2 Samuel 22:2 — Word Study
WLCוַיֹּאמַ֑ר יְהוָ֛ה סַֽלְעִ֥י וּמְצֻדָתִ֖י וּמְפַלְטִי־ לִֽי׃
BSAHe saidʼâmar▸ The LORDYᵉhôvâh [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] is my rockçelaʻ [crag, a strong and secure place] my fortressmâtsûwd [a stronghold, like a castle] and my delivererpâlaṭ [one who rescues, sets free]
| Greek | English | Parsing |
|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּאמַ֑ר | and he said | Verb, Qal, sequential imperfect third person masculine singular |
| יְהוָ֛ה | Yahweh | Noun proper |
| סַֽלְעִ֥י | [is] rock my | Noun common masculine singular construct, suffix |
| וּמְצֻדָתִ֖י | and stronghold my | Conjunction, noun common feminine singular construct, suffix |
| וּמְפַלְטִי־ | and deliverer my | Conjunction, verb piel participle (active) masculine singular common, suffix |
| לִֽי׃ | to me | Preposition, suffix |
Every word in the verse. Click a row to open it in the panel on the left.
| BSB | He said: “The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer. |
| KJV | And he said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; |
| ASV | and he said, Jehovah is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer, even mine; |
| YLT | and he saith: 'Jehovah [is] my rock, And my bulwark, and a deliverer to me, |
| WEB | and he said: “Yahweh is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, even mine; |
| BBE | And he said, The Lord is my Rock, my walled town, and my saviour, even mine; |
Where they part company is in the interpretation of the attributes of God — see How Translations Differ.
The verse consists of a main clause followed by a predicate that describes the attributes of the LORD.
5 commentators on this verse
Gill, Jamieson, Ellicott, Cambridge & more — read them ›
clause
subjectיהוה
verbאָמַר
The sentence as the grammar sees it Open the tree ›
Every word here is used elsewhere in the Old Testament.
Bars are logarithmic — אֵת, the commonest word in the Hebrew Bible, stands about 11,000 times, so a linear scale would leave everything else invisible. Click a row to open that word.
Deep Study — 2 Samuel 22:2
Sections marked generated are written from the data on this page rather than by a named author. Everything else — the lexicon entries, the cross references, the manuscript readings, the counts — is quoted from its source unchanged.
Context — David's Song of Praisegenerated
2 Samuel 22:2 captures David's declaration of faith in the LORD, whom he describes as his rock, fortress, and deliverer. This verse is part of a song sung by David, celebrating God's deliverance from his enemies, as seen in the context of verse 1. The imagery of rock and fortress emphasizes God's strength and protection, themes echoed throughout the Psalms.
Cross References
| Reference | Text (BSB) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Deuteronomy 32:4 | He is the Rock, His work is perfect; all His ways are just. A God of faithfulness without injustice, righteous and upright is He. |
| 2 | 1 Samuel 2:2 | There is no one holy like the LORD. Indeed, there is no one besides You! And there is no Rock like our God. |
| 3 | Psalm 18:2–50 | The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer. My God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. |
| 4 | Psalm 31:3 | For You are my rock and my fortress; lead me and guide me for the sake of Your name. |
| 5 | Psalm 42:9 | I say to God my Rock, “Why have You forgotten me? Why must I walk in sorrow because of the enemy’s oppression?” |
The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge — 9 references, hung on the phrase they belong to
The Key Word — יְהוָ֛ה, Yah.wehgenerated
The name יְהוָ֛ה (Yahweh) signifies the self-existent and eternal nature of God, often rendered as 'the LORD'. This name is foundational in the Jewish faith and is linked to God's covenant with Israel, representing His unchanging commitment to His people.
In this verse, David asserts that Yahweh is his rock, indicating a source of stability and strength. The use of this name emphasizes a personal relationship between David and God, highlighting the trust he places in Him for protection and deliverance.
How Translations Differ — measured against the Berean Standard Biblegenerated
All translations on this page agree that the LORD is depicted as David's rock, fortress, and deliverer.
Sentence Structuregenerated
The main verb in the verse is יֹּאמַ֑ר, he said, which introduces David's declaration about the LORD. This verb governs the entire statement, indicating that what follows is a direct quote of David's proclamation.
The structure consists of a noun phrase predicate that lists three attributes of the LORD: סַֽלְעִ֥י (my rock), וּמְצֻדָתִ֖י (my fortress), and וּמְפַלְטִי־ (my deliverer), each contributing to the overall theme of divine protection.
Septuagint Backgroundgenerated
The Septuagint translates יְהוָ֛ה as κύριε (Lord), maintaining the reverence associated with the divine name. This choice reflects the Greek-speaking community's understanding of God's authority.
The Greek word for 'rock' is rendered similarly, emphasizing the concept of stability and refuge, which aligns with the Hebrew meaning.
In plain words — the whole versegenerated
2 Samuel 22:2 shows David proclaiming that the LORD is his rock, fortress, and deliverer. This verse emphasizes David's trust in God as his source of strength and safety, reflecting his gratitude for God's protection in times of trouble.
Frequently Asked Questionsgenerated
By calling the LORD his rock, David expresses that God is a source of stability and strength, providing a secure foundation in times of trouble.
David refers to the LORD as his fortress to illustrate God's role as a protector and safe haven against his enemies.
The LORD being David's deliverer signifies God's active role in rescuing David from danger and providing salvation from his foes.
This verse reflects David's deep trust and reliance on God, showcasing a personal relationship where he acknowledges God's power and faithfulness in his life.
Reflection Questionsgenerated
- In what ways have I experienced God as my rock and fortress in my life?
- How can I rely on God as my deliverer during challenging times?
- What does it mean for me to declare my trust in the LORD like David did?
- How can I seek refuge in God in my daily life?
Commentators on this verse — 5 expositors, verse by verse
Each of these wrote on 2 Samuel 22:2 itself, not merely on the chapter around it.
John Gill1697–1771Gill's Exposition of the Entire BibleAnd he said, The Lord [is] my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer. [See comments on Psalms 18:2].
Read John Gill on 2 Samuel 22 →Robert Jamieson1802–1880Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown's CommentaryAnd he said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; He said, The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer.
Read Robert Jamieson on 2 Samuel 22 →Charles John Ellicott1819–1905Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(2) He said.—The psalm here wants the opening line of Psalms 18, “I will love thee, O Lord, my strength,” forming a fitting introduction to the whole.
Read Charles John Ellicott on 2 Samuel 22 →CambridgeThe Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges2, 3. The imagery, by which David describes so emphatically all that Jehovah had been to him as a Deliverer from his enemies, is derived from the experiences of his warlike life, and particularly of his flight from Saul. The cliff (1 Samuel 23:25; 1 Samuel 23:28) where he had escaped from Saul, the strong-hold in the wilderness of Judah or the fastnesses of Engedi (1 Samuel 23:14; 1 Samuel 23:19; 1 Samuel 23:29), “the rocks of the wild goats” (1 Samuel 24:2), were all emblems of Him who had been throughout his true Refuge and Deliverer.
Read Cambridge on 2 Samuel 22 →Daniel Denison Whedon1808–1885Whedon's Commentary on the Bible2. Rock… fortress… place of refuge — The poet uses a profusion of metaphors in order to extol most gratefully that Divine Goodness and Power to whom he owes all his salvation.
Read Daniel Denison Whedon on 2 Samuel 22 →The verse in English, compared — 17 translations, and where they part company
Every translation on this page is a decision someone had to make and commit to. Read down a column and you see one translator's judgement; read across a row and you see the range the Greek actually allows. The BSB is the wording the rest of this page is measured against, so it is listed first.
Modern formal
He said: “The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer.
and he said: “Yahweh is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, even mine;
He said: “The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer.
He said: “The Lord is my high ridge, my stronghold, my deliverer.
Tyndale line
And he said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer;
and he said, Jehovah is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer, even mine;
and he said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer, even mine;
And he said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer;
And he sayd, The Lord is my rocke and my fortresse, and he that deliuereth mee.
Strictly literal
And he said, Jehovah is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer;
and he saith: 'Jehovah [is] my rock, And my bulwark, and a deliverer to me,
and he says: “YHWH [is] my rock, || And my bulwark, and a deliverer to me,
And he said, Lord, my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer;
He prayed, “Yahweh is my rock, my fortress, the one who rescues me.
From the Latin
And he said: The Lord is my rock, and my strength, and my saviour.
Simplified
He sang: “The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my Savior.
And he said, The Lord is my Rock, my walled town, and my saviour, even mine;
Counted from the translations carried on this site, not from a survey of every English Bible. A rendering shared by many versions is usually inherited rather than independently arrived at — the Tyndale line in particular runs through most of them.
The sentence as the grammar sees it — from the MACULA Hebrew treebank
This is not our own analysis: it is the scholarly syntax tree for the verse, showing how the clause actually holds together.
Boxes are the grammarian's groupings — clause, noun phrase, prepositional phrase.
The four witnesses to this verse — Masoretic, Septuagint, Samaritan, Qumran
The Masoretic Text and the Septuagint agree on the wording of 2 Samuel 22:2, with all six words matched in the Septuagint. This consistency highlights the shared understanding of God's protective nature across these texts.
וַיֹּאמַ֑ר יְהוָ֛ה סַֽלְעִ֥י וּמְצֻדָתִ֖י וּמְפַלְטִי־ לִֽי׃
6 of the 6 words are matched. This is the word-by-word correspondence, not the Septuagint's own sentence — its word order and its articles are its own.
Four traditions, not one. “On the leather” means the letters physically survive on the scroll, as against letters an editor has supplied to fill a hole in it — a restoration is a scholar’s reading, not a reading of the manuscript. Words in [square brackets] are supplied; the notes count them apart from what survives.
The map of this verse — what each word keeps company with
This is a map of two things, both counted rather than judged. Company kept: which words stand within three words of each of these, anywhere in the Hebrew Bible — the thicker the line, the more often the pair meet compared with chance. Built from: the words a word is made out of, taken from its own Strong’s entry. It is not a map of meaning: nothing here claims two words mean the same thing. Click any circle to see the numbers behind it.
Lexicons — every word in 2 Samuel 22:2
One dossier per word, with every reference work grouped by kind — Hebrew lexicons, morphology, Bible dictionaries, topical chains and the English of the translators themselves. The verse sits at the head of each block with the word under study lit, so you never lose your place. The panel above gives the short answer; this is the long one, and it is the part of the page worth indexing.
Every entry below is the lexicographer's own text. On the Hebrew: Brown-Driver-Briggs entire and its gloss set, Strong's Hebrew Dictionary, and Tyndale House's Translators Brief lexicon. Where a cell says a work has no entry, that work genuinely has none for this word.
אָמַר (amar) is a Hebrew verb meaning 'to say' or 'to utter,' with a broad range of uses including to promise, command, or even boast. It appears in various forms, such as in the Qal (to say), Niphal (to be told), and Hiphil (to avow). The entries highlight its versatility in both spoken and internal contexts, though no specific verse is noted.
אָמַר 5287 vb. utter, say
Qal
Say
Say in the heart (= think)
Promise
Command (esp. late)
Niph. be said, told
Hiph. avow, avouch (lit. cause to declare)
Hithp. act proudly, boast
base
H559 אָמַר utter, say .. Say
. Say in the heart (= think)
. Promise
. Command (esp. late)
. be said, told
. avow, avouch (lit. cause to declare)
. act proudly, boast
559 'amar aw-mar'
a primitive root; to say (used with great
latitude):--answer, appoint, avouch, bid, boast self, call,
certify, challenge, charge, + (at the, give) command(-ment),
commune, consider, declare, demand, X desire, determine, X
expressly, X indeed, X intend, name, X plainly, promise,
publish, report, require, say, speak (against, of), X still, X
suppose, talk, tell, term, X that is, X think, use (speech),
utter, X verily, X yet.
אָמַר (a.mar) — to say.
1) to say, speak, utter
1a) (Qal) to say, to answer, to say in one's heart, to think, to command, to promise, to intend
1b) (Niphal) to be told, to be said, to be called
1c) (Hithpael) to boast, to act proudly
1d) (Hiphil) to avow, to avouch
Aramaic equivalent: a.mar (אֲמַר "to say" H0560)
Conj | V-Qal-ConsecImperf-3ms — Verb · Qal · sequential imperfect third person masculine singularHc/Vqw3ms
יְהֹוָה (ye.ho.vah) is the proper name of the God of Israel, often rendered as Jehovah or the Lord. It signifies the self-existent or eternal nature of God. The name is closely associated with the revelation to Moses in Exodus 3:12-15 and is used in conjunction with other terms to denote sacred places. Some scholars suggest it derives from a root meaning 'to bring into being.'
יהוה c. 6823 i.e. יַהְוֶה n.pr.dei Yahweh, the proper name of the God of Israel—(1. MT יְהֹוָה 6518 (Qr אֲדֹנָי), or יֱהֹוִה 305 (Qr אֱלֹהִים) 2. Many recent scholars explain יַהְוֶה as Hiph. of הוה (= היה) the one bringing into being, life-giver)
יהוה is not used by E in Gn, but is given Ex 3:12-15 as the name of the God who revealed Himself to Moses at Horeb
יהוה is used with אלהים and suffixes, especially in D
the phrase † אֲנִי יהוה is noteworthy
יהוה is also used with several predicates, to form sacred names of holy places of Yahweh
base
H3068 יהוה i.e. יַהְוֶה n. pr. dei Yahweh, the proper name of the God of Israel
3068 Yhovah yeh-ho-vaw'
from 1961; (the) self-Existent or Eternal; Jehovah, Jewish
national name of God:--Jehovah, the Lord. Compare 3050, 3069.
see HEBREW for 01961
see HEBREW for 03050
see HEBREW for 03069
יְהֹוָה (ye.ho.vah) — LORD.
Jehovah = "the existing One"
1) the proper name of the one true God
1a) unpronounced except with the vowel pointings of a.do.na (אֲדֹנָי "Lord" H0136)
יְהֹוָה (ye.ho.vah) — The Lord.
Another name of ye.ru.sha.laim (יְרוּשָׁלִַ֫ם, יְרוּשְׁלֵם "Jerusalem" H3389)
יְהֹוָה (ye.ho.vah) — (Jerusalem of) the Lord.
Combined with ye.ru.sha.laim (יְרוּשָׁלִַ֫ם, יְרוּשְׁלֵם "Jerusalem" H3389)
N-proper — Noun properHNpt
סֶ֫לַע (cela`) refers to a crag or cliff, indicating a strong, rocky formation. It can denote both a literal rock and a figurative stronghold, suggesting security and loftiness. The entries consistently emphasize its meanings related to rugged terrain and fortification, with no significant disagreements noted among the lexicons.
סֶ֫לַע 61 n.m. crag, cliff
base
H5553 סֶ֫לַע crag, cliff
5553 cela` seh'-lah
from an unused root meaning to be lofty; a craggy rock,
literally or figuratively (a fortress):--(ragged) rock,
stone(-ny), strong hold.
סֶ֫לַע (se.la) — rock.
The Rock
Sela (H5554)
סֶ֫לַע (se.la) — crag.
1) crag, cliff, rock
1a) crag, cliff
1b) as stronghold of Jehovah, of security (fig.)
N-ms | Suff — Noun common masculine singular construct · suffixHNcmsc/Sp1bs
מְצוּדָה (matsuwdah) refers to both a net or prey and a stronghold or fastness. The word encompasses concepts of capture and defense, indicating a place of safety or a means of hunting. It appears in contexts related to both physical capture and strategic locations.
מְצוּדָה n.f. net, prey
base
מְצוּדָה n.f. fastness, stronghold
base
H4686a מְצוּדָה net, prey H4686b מְצוּדָה fastness, stronghold
4686 matsuwd maw-tsood'
or (feminine) mtsuwdah {mets-oo-daw'}; or mtsudah
{mets-oo-daw'}; for 4685; a net, or (abstractly) capture; also
a fastness; --castle, defense, fort(-ress), (strong) hold, be
hunted, net, snare, strong place.
see HEBREW for 04685
מְצוּדָה (ma.tsu.dah) — net.
1) net, prey, net prey
1a) net
1b) prey
מְצוּדָה (ma.tsu.dah) — fortress.
fastness, stronghold
Conj | N-cs | Suff — Conjunction · noun common feminine singular construct · suffixHC/Ncfsc/Sp1bs
פָּלַט (palat) is a Hebrew verb meaning to escape or slip away. It encompasses various nuances, including delivering, bringing to safety, and causing to escape, with different forms indicating active or passive meanings. The entries suggest its use in contexts of security and deliverance, though no specific Old Testament verses are cited.
[פָּלַט] vb. escape
Qal and (if) escapers of them escape.
Pi.
bring into security
cause to escape, cast forth, of cow calving
appar. intrans. be delivered
Hiph. bring into security
base
H6403 [פָּלַט] escape .and (if) escapers of them escape.
. . bring into security
. cause to escape, cast forth, of cow calving
. appar. intrans. be delivered
. bring into security
6403 palat paw-lat'
a primitive root; to slip out, i.e. escape; causatively, to
deliver:--calve, carry away safe, deliver, (cause to) escape.
פָּלַט (pa.lat) — to escape.
1) to escape, save, deliver, slip away
1a) (Qal) to escape
1b) (Piel)
1b1) to bring into security, deliver
1b2) to cause to escape, cast forth
1b3) to be delivered
1b4) to slip away
1c) (Hiphil) to bring into security, bring to safety
Conj | V-Piel | Suff — Conjunction · verb piel participle (active) masculine singular common · suffixHC/Vprmsc/Sp1bs
נִי (ni) — me.
Personal object pronoun - suffix for propositions and verbs without an object: 1st person singular
HRd/Sp1bs — Preposition · suffixHRd/Sp1bs