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.
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He said:
"The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
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my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield 1 and the horn 2 of my salvation.
He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior -
from violent people you save me.
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"I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise,
and have been saved from my enemies.
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The waves of death swirled about me;
the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me.
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The cords of the grave coiled around me;
the snares of death confronted me.
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"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.
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The earth trembled and quaked,
the foundations of the heavens 3 shook;
they trembled because he was angry.
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Smoke rose from his nostrils;
consuming fire came from his mouth,
burning coals blazed out of it.
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He parted the heavens and came down;
dark clouds were under his feet.
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He mounted the cherubim and flew;
he soared 4 on the wings of the wind.
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He made darkness his canopy around him -
the dark 5 rain clouds of the sky.
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Out of the brightness of his presence
bolts of lightning blazed forth.
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The Lord thundered from heaven;
the voice of the Most High resounded.
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He shot his arrows and scattered the enemy,
with great bolts of lightning he routed them.
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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.
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"He reached down from on high and took hold of me;
he drew me out of deep waters.
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He rescued me from my powerful enemy,
from my foes, who were too strong for me.
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They confronted me in the day of my disaster,
but the Lord was my support.
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He brought me out into a spacious place;
he rescued me because he delighted in me.
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"The Lord has dealt with me according to my righteousness;
according to the cleanness of my hands he has rewarded me.
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For I have kept the ways of the Lord;
I am not guilty of turning from my God.
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All his laws are before me;
I have not turned away from his decrees.
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I have been blameless before him
and have kept myself from sin.
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The Lord has rewarded me according to my righteousness,
according to my cleanness 6 in his sight.
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"To the faithful you show yourself faithful,
to the blameless you show yourself blameless,
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to the pure you show yourself pure,
but to the devious you show yourself shrewd.
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You save the humble,
but your eyes are on the haughty to bring them low.
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You, Lord, are my lamp;
the Lord turns my darkness into light.
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With your help I can advance against a troop 7 ;
with my God I can scale a wall.
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"As for God, his way is perfect:
The Lord's word is flawless;
he shields all who take refuge in him.
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For who is God besides the Lord?
And who is the Rock except our God?
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It is God who arms me with strength 8
and keeps my way secure.
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He makes my feet like the feet of a deer;
he causes me to stand on the heights.
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He trains my hands for battle;
my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
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You make your saving help my shield;
your help has made 9 me great.
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You provide a broad path for my feet,
so that my ankles do not give way.
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"I pursued my enemies and crushed them;
I did not turn back till they were destroyed.
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I crushed them completely, and they could not rise;
they fell beneath my feet.
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You armed me with strength for battle;
you humbled my adversaries before me.
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You made my enemies turn their backs in flight,
and I destroyed my foes.
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They cried for help, but there was no one to save them -
to the Lord, but he did not answer.
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I beat them as fine as the dust of the earth;
I pounded and trampled them like mud in the streets.
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"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,
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foreigners cower before me;
as soon as they hear of me, they obey me.
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They all lose heart;
they come trembling 10 from their strongholds.
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"The Lord lives! Praise be to my Rock!
Exalted be my God, the Rock, my Savior!
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He is the God who avenges me,
who puts the nations under me,
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who sets me free from my enemies.
You exalted me above my foes;
from a violent man you rescued me.
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Therefore I will praise you, Lord, among the nations;
I will sing the praises of your name.
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"He gives his king great victories;
he shows unfailing kindness to his anointed,
to David and his descendants forever."