Delusions of Angelic Grandeur

Psalm 18 is a beautiful and very poetic song written by David, praising God for rescuing him from all his enemies, including Saul. What I tripped up over though, was David's apparent ideas about WHY the Lord rescued him. Take a look at verses 20-24:

The LORD dealt with me according to my righteousness;

according to the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me.
For I have kept the ways of the LORD, and have not wickedly departed from my God.
For all his rules were before me, and his statutes I did not put away from me. 
I was blameless before him, and I kept myself from my guilt. 
So the LORD has rewarded me according to my righteousness,
according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight.

Is it just me, or does anyone else think that maybe David is being a little delusional here? Dealing with some denial maybe? I mean, how many of us get saved from certain death, say in an illness or a car accident and immediately say "Yep! It's because I'm so Righteous! Thank you, ME!" Haha - no. Does God save us because we are righteous? When the Bible tells us with all certainty that all of us are in a fallen state - there is none that is righteous, no not one.

God saves us out of our wretchedness because of His great mercy. In pondering what caused David to write such statements, I have wondered if perhaps David, at this point in his life, only saw God as a 'just' god. Which He is, but if we believe He only allows harm to come to the wicked, and always rewards the righteous, I know I for one would have No Hope. I have no delusions of angelic grandeur resting on my head! I have no halo, and I am not blameless! None of us are.

But praise God for how He describes himself in Exodus 34:6: "The Lord, the Lord, a god merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness..." That's the God we serve - one who loves and saves us despite our mess-ups and inadequacies.