Psalms 72
72
A Prayer for the King
Of Solomon.
1God, give the king your good judgment
and the king’s son your goodness.
2Help him judge your people fairly.
Help him decide what is right for the poor.
3Let there be peace on the mountains
and goodness on the hills.
4Help him be fair to the poor.
Help him save the needy
and punish those who hurt them.
5Help him live as long as the sun shines.
Help him rule as long as the moon glows.
Let him be king from now on!
6Let him be like rain on the grass,
like showers that water the earth.
7Let goodness be plentiful while he lives.
Let peace continue as long as there is a moon.
8Let his kingdom go from sea to sea,
and from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.
9Let the people of the desert bow down to him.
And make his enemies lick the dust.
10Let the kings of Tarshish and the faraway lands
bring him gifts.
Let the kings of Sheba and Seba
bring their presents to him.
11Let all kings bow down to him.
Let all nations serve him.
12He will help the poor when they cry for help.
He will help the needy when no one else will help them.
13He will be kind to the weak and poor.
He will save their lives.
14He will save them from cruel people who try to hurt them.
Their lives are precious to him.
15Long live the king!
Let him receive gold from Sheba.
Let people always pray for him.
Let them bless him all day long.
16Let the fields grow plenty of grain.
Let the hills be covered with crops.
Let the land be as fertile as Lebanon.
Let the cities grow like the grass in a field.
17Let the king be famous forever.
Let him be remembered as long as the sun shines.
Let the nations be blessed because of him.
And may they all bless him.
18Praise the Lord God, the God of Israel.
Only he does such miracles.
19Praise his glorious name forever.
Let his glory fill the whole world.
20This ends the prayers of David son of Jesse.
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Psalms 72
72
A Prayer for the King
1Of Solomon.
I
2O God, give your judgment to the king;
your justice to the king’s son;#The king…the king’s son: the crown prince is the king’s son; the prayer envisages the dynasty. #Ps 99:4; Jer 23:5.
That he may govern your people with justice,
your oppressed with right judgment,#Prv 31:8–9.
3That the mountains may yield their bounty for the people,
and the hills great abundance,#Is 52:7; 55:12.
4That he may defend the oppressed among the people,
save the children of the poor and crush the oppressor.
II
5May they fear you with the sun,
and before the moon, through all generations.#Ps 89:37–38; Jer 31:35.
6May he be like rain coming down upon the fields,
like showers watering the earth,#Dt 32:2; Is 45:8; Hos 6:3.
7That abundance may flourish in his days,
great bounty, till the moon be no more.
III
8#From sea to sea…the ends of the earth: the boundaries of the civilized world known at the time: from the Mediterranean Sea (the western sea) to the Persian Gulf (the eastern sea), and from the Euphrates (the river) to the islands and lands of southwestern Europe, “the ends of the earth.” The words may also have a mythic nuance—the earth surrounded by cosmic waters, hence everywhere.May he rule from sea to sea,
from the river to the ends of the earth.#Dt 11:24; Zec 9:10.
9May his foes kneel before him,
his enemies lick the dust.#Is 49:23; Mi 7:17.
10May the kings of Tarshish and the islands#Tarshish and the islands: the far west (Ps 48:6); Arabia and Seba: the far south (1 Kgs 10:1). bring tribute,
the kings of Sheba and Seba offer gifts.#Ps 68:30; Is 60:5–6; 1 Kgs 10:1ff.
11May all kings bow before him,
all nations serve him.#Ps 47:8.
12For he rescues the poor when they cry out,
the oppressed who have no one to help.
13He shows pity to the needy and the poor#Prv 31:9.
and saves the lives of the poor.
14From extortion and violence he redeems them,
for precious is their blood#Their blood: cf. Ps 116:15. in his sight.
IV
15Long may he live, receiving gold from Sheba,
prayed for without cease, blessed day by day.
16#The translation of the difficult Hebrew is tentative.May wheat abound in the land,
flourish even on the mountain heights.
May his fruit be like that of Lebanon,
and flourish in the city like the grasses of the land.#Is 27:6; Hos 14:6–8; Am 9:13.
17May his name be forever;
as long as the sun, may his name endure.#Ps 21:7.
May the tribes of the earth give blessings with his name;#May the tribes of the earth give blessings with his name: an echo of the promise to the ancestors (Gn 12:3; 26:4; 28:14), suggesting that the monarchy in Israel fulfilled the promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
may all the nations regard him as favored.#Gn 12:3; 22:18; 26:4; Zec 8:13.
18#A doxology marking the end of Book II of the Psalter.Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
who alone does wonderful deeds.#Ps 41:14; 89:53; 106:48; 136:4.
19Blessed be his glorious name forever;
may he fill all the earth with his glory.#Ps 57:5; Nm 14:21.
Amen and amen.
20The end of the psalms of David, son of Jesse.
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