18:1  I LOVE You fervently {and} devotedly, O Lord, my Strength.

18:2  The Lord is my Rock, my Fortress, and my Deliverer; my God, my keen {and} firm Strength in Whom I will trust {and} take refuge, my Shield, and the Horn of my salvation, my High Tower.

18:3  I will call upon the Lord, Who is to be praised; so shall I be saved from my enemies.

18:4  The cords {or} bands of death surrounded me, and the streams of ungodliness {and} the torrents of ruin terrified me.

18:5  The cords of Sheol (the place of the dead) surrounded me; the snares of death confronted {and} came upon me.

18:6  In my distress [when seemingly closed in] I called upon the Lord and cried to my God; He heard my voice out of His temple (heavenly dwelling place), and my cry came before Him, into His [very] ears.

18:7  Then the earth quaked and rocked, the foundations also of the mountains trembled; they moved {and} were shaken because He was indignant {and} angry.

18:8  There went up smoke from His nostrils; and lightning out of His mouth devoured; coals were kindled by it.

18:9  He bowed the heavens also and came down; and thick darkness was under His feet.

18:10  And He rode upon a cherub [a storm] and flew [swiftly]; yes, He sped on with the wings of the wind.

18:11  He made darkness His secret hiding place; as His pavilion (His canopy) round about Him were dark waters {and} thick clouds of the skies.

18:12  Out of the brightness before Him there broke forth through His thick clouds hailstones and coals of fire.

18:13  The Lord also thundered from the heavens, and the Most High uttered His voice, amid hailstones and coals of fire.

18:14  And He sent out His arrows and scattered them; and He flashed forth lightnings and put them to rout.

18:15  Then the beds of the sea appeared 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 reached from on high, He took me; He drew me out of many waters.

18:17  He delivered me from my strong enemy and from those who hated {and} abhorred me, for they were too strong for me.

18:18  They confronted {and} came upon me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my stay {and} support.

18:19  He brought me forth also into a large place; He was delivering me because He was pleased with me {and} delighted in me.

18:20  The Lord rewarded me according to my righteousness (my conscious integrity and sincerity with Him); according to the cleanness of my hands has He recompensed 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 ordinances were before me, and I put not away His statutes from me.

18:23  I was upright before Him {and} blameless with Him, ever [on guard] to keep myself free from my sin {and} guilt.

18:24  Therefore has the Lord recompensed me according to my righteousness (my uprightness and right standing with Him), according to the cleanness of my hands in His sight.

18:25  With the kind {and} merciful You will show Yourself kind {and} merciful, with an upright man You will show Yourself upright,

18:26  With the pure You will show Yourself pure, and with the perverse You will show Yourself contrary.

18:27  For You deliver an afflicted {and} humble people but will bring down those with haughty looks.

18:28  For You cause my lamp to be lighted {and} to shine; the Lord my God illumines my darkness.

18:29  For by You I can run through a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall.

18:30  As for God, His way is perfect! The word of the Lord is tested {and} tried; He is a shield to all those who take refuge {and} put their trust in Him.

18:31  For who is God except the Lord? Or who is the Rock save our God,

18:32  The God who girds me with strength and makes my way perfect?

18:33  He makes my feet like hinds' feet [able to stand firmly or make progress on the dangerous heights of testing and trouble]; He sets me securely upon my high places.

18:34  He teaches my hands to war, so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.

18:35  You have also given me the shield of Your salvation, and Your right hand has held me up; Your gentleness {and} condescension have made me great.

18:36  You have given plenty of room for my steps under me, that my feet would not slip.

18:37  I pursued my enemies and overtook them; neither did I turn again till they were consumed.

18:38  I smote them so that they were not able to rise; they fell wounded under my feet.

18:39  For You have girded me with strength for the battle; You have subdued under me and caused to bow down those who rose up against me.

18:40  You have also made my enemies turn their backs to me, that I might cut off those who hate me.

18:41  They cried [for help], but there was none to deliver--even unto the Lord, but He answered them not.

18:42  Then I beat them small as the dust before the wind; I emptied them out as the dirt {and} mire of the streets.

18:43  You have delivered me from the strivings of the people; You made me the head of the nations; a people I had not known served me.

18:44  As soon as they heard of me, they obeyed me; foreigners submitted themselves cringingly {and} yielded feigned obedience to me.

18:45  Foreigners lost heart and came trembling out of their caves {or} strongholds.

18:46  The Lord lives! Blessed be my Rock; and let the God of my salvation be exalted,

18:47  The God Who avenges me and subdues peoples under me,

18:48  Who delivers me from my enemies; yes, You lift me up above those who rise up against me; You deliver me from the man of violence.

18:49  Therefore will I give thanks {and} extol You, O Lord, among the nations, and sing praises to Your name.

18:50  Great deliverances {and} triumphs gives He to His king; and He shows mercy {and} steadfast love to His anointed, to David and his offspring forever.