Psalms 72
72
By Solomon.
1O God, Thy judgments to the king give, And Thy righteousness to the king's son.
2He judgeth Thy people with righteousness, And Thy poor with judgment.
3The mountains bear peace to the people, And the heights by righteousness.
4He judgeth the poor of the people, Giveth deliverance to the sons of the needy, And bruiseth the oppressor.
5They fear Thee with the sun, and before the moon, Generation — generations.
6He cometh down as rain on mown grass, As showers — sprinkling the earth.
7Flourish in his days doth the righteous, And abundance of peace till the moon is not.
8And he ruleth from sea unto sea, And from the river unto the ends of earth.
9Before him bow do the inhabitants of the dry places, And his enemies lick the dust.
10Kings of Tarshish and of the isles send back a present. Kings of Sheba and Seba a reward bring near.
11And all kings do bow themselves to him, All nations do serve him,
12For he delivereth the needy who crieth, And the poor when he hath no helper,
13He hath pity on the poor and needy, And the souls of the needy he saveth,
14From fraud and from violence he redeemeth their soul, And precious is their blood in his eyes.
15And he liveth, and giveth to him of the gold of Sheba, And prayeth for him continually, All the day he doth bless him.
16There is a handful of corn in the earth, On the top of mountains, Shake like Lebanon doth its fruit, And they flourish out of the city as the herb of the earth.
17His name is to the age, Before the sun is his name continued, And they bless themselves in him, All nations do pronounce him happy.
18Blessed is Jehovah God, God of Israel, He alone is doing wonders,
19And blessed [is] the Name of His honour to the age, And the whole earth is filled [with] His honour. Amen, and amen!
20The prayers of David son of Jesse have been ended.
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Psalms 72: YLT98
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maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society
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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