prevented me; but the Lord was my stay.
They came on me in the day of my trouble: but the Lord was my support.
20 And he brought me into a wide place, and rescued me, because he delighted in me.
He took me out into a wide place; he was my saviour because he had delight in me.
21 And the Lord recompensed me according to my righteousness; even according to the purity of my hands did he recompense me.
The Lord gives me the reward of my righteousness, because my hands are clean before him.
22 Because, I kept the ways of the Lord, and did not wickedly depart from my God.
For I have kept the ways of the Lord; I have not been turned away in sin from my God.
23 For all his judgments and his ordinances [were] before me: I departed not from them.
For all his decisions were before me, and I did not put away his laws from me.
24 And I shall be blameless before him, and will keep myself from my iniquity.
And I was upright before him, and I kept myself from sin.
25 And the Lord will recompense me according to my righteousness, and according to the purity of my hands in his eye-sight.
Because of this the Lord has given me the reward of my righteousness, because my hands are clean in his eyes.
26 With the holy you will be holy, and with the perfect man you will be perfect,
On him who has mercy you will have mercy; to the upright you will be upright;
27 and with the excellent you will be excellent, and with the froward you will be froward.
He who is holy will see that you are holy; but to the man whose way is not straight you will be a hard judge.
28 And you will save the poor people, and will bring down the eyes of the haughty.
For you are the saviour of those who are in trouble; but your eyes are on men of pride, to make them low.
29 For you, Lord, [are] my lamp, and the Lord shall shine forth to me in my darkness.
For you are my light, O Lord; and the Lord will make the dark bright for me.
30 For by you shall I run [as] a girded man, and by my God shall I leap over a wall.
By your help I have made a way through the wall which was shutting me in: by the help of my God I have gone over a wall.
31 As for the Mighty One, his way [is] blameless: the word of the Lord [is] strong [and] tried in the fire: he is a protector to all that put their trust in him.
As for God, his way is all good: the word of the Lord is tested; he is a safe cover for all those who put their faith in him.
32 Who [is] strong, but the Lord? and who will be a Creator except our God?
For who is God but the Lord? and who is a Rock but our God?
33 [It is] the Mighty One who strengthens me with might, and has prepared my way without fault.
God puts a strong band about me, guiding me in a straight way.
34 He makes my feet like hart's feet, and sets me upon the high places.
He makes my feet like roes' feet, and puts me on high places.
35 He teaches my hands to war, and has broken a brazen bow by my arm.
He makes my hands expert in war, so that a bow of brass is bent by my arms.
36 And you have given me the shield of my salvation, and your propitious dealing has increased me,
You have given me the breastplate of your salvation, and your mercy has made me great.
37 so as to make room under me for my going, and my legs did not totter.
You have made my steps wide under me, so that my feet make no slip.
38 I will pursue my enemies, and will utterly destroy them; and I will not turn again till I have consumed them.
I go after my haters and overtake them; not turning back till they are all overcome.
39 And I will crush them, and they shall not rise; and they shall fall under my feet.
I have sent destruction on them and given them wounds, so that they are not able to get up: they are stretched under my feet.
40 And you shall strengthen me with power for the war; you shall cause them that rise up against me to bow down under me.
For I have been armed by you with strength for the fight: you have made low under me those who came out against me.
41 And you have caused mine enemies to flee before me, even them that hated me, and you have slain them.
By you their backs are turned in flight, so that my haters are cut off.
42 They shall cry, and there shall be no helper; to the Lord, but he hearkens not to them.
They were crying out, but there was no one to come to their help: even to the Lord, but he gave them no answer.
43 And I ground them as the dust of the earth, I beat them small as the mire of the streets.
Then they were crushed as small as the dust of the earth, stamped down under my feet like the waste of the streets.
44 And you shall deliver me from the striving of the peoples, you shall keep me [to be] the head of the Gentiles: a people which I knew not served me.
You have made me free from the fightings of my people; you have made me the head of the nations: a people of whom I had no knowledge will be my servants.
45 The strange children feigned [obedience] to me; they listened to me as soon as they heard.
Men of other countries will, with false hearts, put themselves under my authority: from the time when my name comes to their ears, they will be ruled by me.
46 The strange children shall be cast away, and shall be overthrown out of their hiding places.
They will be wasted away, they will come out of their secret places shaking with fear.
47 The Lord lives, and blessed [be] my guardian, and my God, my strong keeper, shall be exalted.
The Lord is living; praise be to my Rock, and let the God of my salvation be honoured:
48 The Lord who avenges me [is] strong, chastening the nations under me,
It is God who sends punishment on my haters, and puts peoples under my rule.
49 and bringing me out from my enemies: and you shall set me on high from among those that rise up against me: you shall deliver me from the violent man.
He makes me free from my haters: I am lifted up over those who come up against me: you have made me free from the violent man.
50 Therefore will I confess to you, O Lord, among the Gentiles, and sing to your name.
Because of this I will give you praise, O Lord, among the nations, and will make a song of praise to your name.
51 He magnifies the salvation of his king, and works mercy for his anointed, even for David and for his seed for ever.
Great salvation does he give to his king; he has mercy on the king of his selection, David, and on his seed for ever.

< Kings II 22 >