2. And he said. These words appear as the last words of the title in Ps. 18. In that psalm, however, the opening words are: “I will love thee, O Lord, my strength.” This sentence does not appear here. David’s expression of his deep and tender love for God forms a fitting introduction to the psalm as a whole.
The Lord is my rock. This expression is typical of David. As a fugitive from Saul, David had often found the rocks of the mountains a refuge and strength. God was to him as the strength of the rocks, providing him protection and deliverance from his enemies. The style of the psalm is particularly characteristic of David, full of grandeur, strength, and vigor. The whole spirit of David pervades the psalm, from beginning to end. He had lived so close to the eternal hills, the rocks had so long been his abode, they had come to form an intrinsic part of his life and existence. It became second nature for him to weave these figures from the natural world into the songs that poured from his heart.