Mazmur 144:1-2

Psalm 144 ¹ 

By David.

144:1 The Lord, my protector, ²  deserves praise ³  –

the one who trains my hands for battle, ⁴ 

and my fingers for war,

144:2 who loves me ⁵  and is my stronghold,

my refuge ⁶  and my deliverer,

my shield and the one in whom I take shelter,

who makes nations submit to me. ⁷ 

1 Samuel 22:1

David Goes to Adullam and Mizpah

22:1 So David left there and escaped to the cave of Adullam. When his brothers and the rest of his father’s family ⁸  learned about it, they went down there to him.

Yesaya 28:6

28:6 He will give discernment to the one who makes judicial decisions,

and strength to those who defend the city from attackers. ⁹ 

Yesaya 45:1

45:1 This is what the Lord says to his chosen ¹⁰  one,

to Cyrus, whose right hand I hold ¹¹ 

in order to subdue nations before him,

and disarm kings, ¹² 

to open doors before him,

so gates remain unclosed:

[144:1]  ¹ sn 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]  ² tn 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]  ³ tn Heb “blessed [be] the Lord, my rocky summit.”

[144:1]  ⁴ sn 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]  ⁵ tn Heb “my loyal love,” which is probably an abbreviated form of “the God of my loyal love” (see Ps 59:10, 17).

[144:2]  ⁶ tn Or “my elevated place.”

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

[22:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “house.”

[28:6]  ⁹ tn Heb “and [he will become] a spirit of justice for the one who sits [i.e., presides] over judgment, // and strength [for] the ones who turn back battle at the city gate.” The Lord will provide internal stability and national security.

[45:1]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “anointed” (so KJV, NAB, NIV, NRSV, NLT); NCV “his appointed king.”

[45:1]  ¹¹ sn The “right hand” is a symbol of activity and strength; the Lord directs Cyrus’ activities and assures his success.

[45:1]  ¹² tn Heb “and the belts of kings I will loosen”; NRSV “strip kings of their robes”; NIV “strip kings of their armor.”