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2 Samuel 22
The Message
2 Samuel 22
The Message
22 David prayed to God the words of this song after God saved him from all his enemies and from Saul.
2-3 God is bedrock under my feet,
the castle in which I live,
my rescuing knight.
My God—the high crag
where I run for dear life,
hiding behind the boulders,
safe in the granite hideout;
My mountaintop refuge,
he saves me from ruthless men.
4 I sing to God the Praise-Lofty,
and find myself safe and saved.
5-6 The waves of death crashed over me,
devil waters rushed over me.
Hell’s ropes cinched me tight;
death traps barred every exit.
7 A hostile world! I called to God,
to my God I cried out.
From his palace he heard me call;
my cry brought me right into his presence—
a private audience!
8-16 Earth wobbled and lurched;
the very heavens shook like leaves,
Quaked like aspen leaves
because of his rage.
His nostrils flared, billowing smoke;
his mouth spit fire.
Tongues of fire darted in and out;
he lowered the sky.
He stepped down;
under his feet an abyss opened up.
He rode a winged creature,
swift on wind-wings.
He wrapped himself
in a trenchcoat of black rain-cloud darkness.
But his cloud-brightness burst through,
a grand comet of fireworks.
Then God thundered out of heaven;
the High God gave a great shout.
God shot his arrows—pandemonium!
He hurled his lightnings—a rout!
The secret sources of ocean were exposed,
the hidden depths of earth lay uncovered
The moment God roared in protest,
let loose his hurricane anger.
17-20 But me he caught—reached all the way
from sky to sea; he pulled me out
Of that ocean of hate, that enemy chaos,
the void in which I was drowning.
They hit me when I was down,
but God stuck by me.
He stood me up on a wide-open field;
I stood there saved—surprised to be loved!
21-25 God made my life complete
when I placed all the pieces before him.
When I cleaned up my act,
he gave me a fresh start.
Indeed, I’ve kept alert to God’s ways;
I haven’t taken God for granted.
Every day I review the ways he works,
I try not to miss a trick.
I feel put back together,
and I’m watching my step.
God rewrote the text of my life
when I opened the book of my heart to his eyes.
26-28 You stick by people who stick with you,
you’re straight with people who’re straight with you,
You’re good to good people,
you shrewdly work around the bad ones.
You take the side of the down-and-out,
but the stuck-up you take down a peg.
29-31 Suddenly, God, your light floods my path,
God drives out the darkness.
I smash the bands of marauders,
I vault the high fences.
What a God! His road
stretches straight and smooth.
Every God-direction is road-tested.
Everyone who runs toward him
Makes it.
32-46 Is there any god like God?
Are we not at bedrock?
Is not this the God who armed me well,
then aimed me in the right direction?
Now I run like a deer;
I’m king of the mountain.
He shows me how to fight;
I can bend a bronze bow!
You protect me with salvation-armor;
you touch me and I feel ten feet tall.
You cleared the ground under me
so my footing was firm.
When I chased my enemies I caught them;
I didn’t let go till they were dead men.
I nailed them; they were down for good;
then I walked all over them.
You armed me well for this fight;
you smashed the upstarts.
You made my enemies turn tail,
and I wiped out the haters.
They cried “uncle”
but Uncle didn’t come;
They yelled for God
and got no for an answer.
I ground them to dust; they gusted in the wind.
I threw them out, like garbage in the gutter.
You rescued me from a squabbling people;
you made me a leader of nations.
People I’d never heard of served me;
the moment they got wind of me they submitted.
They gave up; they came trembling from their hideouts.
47-51 Live, God! Blessing to my Rock,
my towering Salvation-God!
This God set things right for me
and shut up the people who talked back.
He rescued me from enemy anger.
You pulled me from the grip of upstarts,
You saved me from the bullies.
That’s why I’m thanking you, God,
all over the world.
That’s why I’m singing songs
that rhyme your name.
God’s king takes the trophy;
God’s chosen is beloved.
I mean David and all his children—
always.
2 Samuel 22
New International Version
2 Samuel 22
New International Version
David’s Song of Praise(A)
22 David sang(B) to the Lord the words of this song when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. 2 He said:
“The Lord is my rock,(C) my fortress(D) and my deliverer;(E)
3 my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,(F)
my shield[a](G) and the horn[b](H) of my salvation.
He is my stronghold,(I) my refuge and my savior—
from violent people you save me.
4 “I called to the Lord, who is worthy(J) of praise,
and have been saved from my enemies.
5 The waves(K) of death swirled about me;
the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me.
6 The cords of the grave(L) coiled around me;
the snares of death confronted me.
7 “In my distress(M) I called(N) to the Lord;
I called out to my God.
From his temple he heard my voice;
my cry came to his ears.
8 The earth(O) trembled and quaked,(P)
the foundations(Q) of the heavens[c] shook;
they trembled because he was angry.
9 Smoke rose from his nostrils;
consuming fire(R) came from his mouth,
burning coals(S) blazed out of it.
10 He parted the heavens and came down;
dark clouds(T) were under his feet.
11 He mounted the cherubim(U) and flew;
he soared[d] on the wings of the wind.(V)
12 He made darkness(W) his canopy around him—
the dark[e] rain clouds of the sky.
13 Out of the brightness of his presence
bolts of lightning(X) blazed forth.
14 The Lord thundered(Y) from heaven;
the voice of the Most High resounded.
15 He shot his arrows(Z) and scattered the enemy,
with great bolts of lightning he routed them.
16 The valleys of the sea were exposed
and the foundations of the earth laid bare
at the rebuke(AA) of the Lord,
at the blast(AB) of breath from his nostrils.
17 “He reached down from on high(AC) and took hold of me;
he drew(AD) me out of deep waters.
18 He rescued(AE) me from my powerful enemy,
from my foes, who were too strong for me.
19 They confronted me in the day of my disaster,
but the Lord was my support.(AF)
20 He brought me out into a spacious(AG) place;
he rescued(AH) me because he delighted(AI) in me.(AJ)
21 “The Lord has dealt with me according to my righteousness;(AK)
according to the cleanness(AL) of my hands(AM) he has rewarded me.
22 For I have kept(AN) the ways of the Lord;
I am not guilty of turning from my God.
23 All his laws are before me;(AO)
I have not turned(AP) away from his decrees.
24 I have been blameless(AQ) before him
and have kept myself from sin.
25 The Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness,(AR)
according to my cleanness[f] in his sight.
26 “To the faithful you show yourself faithful,
to the blameless you show yourself blameless,
27 to the pure(AS) you show yourself pure,
but to the devious you show yourself shrewd.(AT)
28 You save the humble,(AU)
but your eyes are on the haughty(AV) to bring them low.(AW)
29 You, Lord, are my lamp;(AX)
the Lord turns my darkness into light.
30 With your help I can advance against a troop[g];
with my God I can scale a wall.
31 “As for God, his way is perfect:(AY)
The Lord’s word is flawless;(AZ)
he shields(BA) all who take refuge in him.
32 For who is God besides the Lord?
And who is the Rock(BB) except our God?(BC)
33 It is God who arms me with strength[h]
and keeps my way secure.
34 He makes my feet like the feet of a deer;(BD)
he causes me to stand on the heights.(BE)
35 He trains my hands(BF) for battle;
my arms can bend a bow(BG) of bronze.
36 You make your saving help my shield;(BH)
your help has made[i] me great.
37 You provide a broad path(BI) for my feet,
so that my ankles do not give way.
38 “I pursued my enemies and crushed them;
I did not turn back till they were destroyed.
39 I crushed(BJ) them completely, and they could not rise;
they fell beneath my feet.
40 You armed me with strength for battle;
you humbled my adversaries before me.(BK)
41 You made my enemies turn their backs(BL) in flight,
and I destroyed my foes.
42 They cried for help,(BM) but there was no one to save them—(BN)
to the Lord, but he did not answer.(BO)
43 I beat them as fine as the dust(BP) of the earth;
I pounded and trampled(BQ) them like mud(BR) in the streets.
44 “You have delivered(BS) me from the attacks of the peoples;
you have preserved(BT) me as the head of nations.
People(BU) I did not know now serve me,
45 foreigners cower(BV) before me;
as soon as they hear of me, they obey me.(BW)
46 They all lose heart;
they come trembling[j](BX) from their strongholds.
47 “The Lord lives! Praise be to my Rock!
Exalted(BY) be my God, the Rock, my Savior!(BZ)
48 He is the God who avenges(CA) me,(CB)
who puts the nations under me,
49 who sets me free from my enemies.(CC)
You exalted me(CD) above my foes;
from a violent man you rescued me.
50 Therefore I will praise you, Lord, among the nations;
I will sing the praises(CE) of your name.(CF)
Footnotes
- 2 Samuel 22:3 Or sovereign
- 2 Samuel 22:3 Horn here symbolizes strength.
- 2 Samuel 22:8 Hebrew; Vulgate and Syriac (see also Psalm 18:7) mountains
- 2 Samuel 22:11 Many Hebrew manuscripts (see also Psalm 18:10); most Hebrew manuscripts appeared
- 2 Samuel 22:12 Septuagint (see also Psalm 18:11); Hebrew massed
- 2 Samuel 22:25 Hebrew; Septuagint and Vulgate (see also Psalm 18:24) to the cleanness of my hands
- 2 Samuel 22:30 Or can run through a barricade
- 2 Samuel 22:33 Dead Sea Scrolls, some Septuagint manuscripts, Vulgate and Syriac (see also Psalm 18:32); Masoretic Text who is my strong refuge
- 2 Samuel 22:36 Dead Sea Scrolls; Masoretic Text shield; / you stoop down to make
- 2 Samuel 22:46 Some Septuagint manuscripts and Vulgate (see also Psalm 18:45); Masoretic Text they arm themselves
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.