BBE - Psalms - 18

18:1  I will give you my love, O Lord, my strength.

18:2  The Lord is my Rock, my walled town, and my saviour; my God, my Rock, in him will I put my faith; my breastplate, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.

18:3  I will send up my cry to the Lord, who is to be praised; so will I be made safe from those who are against me.

18:4  The cords of death were round me, and the seas of evil put me in fear.

18:5  The cords of hell were round me: the nets of death came on me.

18:6  In my trouble my voice went up to the Lord, and my cry to my God: my voice came to his hearing in his holy Temple, and my prayer came before him, even into his ears.

18:7  Then trouble and shock came on the earth; and the bases of the mountains were moved and shaking, because he was angry.

18:8  There went up a smoke from his nose, and a fire of destruction from his mouth: flames were lighted by it.

18:9  The heavens were bent, so that he might come down; and it was dark under his feet.

18:10  And he went in flight through the air, seated on a storm-cloud: going quickly on the wings of the wind.

18:11  He made the dark his secret place; his tent round him was the dark waters and thick clouds of the skies.

18:12  Before his shining light his dark clouds went past, raining ice and fire.

18:13  The Lord made thunder in the heavens, and the voice of the Highest was sounding out: a rain of ice and fire.

18:14  He sent out his arrows, driving them in all directions; by his flames of fire they were troubled.

18:15  Then the deep beds of the waters were seen, and the bases of the world were uncovered, because of your words of wrath, O Lord, because of the breath from your mouth.

18:16  He sent from on high, he took me, pulling me out of great waters.

18:17  He made me free from my strong hater, and from those who were against me, because they were stronger than I.

18:18  They came on me in the day of my trouble; but the Lord was my support.

18:19  He took me out into a wide place; he was my saviour because he had delight in me.

18:20  The Lord gives me the reward of my righteousness, because my hands are clean before him.

18:21  For I have kept the ways of the Lord; I have not been turned away in sin from my God.

18:22  For all his decisions were before me, and I did not put away his laws from me.

18:23  And I was upright before him, and I kept myself from sin.

18:24  Because of this the Lord has given me the reward of my righteousness, because my hands are clean in his eyes.

18:25  On him who has mercy you will have mercy; to the upright you will be upright;

18:26  He who is holy will see that you are holy; but to the man whose way is not straight you will be a hard judge.

18:27  For you are the saviour of those who are in trouble; but eyes full of pride will be made low.

18:28  You, O Lord, will be my light; by you, my God, the dark will be made bright for me.

18:29  By your help I have made a way through the wall which was shutting me in; by the help of my God I have gone over a wall.

18:30  As for God, his way is completely good; the word of the Lord is tested; he is a breastplate for all those who put their faith in him.

18:31  For who is God but the Lord? or who is a Rock but our God?

18:32  God puts a strong band about me, guiding me in a straight way.

18:33  He makes my feet like roes' feet, and puts me on high places.

18:34  He makes my hands expert in war, so that a bow of brass is bent by my arms.

18:35  You have given me the breastplate of your salvation: your right hand has been my support, and your mercy has made me great.

18:36  You have made my steps wide under me, so that my feet are kept from slipping.

18:37  I go after my haters and overtake them; not turning back till they are all overcome.

18:38  I will give them wounds, so that they are not able to get up: they are stretched under my feet.

18:39  For I have been armed by you with strength for the fight: you have made low under me those who come out against me.

18:40  By you their backs are turned in flight, so that my haters are cut off.

18:41  They were crying out, but there was no one to come to their help: even to the Lord, but he gave them no answer.

18:42  Then they were crushed as small as dust before the wind; they were drained out like the waste of the streets.

18:43  You have made me free from the fightings of the people; you have made me the head of the nations: a people of whom I had no knowledge will be my servants.

18:44  From the time when my name comes to their ears they will be ruled by me: men of other countries will, with false hearts, put themselves under my authority.

18:45  They will be wasting away, they will come out of their secret places shaking with fear.

18:46  The Lord is living; praise be to my Rock, and let the God of my salvation be honoured.

18:47  It is God who sends punishment on my haters, and puts peoples under my rule.

18:48  He makes me free from my haters; I am lifted up over those who come up against me: you have made me free from the violent man.

18:49  Because of this I will give you praise, O Lord, among the nations, and will make a song of praise to your name.

18:50  Great salvation does he give to his king; he has mercy on the king of his selection, David, and on his seed for ever.