在詩篇第十八篇中，大衛用最美麗的詩文表達他對上帝的愛心和感恩，因為上帝拯救他脫離「勁敵」、「強暴的人」掃羅，以及那些追殺他的人（18：17、48）。大衛形容上帝是拯救者與大能者，他用了好幾個比喻的字眼（如磐石、山寨、盾牌、號角、高臺），2節說明上帝的偉大，以及在他在躲避掃羅追殺時，如何保護他。大衛自己並沒有力量對抗他們，他必須忍耐、順服上帝，不斷禱告，直到時機成熟，上帝來救他的時候；但即使在極大的困難中，或好幾次遇到性命危險，上帝仍在暗中給他力量，並保護（4~5）。

        最後，大衛在苦難中呼求，上帝終於用祂的大能征服他的仇敵。大衛生動的描述上帝如何用強烈的憤怒、威嚴、及大能對付那些壓迫祂子民的仇敵（18：7~15）。然而當祂跟祂的子民在一起時，祂是既有愛心、又溫柔的；高舉起孩子，使孩子的腳步不致滑跌（18：25、35~36）。大衛的經驗使我們明白，禱告是看到上帝救恩的必要條件（參羅10：13）。

        大衛說明為什麼上帝會垂聽他的禱告及拯救他：「因祂喜悅我」（19節）。為什麼上帝會喜悅他？他信靠耶和華（18：2、30節；他相信上帝會拯救他）；他是公義的、純潔的、無可責備的；他遵守耶和華的道，服從上主的律例典章（順服上帝的話語），遠離罪惡（20~24節）；他憐憫別人，所以上帝也憐憫他（25節）。上帝幫助大衛是有理由的。如果我們也像大衛一樣行事為人，上帝也一樣喜悅我們，也會聽我們的禱告，領我們到「寬闊之處」（19）──那是一個安全的地方，沒有羅網、也沒有埋伏，敵人撒但無法加害我們。

        雖然大衛自己有一支小部隊，他並未把打勝仗的光榮歸給他們或他自己。他把一切歸功給上帝；如果大衛展示過任何力量，那也都是上帝賜給他的（18：29、31~34、39~50）。得勝的拯救證明上帝是信實的，祂的話語就是真理。祂的確是「所有信靠祂的人的盾牌」（18：30）。祂的確是唯一的、活的真神，值得被人尊崇（18：46）。在大衛得到勝利之後，他的人民自然舉他為他們的新王，但是大衛轉而高舉上帝，他的君王。大衛非常相信，做上帝的僕人要比做一位有權力的君王更有大榮耀。

        在這篇詩篇結束時，我們看到幾節有彌賽亞意義的經文。使徒保羅明白，大衛的主（49節）就是耶穌，將被地上的萬民讚美（羅15：9），並永遠統治、拯救祂的子民脫離仇敵撒但之手。

        主啊，您是我們在這個動盪不安世界中的磐石。感謝您作我們的基石。求您幫助我們引領別人，好使他們親身體驗到如何信靠您。奉主耶穌基督聖名，阿們！

English

        In Psalm 18 David beautifully expresses his love and gratitude to God for delivering him from his "strong enemy", that "violent man" Saul, and others who sought to kill him (vv. 17, 48). David described God as his deliverer and strength, as well as using five figurative terms (rock, fortress, shield, horn, and stronghold, v. 2) to illustrate the greatness of God and the protection He had given him while hiding from Saul. On his own, David would not have had the strength to withstand them. He had to be patient, obedient to God, and persistent in prayer, until the time was ripe for God's miraculous deliverance; but until that came, God was his strength and his protector during hardship and close encounters with death (vv. 4-5).

        Finally, when David cried out in distress, God intervened with great power to conquer the enemy. With graphic figures, David described the mighty power, majesty, and fierce wrath of God against the wicked oppressors of His child (vv. 7-15). Yet with His child, He is merciful and gentle; holding him up so that his feet would not slip (vv. 25, 35-36). We learn from David's experience that prayer is definitely the key to seeing God's salvation (cf. Romans 10:13).

        David expressed the reason for God hearing his prayer and delivering him: "He delighted in me" (v. 19). Why was God pleased with him? He trusted in the Lord (vv. 2, 30; he had the faith that God would bring deliverance); he was righteous, pure, and blameless; he walked in the ways of the Lord, kept God's judgments and statutes (obeyed God's Word), and kept himself from iniquity (v. 20-24); he was also merciful to others, and therefore God was merciful to him (v. 25). These were the reasons for God's intervention in David's life. If we do these same things, the Lord will also be pleased with us, and He will hear our prayers and bring us "out into a broad place" (v. 19) — a place of safety where there are no snares and no places of ambush set against us, so that no harm can come to us from the enemy, Satan.

        Although David had a small army of his own, he did not give any credit to them or to himself for their victory. All the credit was given to God, and if David did display any strength, it was only because God had given it to him (vv. 29, 31-34, 39-50). The victorious deliverance proved God's faithfulness and the truth of His Word. He is indeed "a shield to all who trust in Him" (v. 30). He is indeed the One and only true God who lives and who alone is worthy to be exalted (v. 46). After David's victory, the people would have naturally exalted him as their new king, but David turned that exaltation over to God, his King. David rightly believed that it was a higher honour to be a servant of God than to be a powerful, conquering king.

        At the conclusion of the psalm, we find verses of Messianic significance. The Apostle Paul understood David's Lord (v. 49) to be Jesus, who will be praised among the Gentiles of the earth (Romans 15:9) and reign forevermore, bringing the ultimate deliverance from the enemy, Satan.

        Lord, You are our Solid Rock in an unstable world. Thank You for that firm foundation. Help us to attract others to that stability which they too can experience by placing their trust in You.