Psalm 18:6-31

English Standard Version

⁶^(A)In my distress I called upon the Lord;
to my God I cried for help.
From his ^(B)temple he heard my voice,
and my cry to him reached his ears.

⁷Then the earth ^(C)reeled and rocked;
    the foundations also of the mountains trembled
    and quaked, because he was angry.
⁸Smoke went up from his nostrils,^[a]
    and devouring ^(D)fire from his mouth;
    glowing coals flamed forth from him.
⁹He ^(E)bowed the heavens and ^(F)came down;
    ^(G)thick darkness was under his feet.
¹⁰He rode on a cherub and flew;
    he came swiftly on ^(H)the wings of the wind.
¹¹He made darkness his covering, his ^(I)canopy around him,
    thick clouds ^(J)dark with water.
¹²Out of the brightness before him
    ^(K)hailstones and coals of fire broke through his clouds.

¹³The Lord also ^(L)thundered in the heavens,
    and the Most High uttered his ^(M)voice,
    hailstones and coals of fire.
¹⁴And he sent out his ^(N)arrows and scattered them;
    he flashed forth lightnings and ^(O)routed them.
¹⁵Then ^(P)the channels of the sea were seen,
    and the foundations of the world were laid bare
at your ^(Q)rebuke, O Lord,
    at the blast of ^(R)the breath of your nostrils.

¹⁶He ^(S)sent from on high, he took me;
    he ^(T)drew me out of ^(U)many waters.
¹⁷He rescued me from my strong enemy
    and from those who hated me,
    for they were ^(V)too mighty for me.
¹⁸They confronted me in the day of my calamity,
    but the Lord was my support.
¹⁹He brought me out into ^(W)a broad place;
    he rescued me, because he ^(X)delighted in me.

²⁰The Lord dealt with me ^(Y)according to my righteousness;
    according to ^(Z)the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me.
²¹For I have ^(AA)kept the ways of the Lord,
    and have not wickedly departed from my God.
²²For ^(AB)all his rules^[b] were before me,
    and his statutes I did not put away from me.
²³I was ^(AC)blameless before him,
    and I kept myself from my guilt.
²⁴So the Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness,
    according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.

²⁵With ^(AD)the merciful you show yourself merciful;
    with the blameless man you show yourself blameless;
²⁶with the purified you show yourself pure;
    and with ^(AE)the crooked you make yourself seem tortuous.
²⁷For you save ^(AF)a humble people,
    but ^(AG)the haughty eyes you bring down.
²⁸For it is you who light my ^(AH)lamp;
    the Lord my God lightens my darkness.
²⁹For by you I can run against a troop,
    and by my God I can ^(AI)leap over ^(AJ)a wall.
³⁰This God—his way is ^(AK)perfect;^[c]
    the word of the Lord ^(AL)proves true;
    he is ^(AM)a shield for all those who ^(AN)take refuge in him.