22:12 He shrouded himself in darkness, 1
in thick rain clouds. 2
22:13 From the brightness in front of him
came coals of fire. 3
22:14 The Lord thundered 4 from the sky;
the sovereign One 5 shouted loudly. 6
22:15 He shot 7 arrows and scattered them, 8
lightning and routed them. 9
22:16 The depths 10 of the sea were exposed;
the inner regions 11 of the world were uncovered
by the Lord’s battle cry, 12
by the powerful breath from his nose. 13
22:17 He reached down from above and grabbed me; 14
he pulled me from the surging water. 15
22:18 He rescued me from my strong enemy, 16
from those who hate me,
for they were too strong for me.
22:19 They confronted 17 me in my day of calamity,
but the Lord helped me. 18
22:20 He brought me out into a wide open place;
he delivered me because he was pleased with me. 19
22:21 The Lord repaid 20 me for my godly deeds; 21
he rewarded 22 my blameless behavior. 23
22:22 For I have obeyed the Lord’s commands; 24
I have not rebelled against my God. 25
22:23 For I am aware of all his regulations, 26
and I do not reject his rules. 27
22:24 I was blameless before him;
I kept myself from sinning. 28
22:25 The Lord rewarded me for my godly deeds; 29
he took notice of my blameless behavior. 30
22:26 You prove to be loyal 31 to one who is faithful; 32
you prove to be trustworthy 33 to one who is innocent. 34
22:27 You prove to be reliable 35 to one who is blameless,
but you prove to be deceptive 36 to one who is perverse. 37
22:28 You deliver oppressed 38 people,
but you watch the proud and bring them down. 39
22:29 Indeed, 40 you are my lamp, 41 Lord.
The Lord illumines 42 the darkness around me. 43
22:30 Indeed, 44 with your help 45 I can charge 46 against an army; 47
by my God’s power 48 I can jump over a wall. 49
22:31 The one true God acts in a faithful manner; 50
the Lord’s promise is reliable; 51
he is a shield to all who take shelter in him.
22:32 Indeed, 52 who is God besides the Lord?
Who is a protector 53 besides our God? 54
22:33 The one true God 55 is my mighty refuge; 56
he removes 57 the obstacles in my way. 58
22:34 He gives me the agility of a deer; 59
he enables me to negotiate the rugged terrain. 60
22:35 He trains 61 my hands for battle; 62
my arms can bend even the strongest bow. 63
22:36 You give me 64 your protective shield; 65
your willingness to help enables me to prevail. 66
22:37 You widen my path; 67
my feet 68 do not slip.
22:38 I chase my enemies and destroy them;
I do not turn back until I wipe them out.
22:39 I wipe them out and beat them to death;
they cannot get up;
they fall at my feet.
22:40 You give me strength for battle; 69
you make my foes kneel before me. 70
22:41 You make my enemies retreat; 71
I destroy those who hate me.
22:42 They cry out, 72 but there is no one to help them; 73
they cry out to the Lord, 74 but he does not answer them.
22:43 I grind them as fine as the dust of the ground;
I crush them and stomp on them like clay 75 in the streets.
22:44 You rescue me from a hostile army; 76
you preserve me as a leader of nations;
people over whom I had no authority are now my subjects. 77
22:45 Foreigners are powerless before me; 78
when they hear of my exploits, they submit to me. 79
22:46 Foreigners lose their courage; 80
they shake with fear 81 as they leave 82 their strongholds. 83
22:47 The Lord is alive! 84
My protector 85 is praiseworthy! 86
The God who delivers me 87 is exalted as king! 88
22:48 The one true God completely vindicates me; 89
he makes nations submit to me. 90
22:49 He delivers me from my enemies; 91
you snatch me away 92 from those who attack me; 93
you rescue me from violent men.
22:50 So I will give you thanks, O Lord, before the nations! 94
I will sing praises to you. 95
22:51 He gives his chosen king magnificent victories; 96
he is faithful to his chosen ruler, 97
to David and to his descendants forever!”