Wednesday, February 2, 2011

2 Samuel 22

David’s Song of Praise

1 David sang 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, my fortress and my deliverer;
3 my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield and the horn of my salvation.
He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior—
from violent people you save me.

4 “I called to the LORD, who is worthy of praise,
and have been saved from my enemies.
5 The waves of death swirled about me;
the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me.
6 The cords of the grave coiled around me;
the snares of death confronted me.

7 “In my distress I called 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 trembled and quaked,
the foundations of the heavens shook;
they trembled because he was angry.
9 Smoke rose from his nostrils;
consuming fire came from his mouth,
burning coals blazed out of it.
10 He parted the heavens and came down;
dark clouds were under his feet.
11 He mounted the cherubim and flew;
he soared on the wings of the wind.
12 He made darkness his canopy around him—
the dark rain clouds of the sky.
13 Out of the brightness of his presence
bolts of lightning blazed forth.
14 The LORD thundered from heaven;
the voice of the Most High resounded.
15 He shot his arrows 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 of the LORD,
at the blast of breath from his nostrils.

17 “He reached down from on high and took hold of me;
he drew me out of deep waters.
18 He rescued 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.
20 He brought me out into a spacious place;
he rescued me because he delighted in me.

21 “The LORD has dealt with me according to my righteousness;
according to the cleanness of my hands he has rewarded me.
22 For I have kept the ways of the LORD;
I am not guilty of turning from my God.
23 All his laws are before me;
I have not turned away from his decrees.
24 I have been blameless before him
and have kept myself from sin.
25 The LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness,
according to my cleanness in his sight.

26 “To the faithful you show yourself faithful,
to the blameless you show yourself blameless,
27 to the pure you show yourself pure,
but to the devious you show yourself shrewd.
28 You save the humble,
but your eyes are on the haughty to bring them low.
29 You, LORD, are my lamp;
the LORD turns my darkness into light.
30 With your help I can advance against a troop;
with my God I can scale a wall.

31 “As for God, his way is perfect:
The LORD’s word is flawless;
he shields all who take refuge in him.
32 For who is God besides the LORD?
And who is the Rock except our God?
33 It is God who arms me with strength
and keeps my way secure.
34 He makes my feet like the feet of a deer;
he causes me to stand on the heights.
35 He trains my hands for battle;
my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
36 You make your saving help my shield;
your help has made me great.
37 You provide a broad path 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 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.
41 You made my enemies turn their backs in flight,
and I destroyed my foes.
42 They cried for help, but there was no one to save them—
to the LORD, but he did not answer.
43 I beat them as fine as the dust of the earth;
I pounded and trampled them like mud in the streets.

44 “You have delivered me from the attacks of the peoples;
you have preserved me as the head of nations.
People I did not know now serve me,
45 foreigners cower before me;
as soon as they hear of me, they obey me.
46 They all lose heart;
they come trembling from their strongholds.

47 “The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock!
Exalted be my God, the Rock, my Savior!
48 He is the God who avenges me,
who puts the nations under me,
49 who sets me free from my enemies.
You exalted me 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 of your name.

51 “He gives his king great victories;
he shows unfailing kindness to his anointed,
to David and his descendants forever.”

4 comments:

This little Light of Mine! said...

My Bible says that this was not unusual for David to write a song like this...in fact it's pretty identical to Psalm 18...David was a skilled musician and it was definitely like him to write a song of thanksgiving to God. It also says that David calls God "the horn of salvation" because he was referring to the stregth and defensive protection animals have in their horns. Also, David was writing this hymn from God's perspective...he understood God's faithfulness and was not denying that he had ever sinned...he knew God had made him clean again with a pure heart. Jesus coming to earth and dying for us assures us too that we can be clean and perfect. God replaces our sin with his purity, and he no longer sees our sin.

This little Light of Mine! said...

I can't wait until we get into Psalms...only 2 more chapters to go :) This was good chaper...isn't it so good to know that we don't have to be dirty but that we can be washed whiter than snow! God is so good in that he can take away every bad thing we have ever done and make us clean again...and there are many days that I am so thankful that Emma, Owen and Cooper don't have to live down here on earth and deal with life and all the yuckiness that is down here...they never have to deal with suffering or peer pressure or sin in general...and it just makes me realize how much more I will have to pray for Natalee to come to know and love and serve God at an early age so that she never is apart from Him.

This little Light of Mine! said...

Oh...and I just wanted to add:

2 Samuel 22:29

You, Lord, are my lamp;
the Lord turns my darkness into light.

That was my favorite verse :)

Anna said...

I too like vs 29... it makes me think about how God has used my "dark" times to bring about great things in my life.

Another of my favorites here is vs 2 He said: "The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliver;

He is most definitely my rock- don't know where I would be without the strength that He brings me.