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Psalms

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Psalm 18

1 For the music director, by the Lord’s servant David, who sang to the Lord the words of this song when the Lord rescued him from the power of all his enemies, including Saul. He said: “I love you, Lord, my source of strength!⁠ 2 The Lord is my high ridge, my stronghold, my deliverer. My God is my rocky summit where I take shelter, my shield, the horn that saves me, and my refuge.⁠ 3 I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I was delivered from my enemies. 4 The waves of death engulfed me, the currents of chaos overwhelmed me.⁠ 5 The ropes of Sheol tightened around me, the snares of death trapped me.⁠ 6 In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried out to my God. From his heavenly temple he heard my voice; he listened to my cry for help. 7 The earth heaved and shook. The roots of the mountains trembled; they heaved because he was angry.⁠ 8 Smoke ascended from his nose; fire devoured as it came from his mouth. He hurled down fiery coals. 9 He made the sky sink as he descended; a thick cloud was under his feet. 10 He mounted a winged angel and flew; he glided on the wings of the wind.⁠ 11 He shrouded himself in darkness, in thick rain clouds. 12 From the brightness in front of him came hail and fiery coals.⁠ 13 The Lord thundered in the sky; the Most High shouted. 14 He shot his arrows and scattered them, many lightning bolts and routed them. 15 The depths of the sea were exposed; the inner regions of the world were uncovered⁠ by your battle cry, Lord, by the powerful breath from your nose.⁠ 16 He reached down from above and took hold of me; he pulled me from the surging water. 17 He rescued me from my strong enemy, from those who hate me, for they were too strong for me. 18 They confronted me in my day of calamity, but the Lord helped me. 19 He brought me out into a wide open place; he delivered me because he was pleased with me. 20 The Lord repaid me for my godly deeds; he rewarded my blameless behavior. 21 For I have obeyed the Lord’s commands; I have not rebelled against my God. 22 For I am aware of all his regulations, and I do not reject his rules. 23 I was innocent before him, and kept myself from sinning. 24 The Lord rewarded me for my godly deeds; he took notice of my blameless behavior. 25 You prove to be loyal to one who is faithful; you prove to be trustworthy to one who is innocent.⁠ 26 You prove to be reliable to one who is blameless, but you prove to be deceptive to one who is perverse. 27 For you deliver oppressed people, but you bring down those who have a proud look. 28 Indeed, you light my lamp, Lord. My God illuminates the darkness around me. 29 Indeed, with your help I can charge against an army; by my God’s power I can jump over a wall. 30 The one true God acts in a faithful manner; the Lord’s promise is reliable. He is a shield to all who take shelter in him. 31 Indeed, who is God besides the Lord? Who is a protector besides our God? 32 The one true God gives me strength; he removes the obstacles in my way.⁠ 33 He gives me the agility of a deer; he enables me to negotiate the rugged terrain.⁠ 34 He trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend even the strongest bow. 35 You give me your protective shield; your right hand supports me. Your willingness to help enables me to prevail. 36 You widen my path; my feet do not slip. 37 I chase my enemies and catch them; I do not turn back until I wipe them out. 38 I beat them to death; they fall at my feet. 39 You give me strength for battle; you make my foes kneel before me. 40 You make my enemies retreat; I destroy those who hate me. 41 They cry out, but there is no one to help them; they cry out to the Lord, but he does not answer them. 42 I grind them as fine windblown dust; I beat them underfoot like clay in the streets. 43 You rescue me from a hostile army. You make me a leader of nations; people over whom I had no authority are now my subjects. 44 When they hear of my exploits, they submit to me. Foreigners are powerless before me. 45 Foreigners lose their courage; they shake with fear as they leave their strongholds. 46 The Lord is alive! My Protector is praiseworthy. The God who delivers me is exalted as king. 47 The one true God completely vindicates me; he makes nations submit to me. 48 He delivers me from my enemies. You snatch me away from those who attack me; you rescue me from violent men. 49 So I will give you thanks before the nations, O Lord. I will sing praises to you.⁠ 50 He gives his king magnificent victories; he is faithful to his chosen ruler, to David and his descendants forever.”

Texts in conversation

Compare The Royal Inscriptions of Sennacherib and Psalm 18:2

Ancient Near East, Assyrian · Hebrew Bible

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Summary

Psalm 18 refers to God as a mountain where the psalmist takes shelter, language drawn from ancient Near Eastern traditions, such as the Royal Inscriptions of Sennacherib, where the god Assur is similarly described as a mountain.

Passages

The Royal Inscriptions of Sennacherib

Ancient Near East, Assyrian
1 Sennacherib, great king, strong king, king of Assyria, unrivaled king, pious shepherd who reveres the great gods, guardian of truth who loves justice, provides help, goes to the aid of the weak, and strives after good deeds, perfect man, virile warrior, foremost of all rulers, the bridle that controls the unsubmissive, and the one who strikes enemies with lightning: 4 The god Aššur, the great mountain, granted to me unrivaled sovereignty and made my weapons greater than those of all who sit on royal daises. 5 At the beginning of my kingship, after I sat on the lordly throne and took command of the population of Assyria amid obedience and peace, Marduk-apla-iddina II, also known as Merodach-baladan, king of Karduniaš, Babylonia, an evil enemy, a rebel with a treacherous mind, an evildoer whose villainous acts are true, sought friendship with Šutur-Naḫundu, also known as Šutruk-Naḫḫunte II, an Elamite, by presenting him with gold, silver, and precious stones; then, he continuously requested reinforcements.
702–681 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in The Royal Inscriptions of Sennacherib

Psalm 18:2

Hebrew Bible
2 The Lord is my high ridge, my stronghold, my deliverer. My God is my rocky summit where I take shelter, my shield, the horn that saves me, and my refuge. 3 I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I was delivered from my enemies. 4 The waves of death engulfed me, the currents of chaos overwhelmed me. 5 The ropes of Sheol tightened around me, the snares of death trapped me. 6 In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried out to my God. From his heavenly temple he heard my voice; he listened to my cry for help.
600–201 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Psalms

References

"... צור in the Hebrew Bible refers to a large rock or boulder in which one can take shelter, use as a lookout (Numbers 23:9), a hiding-place from enemies (for example, 1 Chronicles 11:15) or where protection is sought from YHWH (for example, Exodus 33:22; Isaiah 2:10). It is used in word-pictures of YHWH in numerous places and its use as a divine epithet is frequent in the Psalms. The significance of this word-picture is indicated by the number of its occurrences at the opening or conclusion to a psalm, and its use in statements of incomparability (for example, 1 Samuel 2:2; 2 Samuel 22:32 = Psalm 18:32; Isaiah 44:8). In Moses' Song, which has a number of lexical and conceptual connections with Psalm 18 (for example, Deuteronomy 32:30-31, cf. Psalm 18:32), other deities are also referred to as צור (Deuteronomy 32:31, 37 with חסה) ..."
Alison Ruth Gray, Psalm 18 in Words and Pictures: A Reading Through Metaphor, BibInt 127 (Leiden: Brill, 2014), 62–63.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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The Royal Inscriptions of Sennacherib and Psalm 18:2

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