Psalms 72
72
By Solomon.
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.
15He will live; and Sheba’s gold will be given to him.
Men will pray for him continually.
They will 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.
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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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