Psalms 17:3
The Lord is my firmament, my refuge, and my deliverer. My God is my helper, and in him will I put my trust. My protector and the horn of my salvation, and my support.
Open Psalms 17:3 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Dominus firmamentum meum, et refugium meum, et liberator meus. Deus meus adjutor meus, et sperabo in eum ; protector meus, et cornu salutis meæ, et susceptor meus.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- Κύριος στερέωμά μου καὶ καταφυγή μου καὶ ῥύστης μου· ὁ θεός μου βοηθός, καὶ ἐλπιῶ ἐπ᾽ αὐτόν· ὑπερασπιστής μου καὶ κέρας σωτηρίας, ἀντιλήμπτωρ μου.
- Hebrew (WLC) shown from Psalms 18:3
- יְהוָ֤ה סַֽלְעִ֥י וּמְצוּדָתִ֗י וּמְפַ֫לְטִ֥י אֵלִ֣י צ֭וּרִי אֶֽחֱסֶה בּ֑וֹ מָֽגִנִּ֥י וְקֶֽרֶן יִ֝שְׁעִ֗י מִשְׂגַּבִּֽי
Haydock's commentary
Firmament. Hebrew, "rock and my citadel, and my deliverer. My God, (or strong one) my rock." St. Jerome, "my strong one." The two words which are rendered "my rock," are salhi and metsudathi. (Haydock)
David frequently retired to such places for safety. The idea was beautiful and striking. Such a multiplicity of titles shews the gratitude (Calmet) and affection which David felt. (Calmet)
Here are nine, and we may add the three metaphorical Hebrew terms, "rock, citadel, and buckler." Can we refuse to love One from whom we have received so many favours?
And in, &c. These words are most probably cited by St. Paul, (Hebrews ii. 13.) though they occur also in Isaias viii. 18.
Protector. Hebrew, "buckler." (Berthier)
Horn. This title is given to Jesus Christ, Luke i. 69. It is an allusion to beasts which attack their opponents with their horns (Theodoret; Deuteronomy xxxiii. 17.) being an emblem of strength (Worthington) and glory. (Calmet)
And my, &c. (2 Kings) he lifteth me up and is my refuge; my Saviour, thou wilt deliver me from iniquity. Hebrew, "violence."
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Psalm XVIII
3. “O Lord, My stay, and My refuge, and My deliverer” ( ver. 2 ). O Lord, who hast stayed Me, because I sought refuge with Thee: and I sought refuge, because Thou hast delivered Me. “My God is My helper; and I will hope in Him.” My God, who hast first afforded me the help of Thy call, that I might be able to hope in Thee. “My defender, and the horn of My salvation, and My redeemer.” My defender, because I have not leant upon Myself, lifting up as it were the horn of pride against Thee; but have found Thee a horn indeed, that is, the sure height of salvation: and that I might find it, Thou redeemedst Me.
St Athanasius Against the Arians. (Orationes contra Arianos IV.), Texts Explained; Ninthly, John x. 30; xvii. 11, &c. Arian explanation, that the Son is one with the Father in will and judgment; but so are all good men, nay things inanimate; contrast of the Son. Oneness between Them is in nature, because oneness in operation. Angels not objects of prayer, because they do not work together with God, but the Son; texts quoted. Seeing an Angel, is not seeing God. Arians in fact hold two Gods, and tend to Gentile polytheism. Arian explanation that the Father and Son are one as we are one with Christ, is put aside by the Regula Fidei, and shewn invalid by the usage of Scripture in illustrations; the true force of the comparison; force of the terms used. Force of 'in us;' force of 'as;' confirmed by S. John. In what sense we are 'in God' and His 'sons.'
13. Therefore it was none other than God Himself that David too besought concerning his deliverance, ‘When I was in trouble, I called upon the Lord, and He heard me; deliver my soul, O Lord, from lying lips and from a deceitful tongue.’ To Him also giving thanks he spoke the words of the Song in the seventeenth Psalm, in the day in which the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul, saying, ‘I will love Thee, O Lord my strength; the Lord is my strong rock and my defence and deliverer.’ And Paul, after enduring many persecutions, to none other than God gave thanks, saying, ‘Out of them all the Lord delivered me; and He will deliver in Whom we trust.’ And none other than God blessed Abraham and Isaac; and Isaac praying for Jacob, said, ‘May God bless thee and increase thee and multiply thee, and thou shalt be for many companies of nations, and may He gi …
St Basil The Hexæmeron, On the Firmament
Now we must say something about the nature of the firmament, and why it received the order to hold the middle place between the waters. Scripture constantly makes use of the word firmament to express extraordinary strength. “The Lord my firmament and refuge.” “I have strengthened the pillars of it.” “Praise him in the firmament of his power.” The heathen writers thus call a strong body one which is compact and full, to distinguish it from the mathematical body. A mathematical body is a body which exists only in the three dimensions, breadth, depth, and height. A firm body, on the contrary, adds resistance to the dimensions. It is the custom of Scripture to call firmament all that is strong and unyielding. It even uses the word to denote the condensation of the air: He, it says, who strengthens the thunder. …
St John Cassian The Twelve Books on the Institutes of the Cœnobia, and the Remedies for the Eight Principal Faults, Chapter XVII. Various passages which clearly show that we cannot do anything which belongs to our salvation without the aid of God
Lastly , the Author of our salvation teaches us what we ought not merely to think, but also to acknowledge in everything that we do. “I can,” He says, “of mine own self do nothing, but the Father which abideth in me, He doeth the works.” He says, speaking in the human nature which He had taken, that He could do nothing of Himself; and shall we, who are dust and ashes, think that we have no need of God’s help in what pertains to our salvation? And so let us learn in everything, as we feel our own weakness, and at the same time His help, to declare with the saints, “I was overturned that I might fall, but the Lord supported me. The Lord is my strength and my praise: and He is become my salvation.” And “Unless the Lord had helped me, my soul had almost dwelt in hell. If I said, My foot is moved: Thy mercy, O Lord, assisted me. …