2 Samuel 22:2-12

2 And David said, The Lord is my stone, and my strength/and my stronghold, and my saviour;

3 my God, my strength, I shall hope into him; my shield, and the horn of mine health, my raiser (up), and my refuge; my saviour, thou shalt deliver me from wickedness, that is, (thou) hast delivered (me from violence). (my God, my strength/my stronghold, yea, I have hope in him; my shield, and the horn of my salvation, or of my victory, my raiser-up, and my refuge; my saviour, thou hast delivered me from all violence.)

4 I shall inwardly call (upon) the Lord, worthy to be praised; and I shall be safe from mine enemies. (I shall call to the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; and I shall be saved from my enemies.)

5 For the sorrows of death compassed me; the strands of Belial made me afeared.

6 The cords of hell (en)compassed me; the snares of death have gone before me. (The cords of hell surrounded me; the snares of death were set to catch me.)

7 In tribulation I shall call thee, Lord, that is, I have called thee, Lord, and I shall cry to my God; and he heard from his holy temple my voice, and my cry shall come to his ears. (In tribulation I called on thee, Lord, yea, I cried to my God; and he heard my voice in his holy Temple, and my cry came to his ears.)

8 The earth was moved, and trembled; the foundaments of hills were smitten and shaken together, for the Lord was wroth to them. (The earth was moved, and trembled; the foundations of heaven were altogether shaken, for the Lord was angry.)

9 Smoke went up from his nostrils, and fire of his mouth shall devour; coals were kindled of it. (Smoke went up from his nostrils, and devouring fire came out of his mouth; coals were kindled by it.)

10 And he bowed (the) heavens, and came down; and mist (was) under his feet.

11 And he went upon cherubim, and flew; and he slid on the pens/on the feathers of the wind (and he went upon the wings of the wind).

12 He put darkness (a) hiding place in his compass, and riddled, or winnowed, waters from the clouds of heavens; (He hid himself in darkness, and the clouds of the heavens, which were filled with water, encompassed, or surrounded, him;)

2 Samuel 22:2-12 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO SECOND SAMUEL 22

This chapter contains a song or psalm, the same with the eighteenth psalm, and which, according to Jarchi, was composed by David in his old age, and, as Kimchi says, at the end or close of his days; but Abarbinel is of opinion that it was written in his youthful time, in the midst of his troubles, and was sung by him as often as he had a deliverance from any; and which may account for the several variations in it from the eighteenth psalm, which, the same writer observes, are seventy four; and are not to be ascribed to the difference of copies, or neglect of copiers: and very probably, towards the close of his days, he revised it, and made it fit for general use, and sent it with the rest of his psalms to the chief musician; but the particular consideration of it, and of the differences in it from Ps 18:1-50 are referred to the exposition of that book in its course.