PSALM  XVHI.
Full  of  thankfulness,  David  praises  the  Lord  for  having
heard  his  prayer,  and  delivered  him  out  of  great  danger,  vers,
1-3.  He  delineates  in  vers.  4-19  the  first  part  of  his  dangers
and  deliverances,  which  are  particularly  mentioned  in  the  super-
scription, by  a  variety  of  elevated  figures.  He  aflSrms,  in  vers.
20-27,  that  he  had  received  the  Lord's  assistance  only  in  con-
sequence of  the  righteousness  of  his  endeavours,  and  his  de-
votedness.  The  deliverance  from  Saul  had  been  referred  back
to  this  source ;  and  now  the  representation  of  the  second  part  of
the  Divine  goodness,  in  vers.  28-45,  namely,  of  the  assistance
which  God  had  in  part  already  given  him  against  foreign  ene-
mies, the  opponents  of  his  kingdom,  and  which  He  was  still  to
give  by  means  of  His  promise,  both  to  David  personally  and  to
his  posterity,  starts  from  the  same  point.  The  conclusion  in
vers.  46-50,  consists  of  praise  to  God  for  the  whole  of  His  won-
derful deeds.
We  have  thus  five  parts :  the  introduction,  at  the  end  of
which,  in  ver.  3,  the  theme  is  announced,  "  according  to  His
glory  I  call  upon  the  Lord,  and  am  delivered  from  mine  ene-
mies ;  the  conclusion,  a  twofold  representation  of  the  wonder-
ful deeds  of  God ;  in  the  middle,  a  representation  of  the  sub-
jective conditions  on  which  the  Lord  imparts  His  aid,  connected
alike  with  what  is  behind  and  what  is  before.
