Discovery Box2 Samuel 22:30-38
Context22:30 Indeed, 1 with your help 2 I can charge 3 against an army; 4
by my God’s power 5 I can jump over a wall. 6
22:31 The one true God acts in a faithful manner; 7
the Lord’s promise is reliable; 8
he is a shield to all who take shelter in him.
22:32 Indeed, 9 who is God besides the Lord?
Who is a protector 10 besides our God? 11
22:33 The one true God 12 is my mighty refuge; 13
he removes 14 the obstacles in my way. 15
22:34 He gives me the agility of a deer; 16
he enables me to negotiate the rugged terrain. 17
22:35 He trains 18 my hands for battle; 19
my arms can bend even the strongest bow. 20
22:36 You give me 21 your protective shield; 22
your willingness to help enables me to prevail. 23
my feet 25 do not slip.
22:38 I chase my enemies and destroy them;
I do not turn back until I wipe them out.
[22:30] 1 tn Or “for.” The translation assumes that כִּי (ki) is asseverative here.
[22:30] 3 tn Heb “I will run.” The imperfect verbal forms in v. 30 indicate the subject’s potential or capacity to perform an action. Though one might expect a preposition to follow the verb here, this need not be the case with the verb רוּץ (ruts; see 1 Sam 17:22). Some emend the Qal to a Hiphil form of the verb and translate, “I put to flight [literally, “cause to run”] an army.”
[22:30] 4 tn More specifically, the noun refers to a raiding party or to a contingent of troops (see HALOT 177 s.v. II גְדוּד). The picture of a divinely empowered warrior charging against an army in almost superhuman fashion appears elsewhere in ancient Near Eastern literature. See R. B. Chisholm, “An Exegetical and Theological Study of Psalm 18/2 Samuel 22” (Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 1983), 228.
[22:30] 6 tn David uses hyperbole to emphasize his God-given military superiority.
[22:31] 7 tn Heb “[As for] the God, his way is blameless.” The term הָאֵל (ha’el, “the God”) stands as a nominative (or genitive) absolute in apposition to the resumptive pronominal suffix on “way.” The prefixed article emphasizes his distinctiveness as the one true God (see BDB 42 s.v. II אֵל 6; Deut 33:26). God’s “way” in this context refers to his protective and salvific acts in fulfillment of his promise (see also Deut 32:4; Pss 67:2; 77:13 [note vv. 11-12, 14]; 103:7; 138:5; 145:17).
[22:31] 8 tn Heb “the word of the
[22:32] 13 tn Or “for.” The translation assumes that כִּי (ki) is asseverative here.
[22:32] 14 tn Heb “rocky cliff,” which is a metaphor of protection.
[22:32] 15 tn The rhetorical questions anticipate the answer, “No one.” In this way the psalmist indicates that the
[22:33] 19 tn Heb “the God.” See the note at v. 31.
[22:33] 20 tc 4QSama has מְאַזְּרֵנִי (mÿ’azzÿreni, “the one girding me with strength”) rather than the MT מָעוּזִּי (ma’uzzi, “my refuge”). See as well Ps 18:32.
[22:33] 21 tn The prefixed verbal form with vav consecutive here carries along the generalizing tone of the preceding line.
[22:33] 22 tn Heb “and he sets free (from the verb נָתַר, natar) [the] blameless, his [Kethib; “my” (Qere)] way.” The translation follows Ps 18:32 in reading “he made my path smooth.” The term תָּמִים (tamim, “smooth”) usually carries a moral or ethical connotation, “blameless, innocent.” However, in Ps 18:33 it refers to a pathway free of obstacles. The reality underlying the metaphor is the psalmist’s ability to charge into battle without tripping (see vv. 33, 36).
[22:34] 25 tc Heb “[the one who] makes his feet like [those of] a deer.” The translation follows the Qere and many medieval Hebrew
[22:34] 26 tn Heb “and on my high places he makes me walk.” The imperfect verbal form emphasizes God’s characteristic provision. The psalmist compares his agility in battle to the ability of a deer to negotiate rugged, high terrain without falling or being injured. Habakkuk uses similar language to describe his faith during difficult times. See Hab 3:19.
[22:35] 32 tn The psalmist attributes his skill with weapons to divine enabling. Egyptian reliefs picture gods teaching the king how to shoot a bow. See O. Keel, Symbolism of the Biblical World, 265.
[22:35] 33 tn Heb “and a bow of bronze is bent by my arms.” The verb נָחֵת (nakhet) apparently means “to pull back; to bend” here (see HALOT 692 s.v. נחת). The bronze bow referred to here was probably laminated with bronze strips, or a purely ceremonial or decorative bow made entirely from bronze. In the latter case the language is hyperbolic, for such a weapon would not be functional in battle.
[22:36] 37 tn Another option is to translate the prefixed verb with vav consecutive with a past tense, “you gave me.” Several prefixed verbal forms with vav consecutive also appear in vv. 38-44. The present translation understands this section as a description of what generally happened when the author charged into battle, but another option is to understand the section as narrative and translate accordingly.
[22:36] 38 tc Ps 18:35 contains an additional line following this one, which reads “your right hand supports me.” It may be omitted here due to homoioarcton. See the note at Ps 18:35.
[22:36] 39 tn Heb “your answer makes me great.” David refers to God’s willingness to answer his prayer.
[22:37] 43 tn Heb “step.” “Step” probably refers metonymically to the path upon which the psalmist walks. Another option is to translate, “you widen my stride.” This would suggest that God gives him the capacity to run quickly.
[22:37] 44 tn Heb “lower legs.” On the meaning of the Hebrew noun, which occurs only here, see H. R. Cohen, Biblical Hapax Legomena (SBLDS), 112. A cognate Akkadian noun means “lower leg.”
