Psalms 72

General context

The psalm asks God to give the king his judgments and the king's son his righteousness. He will judge God's people and poor with righteousness; the mountains and hills will bring peace by righteousness; he will judge the poor, save the children of the needy and break the oppressor in pieces. They will fear God as long as the sun and moon endure. He will come down like rain on mown grass and showers on the earth; in his days the righteous will flourish with abundant peace while the moon endures. He will have dominion from sea to sea and from the river to the ends of the earth; wilderness dwellers will bow, his enemies lick the dust, the kings of Tarshish and the isles bring presents, the kings of Sheba and Seba offer gifts, and all kings and nations serve him. This is because he delivers the needy who cries, the poor and the helpless, spares and saves the needy, redeems their souls from deceit and violence, and their blood is precious in his sight. He will live and be given the gold of Sheba, prayed for continually and praised daily. A handful of corn on the mountaintops will shake like Lebanon and the city will flourish like grass. His name will endure as long as the sun, men will be blessed in him, and all nations will call him blessed. The psalm closes by blessing the Lord God of Israel who alone does wondrous things, and his glorious name for ever, asking that the whole earth be filled with his glory, Amen and Amen. A final line states that the prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.

Cited passages: Psalms 72:1, Psalms 72:2, Psalms 72:3, Psalms 72:4, Psalms 72:5, Psalms 72:6, Psalms 72:7, Psalms 72:8, Psalms 72:9, Psalms 72:10, Psalms 72:11, Psalms 72:12, Psalms 72:14, Psalms 72:15, Psalms 72:16, Psalms 72:17, Psalms 72:18, Psalms 72:19, Psalms 72:20

Psalms 72 (KJV)

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Historical context

The text as printed here carries no heading; verse 1 opens with "Give the king thy judgments, O God", so this source names no author or occasion at the start. The king and "the king’s son" of verse 1 are not named anywhere in the psalm; the text does not say whether they are one person or two. The places are named as far horizons rather than as a setting: "from sea to sea", "the river", "Tarshish", "the isles", "Sheba and Seba", "Lebanon", and the kings of those places are said to bring gifts. Every statement about the king is in the future tense; nothing is reported as having happened. The last verse stands apart from the poem: "The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended". It is the only line in Psalms 39 to 76 as printed here that attaches a personal name to the prayers, and it names David as the one whose prayers end without saying which prayers or how many; it follows a double "Amen" that closes the blessing of verses 18 and 19. Verses 18 and 19 bless "the Lord God, the God of Israel" rather than the king. There is no Selah.

Cited passages: Psalms 72:1, Psalms 72:8, Psalms 72:10, Psalms 72:16, Psalms 72:20, Psalms 72:19, Psalms 72:18

Literary context

The poem is a single wish for a king, expressed almost entirely in "shall". Its measure of time is the sky: "as long as the sun and moon endure", "so long as the moon endureth", "as long as the sun". Its measure of space is the map's edge, sea to sea, the river to the ends of the earth, Tarshish, Sheba and Seba. Between those two measures the king's work is defined by the poor: judge them, save the children of the needy, deliver the one "that hath no helper", count their blood precious. The word "For" at verse 12 makes this care the reason kings and nations bow. Rain and grass supply the gentle images, "like rain upon the mown grass", corn shaking like Lebanon, a city flourishing "like grass", set against the harder ones, the oppressor broken, enemies licking dust. The closing blessing turns from the king to God, whose name is blessed "for ever" as the king's name was to endure for ever, and the final note marks an ending: "The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended".

Cited passages: Psalms 72:5, Psalms 72:17, Psalms 72:8, Psalms 72:12, Psalms 72:14, Psalms 72:6, Psalms 72:16, Psalms 72:9, Psalms 72:19, Psalms 72:20

Key moments

1. Give the king thy judgments (Psalms 72:1). God is asked to give the king his judgments and the king's son his righteousness.
2. Save the children of the needy (Psalms 72:4). The king will judge the poor and break the oppressor in pieces.
3. Rain upon the mown grass (Psalms 72:6). He will come down like rain and showers on the earth.
4. From sea to sea (Psalms 72:8). His dominion will reach from sea to sea and to the ends of the earth.
5. Kings of Tarshish and Sheba (Psalms 72:10). Distant kings will bring presents and gifts.
6. He that hath no helper (Psalms 72:12). He delivers the needy who cries and the one with no helper.
7. The prayers of David are ended (Psalms 72:20). A final line states that the prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.

For reflection

The poem makes the king's care for the one who has no helper the reason that all kings will bow to him; what does it assume about where a ruler's standing comes from, and does the rest of the psalm keep to that?

People in this chapter

• David
• Jacob
• Solomon

Also indexed here:

• Jesse