Psalms — Chapter 72
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1Of Solomon. Endow the king with Your justice, O God, and the son of the king with Your righteousness.
2May he judge Your people with righteousness and Your afflicted with justice.
3May the mountains bring peace to the people, and the hills bring righteousness.
4May he vindicate the afflicted among the people; may he save the children of the needy and crush the oppressor.
5May they fear him as long as the sun shines, as long as the moon remains, through all generations.
6May he be like rain that falls on freshly cut grass, like spring showers that water the earth.
7May the righteous flourish in his days and prosperity abound until the moon is no more.
8May he rule from sea to sea, and from the Euphrates to the ends of the earth.
9May the nomads bow before him, and his enemies lick the dust.
10May the kings of Tarshish and distant shores bring tribute; may the kings of Sheba and Seba offer gifts.
11May all kings bow down to him and all nations serve him.
12For he will deliver the needy who cry out and the afflicted who have no helper.
13He will take pity on the poor and needy and save the lives of the oppressed.
14He will redeem them from oppression and violence, for their blood is precious in his sight.
15Long may he live! May gold from Sheba be given him. May people ever pray for him; may they bless him all day long.
16May there be an abundance of grain in the land; may it sway atop the hills. May its fruit trees flourish like the forests of Lebanon, the people of its cities like the grass of the field.
17May his name endure forever; may his name continue as long as the sun shines. In him may all nations be blessed; may they call him blessed.
18Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who alone does marvelous deeds.
19And blessed be His glorious name forever; may all the earth be filled with His glory. Amen and amen.
20Thus conclude the prayers of David son of Jesse.
1Give the king thy judgments, O God, and thy righteousness unto the king’s son.
2He shall judge thy people with righteousness, and thy poor with judgment.
3The mountains shall bring peace to the people, and the little hills, by righteousness.
4He shall judge the poor of the people, he shall save the children of the needy, and shall break in pieces the oppressor.
5They shall fear thee as long as the sun and moon endure, throughout all generations.
6He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass: as showers that water the earth.
7In his days shall the righteous flourish; and abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth.
8He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth.
9They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him; and his enemies shall lick the dust.
10The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents: the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.
11Yea, all kings shall fall down before him: all nations shall serve him.
12For he shall deliver the needy when he crieth; the poor also, and him that hath no helper.
13He shall spare the poor and needy, and shall save the souls of the needy.
14He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence: and precious shall their blood be in his sight.
15And he shall live, and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba: prayer also shall be made for him continually; and daily shall he be praised.
16There shall be an handful of corn in the earth upon the top of the mountains; the fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon: and they of the city shall flourish like grass of the earth.
17His name shall endure for ever: his name shall be continued as long as the sun: and men shall be blessed in him: all nations shall call him blessed.
18Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things.
19And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen.
20The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.
1Give the king thy judgments, O God, And thy righteousness unto the king`s son.
2He will judge thy people with righteousness, And thy poor with justice.
3The mountains shall bring peace to the people, And the hills, in righteousness.
4He will judge the poor of the people, He will save the children of the needy, And will break in pieces the oppressor.
5They shall fear thee while the sun endureth, And so long as the moon, throughout all generations.
6He will come down like rain upon the mown grass, As showers that water the earth.
7In his days shall the righteous flourish, And abundance of peace, till the moon be no more.
8He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, And from the River unto the ends of the earth.
9They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him; And his enemies shall lick the dust.
10The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall render tribute: The kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.
11Yea, all kings shall fall down before him; All nations shall serve him.
12For he will deliver the needy when he crieth, And the poor, that hath no helper.
13He will have pity on the poor and needy, And the souls of the needy he will save.
14He will redeem their soul from oppression and violence; And precious will their blood be in his sight:
15And they shall live; and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba: And men shall pray for him continually; They shall bless him all the day long.
16There shall be abundance of grain in the earth upon the top of the mountains; The fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon: And they of the city shall flourish like grass of the earth.
17His name shall endure for ever; His name shall be continued as long as the sun: And men shall be blessed in him; All nations shall call him happy.
18Blessed be Jehovah God, the God of Israel, Who only doeth wondrous things:
19And blessed be his glorious name for ever; And let the whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen, and Amen.
20The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended. BOOK III Psalm 73 A Psalm of Asaph.
1For Solomon. O God, grant the king the ability to make just decisions. Grant the king’s son the ability to make fair decisions.
2Then he will judge your people fairly and your oppressed ones equitably.
3The mountains will bring news of peace to the people, and the hills will announce justice.
4He will defend the oppressed among the people; he will deliver the children of the poor and crush the oppressor.
5People will fear you as long as the sun and moon remain in the sky, for generation after generation.
6He will descend like rain on the mown grass, like showers that drench the earth.
7During his days the godly will flourish; peace will prevail as long as the moon remains in the sky.
8May he rule from sea to sea, and from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.
9Before him the coastlands will bow down, and his enemies will lick the dust.
10The kings of Tarshish and the coastlands will offer gifts; the kings of Sheba and Seba will bring tribute.
11All kings will bow down to him; all nations will serve him.
12For he will rescue the needy when they cry out for help, and the oppressed who have no defender.
13He will take pity on the poor and needy; the lives of the needy he will save.
14From harm and violence he will defend them; he will value their lives.
15May he live! May they offer him gold from Sheba. May they continually pray for him. May they pronounce blessings on him all day long.
16May there be an abundance of grain in the earth; on the tops of the mountains may it sway. May its fruit trees flourish like the forests of Lebanon. May its crops be as abundant as the grass of the earth.
17May his fame endure. May his dynasty last as long as the sun remains in the sky. May they use his name when they formulate their blessings. May all nations consider him to be favored by God.
18The Lord God, the God of Israel, deserves praise. He alone accomplishes amazing things.
19His glorious name deserves praise forevermore. May his majestic splendor fill the whole earth. We agree! We agree!
20This collection of the prayers of David son of Jesse ends here.
1God, give the king your justice; your righteousness to the royal son.
2He will judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with justice.
3The mountains shall bring prosperity to the people. The hills bring the fruit of righteousness.
4He will judge the poor of the people. He will save the children of the needy, and will break the oppressor in pieces.
5They shall fear you while the sun endures; and as long as the moon, throughout all generations.
6He will come down like rain on the mown grass, as showers that water the earth.
7In his days, the righteous shall flourish, and abundance of peace, until the moon is no more.
8He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, from the River to the ends of the earth.
9Those who dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him. His enemies shall lick the dust.
10The kings of Tarshish and of the islands will bring tribute. The kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.
11Yes, all kings shall fall down before him. All nations shall serve him.
12For he will deliver the needy when he cries; the poor, who has no helper.
13He will have pity on the poor and needy. He will save the souls of the needy.
14He will redeem their soul from oppression and violence. Their blood will be precious in his sight.
15They shall live, and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba. Men shall pray for him continually. They shall bless him all day long.
16Abundance of grain shall be throughout the land. Its fruit sways like Lebanon. Let it flourish, thriving like the grass of the field.
17His name endures forever. His name continues as long as the sun. Men shall be blessed by him. All nations will call him blessed.
18Praise be to Yahweh God, the God of Israel, who alone does marvelous deeds.
19Blessed be his glorious name forever! Let the whole earth be filled with his glory! Amen and amen.
20This ends the prayers by David, the son of Jesse.
Summary
A royal and messianic psalm attributed to or for Solomon, closing Book II of the Psalter. It prays that the king would govern with God's own justice, defending the poor and crushing oppressors, so that he endures as long as the sun and moon and refreshes the land like rain on mown grass (vv. 1-7). His dominion is pictured stretching from sea to sea and to the ends of the earth, with foreign kings bringing tribute and all nations bowing before him (vv. 8-11), because he rescues the needy and those who have no helper and redeems them from violence (vv. 12-14). The psalm envisions lasting prosperity and a name that endures forever, with all nations calling him blessed (vv. 15-17). It closes with a doxology praising the LORD, whose glory fills the whole earth, followed by the editorial note that the prayers of David are ended (vv. 18-20).
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
- Tarshish (v.10): Distant port city (possibly Spain); represents the farthest reaches of the known world.
- Lebanon (v.16): Region north of Israel known for its cedar forests.
Places on this map
- Tarshishprobably southern SpainUsually identified with Tartessos near the mouth of the Guadalquivir in southern Spain, at the far western end of the Phoenician trade routes, though the identification is not certain. Either way it meant the end of the known world, and it lies almost exactly opposite Nineveh from Joppa. Wikipedia
- LebanonMount Lebanon range, LebanonIn the Bible this is the mountain range, not the modern country: a snow-capped wall rising over 10,000 feet behind the Phoenician coast. Its cedar was the prestige timber of the ancient Near East and both the tabernacle's successors and Solomon's temple were built from it. Wikipedia
Towns sit on their excavated or traditional site. Regions, rivers and seas are ringed rather than dotted, because for those a single point is only an anchor. Coastlines from Natural Earth.
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Verse-by-verse commentary on this chapter, written for the everyday reader and freely available online.
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
- Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.
Videos
Articles
- GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of Psalms -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.
Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.
Reflection
- A Ruler Like Rain, Not Storm (v.6) — The prayer pictures righteous rule as gentle rain that refreshes rather than a storm that batters. Does your leadership — at work, at home, wherever you have influence — refresh people or wear them down?
- Justice Measured by Care for the Poor (v.12) — The ideal king's greatness is defined by his rescue of the poor, the needy, and those with no one to help them. Do you evaluate leaders, including yourself, by how they treat the most vulnerable people around them?
- A Dominion No Earthly King Achieved (vv.8-11) — This prayer for a king ruling from sea to sea with all nations bowing before him was never fulfilled by Solomon or any human ruler. Where are you placing hope in a leader or institution that only Christ's kingdom can actually deliver?
- All Nations Blessed Through Him (v.17) — The psalm closes with the promise that every nation will call this king blessed, echoing God's ancient promise to Abraham. Does your hope rest in the slow, certain spread of Christ's kingdom, or in the news cycle of the moment?