2 Samuel 22

Contemporary English Version

You rescue me and keep me
    safe from violence.
⁴ I praise you, our Lord!
    I prayed to you,
and you rescued me
    from my enemies.
⁵ Death, like ocean waves,
    surrounded me,
and I was almost swallowed
    by its flooding waters.

⁶ Ropes from the world
of the dead
    had coiled around me,
and death had set a trap
    in my path.
⁷ I was in terrible trouble
    when I called out to you,
but from your temple
you heard me
    and answered my prayer.
⁸ Earth shook and shivered!
The columns supporting the sky^[c]
    rocked back and forth.
You were angry
⁹     and breathed out smoke.
Scorching heat and fiery flames
    spewed from your mouth.

¹⁰ You opened the heavens
    like curtains,
and you came down
with storm clouds
    under your feet.
¹¹ You rode on the backs
    of flying creatures.^[d]
You appeared^[e]
    with the wind as wings.
¹² Darkness was your tent!
Thunderclouds filled the sky,
    hiding you from sight.
¹³ Fiery coals lit up the sky
    in front of you.

¹⁴ Lord Most High, your voice
    thundered from the heavens.
¹⁵ You scattered your enemies
    with arrows of lightning.
¹⁶ You roared at the sea,
and its deepest channels
    could be seen.
You snorted,
and the earth shook
    to its foundations.

¹⁷ You reached down from heaven,
and you lifted me
    from deep in the ocean.
¹⁸ You rescued me from enemies
who were hateful
    and too powerful for me.
¹⁹ On the day disaster struck,
they came and attacked,
    but you defended me.
²⁰ When I was fenced in,
you freed and rescued me
    because you love me.
²¹ You are good to me, Lord,
    because I do right,
and you reward me
    because I am innocent.
²² I do what you want
    and never turn to do evil.
²³ I keep your laws in mind
and never turn away
    from your teachings.
²⁴ I obey you completely
    and guard against sin.
²⁵ You have been good to me
    because I do right;
you have rewarded me
for being innocent
    by your standards.

²⁶ You are always loyal
    to your loyal people,
and you are faithful
    to the faithful.
²⁷ With all who are sincere
    you are sincere,
but you treat the unfaithful
    as their deeds deserve.
²⁸ You rescue the humble,
but you look for ways
    to put down the proud.

²⁹ Our Lord and God,
    you are my lamp.
You turn darkness to light.
³⁰ You help me defeat armies
    and capture cities.

³¹ Your way is perfect, Lord,
    and your word is correct.
You are a shield for those
    who run to you for help.
³² You alone are God!
    Only you are a mighty rock.^[f]
33 You are my strong fortress,
    and you set me free.
^34 (A) You make my feet run as fast
    as those of a deer,
and you help me stand
    on the mountains.

³⁵ You teach my hands to fight
and my arms to use
    a bow of bronze.
³⁶ You alone are my shield,
and by coming to help me,
    you have made me famous.
³⁷ You clear the way for me,
    and now I won't stumble.

³⁸ I kept chasing my enemies
until I caught them
    and destroyed them.
³⁹ I destroyed them!
I stuck my sword
    through my enemies,
and they were crushed
    under my feet.
⁴⁰ You helped me win victories
and forced my attackers
    to fall victim to me.

⁴¹ You made my enemies run,
    and I killed them.
⁴² They cried out for help,
    but no one saved them;
they called out to you,
    but there was no answer.
⁴³ I ground them to dust,
and I squashed them
    like mud in the streets.

⁴⁴ You rescued me
    from my stubborn people
and made me the leader
of foreign nations,
    who are now my slaves.
⁴⁵ They obey and come crawling.
⁴⁶     They have lost all courage
and from their fortresses
    they come trembling.

⁴⁷ You are the living Lord!
    I will praise you!
You are a mighty rock.^[g]
I will honor you
    for keeping me safe.
⁴⁸ You took revenge for me,
and you put nations
    in my power.
⁴⁹ You protected me
    from violent enemies,
and you made me much greater
    than all of them.

^50 (B) I will praise you, Lord,
and I will honor you
    among the nations.
⁵¹ You give glorious victories
    to your chosen king.
Your faithful love for David
and for his descendants
    will never end.