Psalms 18:2
The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.
Study Note
Study Note
David's extended metaphor cluster for God — 'my rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my God, my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold' — is one of the densest accumulations of protective imagery in the Psalter, drawn from military and geographical experience. The repetition of 'rock' (tsur and sela) at the beginning and again mid-verse frames the other metaphors as elaborations of this primary image of immovable security. The personal possessive pronoun 'my' repeated seven times transforms theological description into intimate confession, making Psalm 18 a model of prayer that is both theologically precise and personally engaged. The verse has shaped Christian hymnody more than almost any other, generating countless devotional expressions of God as refuge and strength.
Other Translations
Jehovah is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; My God, my rock, in whom I will take refuge; My shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower.
Jehovah <FI>is<Fi> my rock, and my bulwark, And my deliverer, My God <FI>is<Fi> my rock, I trust in Him: My shield, and a horn of my salvation, My high tower.
The Lord is my Rock, my walled town, and my saviour; my God, my Rock, in him will I put my faith; my breastplate, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.
Cross References
The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, …
Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my …
Unto thee will I cry, O Lord my rock; be not silent to me: lest, if thou be silent to …
Slay them not, lest my people forget: scatter them by thy power; and bring them down, O Lord our shield.
He only is my rock and my salvation; he is my defence; I shall not be greatly moved.
In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.
All the horns of the wicked also will I cut off; but the horns of the righteous shall be exalted.
I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.
He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield …
There will I make the horn of David to bud: I have ordained a lamp for mine anointed.