The verb didst deliver has the same root as the noun “deliverer” discussed in verse 2 above. It involves escaping or being carried away safely.
Strife with the peoples: this phrase in line a may be taken to mean rebellious subjects, that is, a civil uprising among the peoples of other nations whom David ruled. As indicated in the Revised Standard Version note, this follows the ancient Greek version, which has peoples, thus making line a parallel with lines b and c. Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament, however, suggests that the reading the peoples is the result of harmonization with the rest of the verse. Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament therefore gives a {C} rating to the Masoretic Text and recommends that translators stay with the singular form of the traditional Hebrew text and take it to mean the people of Israel (so, for example, New American Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, Stuttgarter Erklärungsbibel, which all say “my people”). The Hebrew text also includes the pronoun “my.” This is the preferred solution of Good News Translation, which reads “my rebellious people.” But this must sometimes be expressed as “my people who refuse to obey me as their ruler” or “my people who say ‘No’ to me as their chief.”
The Masoretic Text says “You kept me as head of the nations.” The Septuagint and the parallel in Psa 18 say “You placed me as head of the nations.” Critique Textuelle de l’Ancien Testament gives a {B} rating to the Masoretic Text and recommends that it be followed. But despite this recommendation, the grammar here seems to require the verb “to put” and not the verb “to keep.” Numerous translations say “you place” (New Jerusalem Bible), “you made me” (New American Bible), or “you put me” (Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente), and this seems to be the better solution.
Head of the nations refers to ruling over Gentile nations, as the following lines show. The king of Israel ruled over a great empire that included non-Israelite peoples (see the account of David’s conquests in 8.1-14). Nations must often be rendered “tribe” when this is the largest political unit known. Compare 7.23; 8.11; 1 Sam 8.5, 20.
People whom I had not known is another way of referring to foreigners.
The Hebrew verb “to serve” here means “to come under his rule, to become his subjects.” Revised English Bible reads “A people I never knew will be my subjects.” A possible model for this part of the verse is “people I did not know have now become my servants,” as in Contemporary English Version, or “A people I had not known became my slaves” (New American Bible).
Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on the First and Second Books of Samuel, Volume 2. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2001. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .