Chapter Intro - Restated:
To: The Chief Musician; A Psalm of David (and of Leigh), who sang these words to the Lord on the day when God delivered him from hands of his enemy ... of Saul.
Singing:
You, Lord, have brought me out into a spacious place; You delivered me because I have brought you delight, I have made you smile.
You have rewarded me according to the righteousness I have found in You, Your Spirit within my mind - my conscious thought, my honesty, and my trustworthiness; because my hands are clean in Your sight, You have rewarded me.
For I have stayed true to Your path, Lord. I have not strayed from Your side nor Your ways.
All of Your directions are ever before me, I will never let them slip away from me.
I stand in Your presence without blame, for I am clothed in Your righteousness and ever in a state of readiness so that I may keep myself free from sinning and the guilt that come with that lifestyle.
It is for these reasons that You have rewarded me for my presence in Your righteousness - because I can stand tall and straight in You - because of Your righteousness, my hands are clean in Your eyes.
You will always show Yourself kind and merciful to those who reflect Your kindness and mercy in their hearts and lives; as with those who are honest and straightforward, you will act honestly, too.
Those who are pure of heart will see Your purity, and those who are corrupt will see Your anger and hostility.
For You, my Lord, have delivered the tormented, timid and withdrawn people, but You will destroy those who look down upon them; the contemptuous, indifferent and overbearing.
It is You alone that have given Light to my life; You have made me to shine, causing the brightest light to flood my darkness.
With Your light, and the power it gives me, I can meet any band of attackers and defeat them handily. In Your strength, I can leap over the highest walls to bring them down.
Lord, all of Your ways are perfect! Your Word is tested and tried and has been proven true; You protect all who see You for refuge better than the best shields or forcefield available; all who seek shelter, placing their trust in You, will certainly find it.
So, who can be our Master save our God? Or who is a better Fortress to provide us protection than God? The same God who clothes me with His strength and makes me completely mature as I walk His pathway?
Lord, You strengthen my foundation, making me able to stand on spiritual high places like a deer on the mountain heights. In fact. You even set me upon those heights when I am strong in You.
You alone can train me to battle the enemy, making my arms strong enough that I could pull a bow made of bronze.
You have given me the Shield of Your Salvation, Your very Son, who is Your Right Hand, has held me up; Your loving-kindness, tenderness, and patronage caress me.
You have cleared the path ahead so that there is nothing on which I would trip and fall.
When I chased the enemy, I was able to overtake and destroy them. They were not able to rise again once they fell, wounded and near death at my feet.
Your strength wraps around me, holding me tight like a girdle, to build me up for the battle; and when it is over, I see the very enemy that had tried to defeat me, now underneath my feet. You alone have made them turn tail and run the other direction so that they come no longer into my presence.
These enemies cried for help but they found none. They even tried to get Your attention, Lord, but You refused to hear their cries.
Then I was able to totally defeat them, they appeared as small as grains of dust blowing in the wind, and I poured them out of my life, as one pours out the dust in a dustpan onto the garbage heap.
Lord, You set me free from anxious people; You made me a leader within my community; people whom I had never met walk beside me to serve Your Kingdom. As soon as they heard of me and Your message that I bring, they submitted themselves to Your call. Strangers, corrupt beings, came crawling out of their hiding places in fear, pretending to serve You.
But You Live, my Lord! You make me happy within Your protective Fortress. And I will lift Your name in exaltation! Yes, My Lord is the God who takes revenge on my behalf, trampling my enemies beneath His feet, giving me complete deliverance. Yes, You have delivered me from the destruction of the evil one. It is for this reason that I will ever praise You, giving You thanks and singing songs of worship every day.
And You will deliver me with Your greatness whenever I am in need. For You show mercy and unfailing love to those who have covered by the Blood of Your Son, anointing me and covering me - and those I bring alongside - with your Holy Power and Love forever.
Amen!
