Psalms 144:1-2

Context

Psalm 144¹

By David.

144:1 The Lord, my protector,² deserves praise³ –

the one who trains my hands for battle,⁴

and my fingers for war,

144:2 who loves me⁵ and is my stronghold,

my refuge⁶ and my deliverer,

my shield and the one in whom I take shelter,

who makes nations submit to me.⁷

[144:1] ¹sn Psalm 144. The psalmist expresses his confidence in God, asks for a mighty display of divine intervention in an upcoming battle, and anticipates God’s rich blessings on the nation in the aftermath of military victory.

[144:1] ²tn Heb “my rocky summit.” The Lord is compared to a rocky summit where one can find protection from enemies. See Ps 18:2.

[144:1] ³tn Heb “blessed [be] the Lord, my rocky summit.”

[144:1] ⁴sn The one who trains my hands for battle. The psalmist attributes his skill with weapons to divine enablement (see Ps 18:34). Egyptian reliefs picture gods teaching the king how to shoot a bow. See O. Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World, 265.

[144:2] ⁵tn Heb “my loyal love,” which is probably an abbreviated form of “the God of my loyal love” (see Ps 59:10, 17).

[144:2] ⁶tn Or “my elevated place.”

[144:2] ⁷tn Heb “the one who subdues nations beneath me.”