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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Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc
Psalms 72
72
1-8Give the gift of wise rule to the king, O God,
the gift of just rule to the crown prince.
May he judge your people rightly,
be honorable to your meek and lowly.
Let the mountains give exuberant witness;
shape the hills with the contours of right living.
Please stand up for the poor,
help the children of the needy,
come down hard on the cruel tyrants.
Outlast the sun, outlive the moon—
age after age after age.
Be rainfall on cut grass,
earth-refreshing rain showers.
Let righteousness burst into blossom
and peace abound until the moon fades to nothing.
Rule from sea to sea,
from the River to the Rim.
9-14Foes will fall on their knees before God,
his enemies lick the dust.
Kings remote and legendary will pay homage,
kings rich and resplendent will turn over their wealth.
All kings will fall down and worship,
and godless nations sign up to serve him,
Because he rescues the poor at the first sign of need,
the destitute who have run out of luck.
He opens a place in his heart for the down-and-out,
he restores the wretched of the earth.
He frees them from tyranny and torture—
when they bleed, he bleeds;
when they die, he dies.
15-17And live! Oh, let him live!
Deck him out in Sheba gold.
Offer prayers unceasing to him,
bless him from morning to night.
Fields of golden grain in the land,
cresting the mountains in wild exuberance,
Cornucopias of praise, praises
springing from the city like grass from the earth.
May he never be forgotten,
his fame shine on like sunshine.
May all godless people enter his circle of blessing
and bless the One who blessed them.
18-20Blessed God, Israel’s God,
the one and only wonder-working God!
Blessed always his blazing glory!
All earth brims with his glory.
Yes and Yes and Yes.
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.