Psalm 18
This psalm of praise and victory was written and sung after the Lord made David king of all Israel and gave him victory over the nations that opposed his rule (2 Sam. 5, 8, 10). Another version of the psalm is found in 2 Samuel 22, and quotations and allusions are found in Psalm 116. No matter how much Saul persecuted David, David did not consider Saul his enemy. "Deliver" is one of the key words in the psalm; it is found in the title as well as in verses 2, 17, 19, 43, and
Psalm 18
Moses, he was drawn out of the water (Ex. 2:10). The enemy fell in defeat, but David stood firm, supported by the Lord (23:4). He was now king of Israel. Ten years of exile were ended, his life had been spared, and his ministry lay before him.
48 (kjv). It's possible that the new king used this song at a national day of prayer and praise to give thanks to the Lord for His manifold mercies to Israel. The psalm opens (vv. 1–3) and closes (vv. 46–50) with a doxology. David the servant of God (78:70; 89:3, 20, 39; 132:10; 144:10) addressed the Lord in verses 1, 25–29, 35–36, 39–40, 43, and 48, and in the rest of the psalm, he told the people what God had done for him, so the song blends worship and witness. The focus of the psalm is on the Lord and what He graciously did for His servant, but it also tells us what He can do for us today if we will trust and obey.
God Rewards When We Obey (vv. 19–27) The word distress in verse 6 means "to be in a tight place, in a corner, hemmed in," but when the storm was over, David found himself in "a large place" where he could take "large steps" of faith in serving the Lord (v. 36). God enlarged David's trials (25:17) and used them to enlarge David (4:1)! David wasn't perfect, nor are we, but he was "a man after God's own heart" (1 Sam. 13:14; and see 15:28) and a man with a shepherd's heart (78:70–72; 2 Sam. 24:17). God delighted in David the way parents delight in the maturing of their children in character, obedience, and service. David was faithful to the Lord (vv. 20–24; 17:3–5), so the Lord faithfully cared for David (vv. 25–29). David knew God's law (v. 22) and obeyed it, in spite of the difficult circumstances of his exile. In the spirit of Samuel (1 Sam. 12:3) and Hezekiah (2 Kings 20:3), his affirmation of righteousness was an evidence of humility and honesty, not pride and deception. Note the use of the words righteousness and cleanness (vv. 20, 24), upright (blameless, vv. 23, 25), and pure (v. 26).
God Delivers When We Call on Him (vv. 1–18) When David expressed his love for the Lord, he used a special word that means "to love deeply, to have compassion." It's related to the Hebrew word for "womb" (see Jer. 21:7) and describes the kind of love a mother has for her baby (Isa. 49:15), a father has for his children (103:13), and the Lord has for His chosen people Israel (102:13; Hos. 1:7; Deut. 13:17). It's a deep and fervent love, the kind of love all of us should have for the Lord (31:23). David expressed his love (v. 1), his faith (v. 2), and his hope (v. 3). The seven metaphors he used certainly reflect the life of an outdoorsman and a soldier. "Rock" (vv. 2, 31, 46) is a familiar metaphor for the Lord, speaking of strength and stability, a place of refuge (19:14; 28:1; 31:2–3; 42:9; 62:2, 6–7; 71:3; 78:20; 89:26; 92:15; 94:22; 95:1; 144:1; 1 Sam. 23:25). It goes back to Genesis 49:24 and Deuteronomy 32:4, 15, 18, and 30–31. "Fortress" pictures God as a stronghold, like the city of Jerusalem on Mount Zion (1 Sam. 22:4; 24:22; 2 Sam. 5:17; 23:14). "Shield" speaks of God's protection (3:3; 7:10; 28:7; 33:20; Gen. 15:1; Deut. 33:29), but it also is a symbol of the king (84:9; 89:18). David was Israel's shield, but the Lord was David's shield. "Horn" refers to strength (Deut. 33:17; 1 Sam. 2:1, 10; 1 Kings 22:11) and has messianic connotations (Luke 1:69). This kind of God is worthy of our prayers and praise! (See 48:1; 96:4; 145:3.) After expressing his devotion, David described his distress (vv. 4–6) and pictured himself as a man who had been hemmed in on every side, caught in a trap, bound with cords, and thrown into the water to drown. (See 88:16–17; 69:2, 15; 124:4; Job 22:11.) But, when he called, God began to act on his behalf. The great deliverance (vv. 7–19) is depicted as a storm. The Lord had been longsuffering with King Saul, but now His anger arose and began to shake things, like an earthquake and an erupting volcano (vv. 7–8; Ex. 15:8; Deut. 32:22). God came down in a storm, like a warrior in a chariot, carried along swiftly by a cherub. (See Gen. 3:24; Ex. 25:18; 2 Kings 19:15; Ezek. 1, 10). He was accompanied by darkness, rain, wind, hail (a rare thing in the Holy Land), thunder, and lightning ("his arrows," v. 14; see 77:17; 144:6). All because David called on the Lord (v. 6)! At just the right time, God reached down and delivered David (vv. 16–19). Like
David had clean hands (vv. 20, 24) as well as skillful hands (v. 34; 78:72).
The way we relate to the Lord determines how the Lord relates to us (vv. 25–27). David was merciful to Saul, and God was merciful to David (Matt. 5:9). David was loyal ("blameless"), and God was faithful to him and kept His promises to bless him. David wasn't sinless, but he was blameless in his motives. The "pure in heart" (Matt. 5:8) are those whose hearts are wholly dedicated to God. Saul had been devious in his dealings with God, David, and the people, but David was honest and straightforward. It's true that early in his exile, he lied to Ahimelech the priest and to Achish, king of Gath (1 Sam. 21), but he soon learned that faith is living without scheming. Read verse 26 in the New American Standard Bible or the New International Version to see that God meets our "perverseness and crookedness" with His own shrewdness. The word translated "astute" or "shrewd" means "to wrestle," which reminds us of the way God dealt with Jacob (Gen. 32). God's character and covenants never change, but His dealings with us are determined by the condition of our hearts.
God Equips When We Submit to Him (vv. 28–45) What was God accomplishing during those difficult years of Saul's reign? For one thing, He was disciplining His people for running ahead of Him and making Saul king (Hos. 13:10–11). In His longsuffering, He was also giving Saul opportunities to repent. At the same time, He was equipping David for his years of service. God takes time to prepare His servants: thir-