A Prayer of David.
[18:1] I love you, O Lord, my strength.
[18:2] The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
[18:3] I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies.
[18:4] The cords of death encompassed me; the torrents of destruction assailed me;
[18:5] the cords of Sheol entangled me; the snares of death confronted me.
[18:6] In my distress I called upon the Lord; to my God I cried for help. From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears.
[18:7] Then the earth reeled and rocked; the foundations also of the mountains trembled and quaked, because he was angry.
[18:8] Smoke went up from his nostrils, and devouring fire from his mouth; glowing coals flamed forth from him.
[18:9] He bowed the heavens and came down; thick darkness was under his feet.
[18:10] He rode on a cherub and flew; he came swiftly on the wings of the wind.
[18:11] He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him, thick clouds dark with water.
[18:12] Out of the brightness before him hailstones and coals of fire broke through his clouds.
[18:13] The Lord also thundered in the heavens, and the Most High uttered his voice, hailstones and coals of fire.
[18:14] And he sent out his arrows and scattered them; he flashed forth lightnings and routed them.
[18:15] Then the channels of the sea were seen, and the foundations of the world were laid bare at your rebuke, O Lord, at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.
[18:16] He sent from on high, he took me; he drew me out of many waters.
[18:17] He rescued me from my strong enemy and from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me.
[18:18] They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my support.
[18:19] He brought me out into a broad place; he rescued me, because he delighted in me.
[18:20] The Lord dealt with me according to my righteousness; according to the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me.
[18:21] For I have kept the ways of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God.
[18:22] For all his rules were before me, and his statutes I did not put away from me.
[18:23] I was blameless before him, and I kept myself from my guilt.
[18:24] So the Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.
[18:25] With the merciful you show yourself merciful; with the blameless man you show yourself blameless;
[18:26] with the purified you show yourself pure; and with the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous.
[18:27] For you save a humble people, but the haughty eyes you bring down.
[18:28] For it is you who light my lamp; the Lord my God lightens my darkness.
[18:29] For by you I can run against a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall.
[18:30] This God—his way is perfect; the word of the Lord proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.
[18:31] For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God?—
[18:32] the God who equipped me with strength and made my way blameless.
[18:33] He made my feet like the feet of a deer and set me secure on the heights.
[18:34] He trains my hands for war, so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
[18:35] You have given me the shield of your salvation, and your right hand supported me, and your gentleness made me great.
[18:36] You gave a wide place for my steps under me, and my feet did not slip.
[18:37] I pursued my enemies and overtook them, and did not turn back till they were consumed.
[18:38] I thrust them through, so that they were not able to rise; they fell under my feet.
[18:39] For you equipped me with strength for the battle; you made those who rise against me sink under me.
[18:40] You made my enemies turn their backs to me, and those who hated me I destroyed.
[18:41] They cried for help, but there was none to save; they cried to the Lord, but he did not answer them.
[18:42] I beat them fine as dust before the wind; I cast them out like the mire of the streets.
[18:43] You delivered me from strife with the people; you made me the head of the nations; people whom I had not known served me.
[18:44] As soon as they heard of me they obeyed me; foreigners came cringing to me.
[18:45] Foreigners lost heart and came trembling out of their fortresses.
[18:46] The Lord lives, and blessed be my rock, and exalted be the God of my salvation—
[18:47] the God who gave me vengeance and subdued peoples under me,
[18:48] who delivered me from my enemies; yes, you exalted me above those who rose against me; you rescued me from the man of violence.
[18:49] For this I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations, and sing to your name.
[18:50] Great salvation he brings to his king, and shows steadfast love to his anointed, to David and his offspring forever.