Psalms 72:1-16

Psalm 72 ¹ 

For ²  Solomon.

72:1 O God, grant the king the ability to make just decisions! ³ 

Grant the king’s son ⁴  the ability to make fair decisions! ⁵ 

72:2 Then he will judge ⁶  your people fairly,

and your oppressed ones ⁷  equitably.

72:3 The mountains will bring news of peace to the people,

and the hills will announce justice. ⁸ 

72:4 He will defend ⁹  the oppressed among the people;

he will deliver ¹⁰  the children ¹¹  of the poor

and crush the oppressor.

72:5 People will fear ¹²  you ¹³  as long as the sun and moon remain in the sky,

for generation after generation. ¹⁴ 

72:6 He ¹⁵  will descend like rain on the mown grass, ¹⁶ 

like showers that drench ¹⁷  the earth. ¹⁸ 

72:7 During his days the godly will flourish; ¹⁹ 

peace will prevail as long as the moon remains in the sky. ²⁰ 

72:8 May he rule ²¹  from sea to sea, ²² 

and from the Euphrates River ²³  to the ends of the earth!

72:9 Before him the coastlands ²⁴  will bow down,

and his enemies will lick the dust. ²⁵ 

72:10 The kings of Tarshish ²⁶  and the coastlands will offer gifts;

the kings of Sheba ²⁷  and Seba ²⁸  will bring tribute.

72:11 All kings will bow down to him;

all nations will serve him.

72:12 For he will rescue the needy ²⁹  when they cry out for help,

and the oppressed ³⁰  who have no defender.

72:13 He will take pity ³¹  on the poor and needy;

the lives of the needy he will save.

72:14 From harm and violence he will defend them; ³² 

he will value their lives. ³³ 

72:15 May he live! ³⁴  May they offer him gold from Sheba! ³⁵ 

May they continually pray for him!

May they pronounce blessings on him all day long! ³⁶ 

72:16 May there be ³⁷  an abundance ³⁸  of grain in the earth;

on the tops ³⁹  of the mountains may it ⁴⁰  sway! ⁴¹ 

May its ⁴²  fruit trees ⁴³  flourish ⁴⁴  like the forests of Lebanon! ⁴⁵ 

May its crops ⁴⁶  be as abundant ⁴⁷  as the grass of the earth! ⁴⁸ 

[72:1]  ¹ sn Psalm 72. This royal psalm contains a prayer for the Davidic king (note the imperatival form in v. 1 and the jussive forms in vv. 16-17). It is not entirely clear if vv. 2-15 express a prayer or anticipate a future reign. The translation assumes a blend of petition and vision: (I) opening prayer (v. 1), followed by anticipated results if prayer is answered (vv. 2-7); (II) prayer (v. 8), followed by anticipated results if prayer is answered (vv. 9-14); (III) closing prayer (vv. 15-17). Whether a prayer, vision, or combination of the two, the psalm depicts the king’s universal rule of peace and prosperity. As such it is indirectly messianic, for the ideal it expresses will only be fully realized during the Messiah’s earthly reign. Verses 18-19 are a conclusion for Book 2 of the Psalter (Pss 42-72; cf. Ps 41:13, which contains a similar conclusion for Book 1), while v. 20 appears to be a remnant of an earlier collection of psalms or an earlier edition of the Psalter.

[72:1]  ² tn The preposition could be understood as indicating authorship (“Of Solomon”), but since the psalm is a prayer for a king, it may be that the superscription reflects a tradition that understood this as a prayer for Solomon.

[72:1]  ³ tn Heb “O God, your judgments to [the] king give.”

[72:1]  ⁴ sn Grant the king…Grant the king’s son. It is not entirely clear whether v. 1 envisions one individual or two. The phrase “the king’s son” in the second line may simply refer to “the king” of the first line, drawing attention to the fact that he has inherited his dynastic rule. Another option is that v. 1 envisions a co-regency between father and son (a common phenomenon in ancient Israel) or simply expresses a hope for a dynasty that champions justice.

[72:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “and your justice to [the] son of [the] king.”

[72:2]  ⁶ tn The prefixed verbal form appears to be an imperfect, not a jussive.

[72:2]  ⁷ sn These people are called God’s oppressed ones because he is their defender (see Pss 9:12, 18; 10:12; 12:5).

[72:3]  ⁸ tn Heb “[the] mountains will bear peace to the people, and [the] hills with justice.” The personified mountains and hills probably represent messengers who will sweep over the land announcing the king’s just decrees and policies. See Isa 52:7 and C. A. Briggs and E. G. Briggs, Psalms (ICC), 2:133.

[72:4]  ⁹ tn Heb “judge [for].”

[72:4]  ¹⁰ tn The prefixed verbal form appears to be an imperfect, not a jussive.

[72:4]  ¹¹ tn Heb “sons.”

[72:5]  ¹² tn In this context “fear” probably means “to demonstrate respect for the Lord’s power and authority by worshiping him and obeying his commandments.” See Ps 33:8. Some interpreters, with the support of the LXX, prefer to read וְיַאֲרִיךְ (vÿ’a’arikh, “and he [the king in this case] will prolong [days]”), that is, “will live a long time” (cf. NIV, NRSV).

[72:5]  ¹³ tn God is the addressee (see vv. 1-2).

[72:5]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “with [the] sun, and before [the] moon [for] a generation, generations.” The rare expression דּוֹר דּוֹרִים (dor dorim, “generation, generations”) occurs only here, in Ps 102:24, and in Isa 51:8.

[72:6]  ¹⁵ tn That is, the king (see vv. 2, 4).

[72:6]  ¹⁶ tn The rare term zg refers to a sheep’s fleece in Deut 18:4 and Job 31:20, but to “mown” grass or crops here and in Amos 7:1.

[72:6]  ¹⁷ tc The form in the Hebrew text appears to be an otherwise unattested noun. Many prefer to emend the form to a verb from the root זָרַף (zaraf). BHS in textual note b on this verse suggests a Hiphil imperfect, third masculine plural יַזְרִיפוּ (yazrifu), while HALOT 283 s.v. *זרף prefers a Pilpel perfect, third masculine plural זִרְזְפוּ (zirzÿfu). The translation assumes the latter.

[72:6]  ¹⁸ sn The imagery of this verse compares the blessings produced by the king’s reign to fructifying rains that cause the crops to grow.

[72:7]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “sprout up,” like crops. This verse continues the metaphor of rain utilized in v. 6.

[72:7]  ²⁰ tn Heb “and [there will be an] abundance of peace until there is no more moon.”

[72:8]  ²¹ tn The prefixed verbal form is a (shortened) jussive form, indicating this is a prayer of blessing.

[72:8]  ²² sn From sea to sea. This may mean from the Mediterranean Sea in the west to the Dead Sea in the east. See Amos 8:12. The language of this and the following line also appears in Zech 9:10.

[72:8]  ²³ tn Heb “the river,” a reference to the Euphrates.

[72:9]  ²⁴ tn Or “islands.” The term here refers metonymically to those people who dwell in these regions.

[72:9]  ²⁵ sn As they bow down before him, it will appear that his enemies are licking the dust.

[72:10]  ²⁶ sn Tarshish was a distant western port, the precise location of which is uncertain.

[72:10]  ²⁷ sn Sheba was located in Arabia.

[72:10]  ²⁸ sn Seba was located in Africa.

[72:12]  ²⁹ tn The singular is representative. The typical needy individual here represents the entire group.

[72:12]  ³⁰ tn The singular is representative. The typical oppressed individual here represents the entire group.

[72:13]  ³¹ tn The prefixed verb form is best understood as a defectively written imperfect (see Deut 7:16).

[72:14]  ³² tn Or “redeem their lives.” The verb “redeem” casts the Lord in the role of a leader who protects members of his extended family in times of need and crisis (see Pss 19:14; 69:18).

[72:14]  ³³ tn Heb “their blood will be precious in his eyes.”

[72:15]  ³⁴ tn The prefixed verbal form is jussive, not imperfect. Because the form has the prefixed vav (ו), some subordinate it to what precedes as a purpose/result clause. In this case the representative poor individual might be the subject of this and the following verb, “so that he may live and give to him gold of Sheba.” But the idea of the poor offering gold is incongruous. It is better to take the jussive as a prayer with the king as subject of the verb. (Perhaps the initial vav is dittographic; note the vav at the end of the last form in v. 14.) The statement is probably an abbreviated version of the formula יְחִי הַמֶּלֶךְ (yÿkhiy hammelekh, “may the king live”; see 1 Sam 10:24; 2 Sam 16:16; 1 Kgs 1:25, 34, 39; 2 Kgs 11:12).

[72:15]  ³⁵ tn Heb “and he will give to him some gold of Sheba.” The prefixed verbal form is understood as a jussive with a grammatically indefinite subject (“and may one give”). Of course, the king’s subjects, mentioned in the preceding context, are the tribute bearers in view here.

[72:15]  ³⁶ tn As in the preceding line, the prefixed verbal forms are understood as jussives with a grammatically indefinite subject (“and may one pray…and may one bless”). Of course, the king’s subjects, mentioned in the preceding context, are in view here.

[72:16]  ³⁷ tn The prefixed verbal form is jussive, not imperfect. The translation assumes the subject is impersonal (rather than the king).

[72:16]  ³⁸ tn The Hebrew noun פִסַּה (pissah; which appears here in the construct form) occurs only here in the OT. Perhaps the noun is related to the verbal root פָּשָׂה (pasah, “to spread,” see BDB 832 s.v.; the root appears as פָּסָה [pasah] in postbiblical Hebrew), which is used in postbiblical Hebrew of the rising sun’s rays spreading over the horizon and a tree’s branches spreading out (see Jastrow 1194 s.v. פסי, פָּסָה, פָּשָׂה). In Ps 72:16 a “spreading of grain” would refer to grain fields extending out over the land. C. A. Briggs and E. G. Briggs (Psalms [ICC], 2:139) emend the form to סְפִיחַ (sÿfiakh, “second growth”).

[72:16]  ³⁹ tn Heb “top” (singular).

[72:16]  ⁴⁰ tn That is, the grain.

[72:16]  ⁴¹ tn According to the traditional accentuation of the MT, this verb belongs with what follows. See the translator’s note at the end of the verse for a discussion of the poetic parallelism and interpretation of the verse.

[72:16]  ⁴² tn The antecedent of the third masculine singular pronominal suffix is unclear. It is unlikely that the antecedent is אֶרֶץ (’erets, “earth”) because this noun is normally grammatically feminine. Perhaps רֹאשׁ (ro’sh, “top [of the mountains]”) is the antecedent. Another option is to understand the pronoun as referring to the king, who would then be viewed as an instrument of divine agricultural blessing (see v. 6).

[72:16]  ⁴³ tn Heb “fruit.”

[72:16]  ⁴⁴ tc According to the traditional accentuation of the MT, this verb belongs with what follows. See the note on the word “earth” at the end of the verse for a discussion of the poetic parallelism and interpretation of the verse. The present translation takes it with the preceding words, “like Lebanon its fruit” and emends the verb form from וְיָצִיצוּ (vÿyatsitsu; Qal imperfect third masculine plural with prefixed vav, [ו]) to יָצִיץ (yatsits; Qal imperfect third masculine singular). The initial vav is eliminated as dittographic (note the vav on the ending of the preceding form פִּרְיוֹ, piryo, “its/his fruit”) and the vav at the end of the form is placed on the following emended form (see the note on the word “crops”), yielding וַעֲמִיר (va’amir, “and [its] crops”).

[72:16]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “like Lebanon.”

[72:16]  ⁴⁶ tc The MT has “from the city.” The translation assumes an emendation to עֲמִיר (’amir, “crops”).

[72:16]  ⁴⁷ tn The translation assumes that the verb צוץ (“flourish”) goes with the preceding line. The words “be as abundant” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[72:16]  ⁴⁸ tc The traditional accentuation and vocalization of the MT differ from the text assumed by the present translation. The MT reads as follows: “May there be an abundance of grain in the earth, / and on the tops of the mountains! / May its [or “his”?] fruit [trees?] rustle like [the trees of] Lebanon! / May they flourish from the city, like the grass of the earth!” If one follows the MT, then it would appear that the “fruit” of the third line is a metaphorical reference to the king’s people, who flow out from the cities to populate the land (see line 4). Elsewhere in the OT people are sometimes compared to grass that sprouts up from the land (see v. 7, as well as Isa 27:6; Pss 92:7; 103:15). The translation understands a different poetic structural arrangement and, assuming the emendations mentioned in earlier notes, interprets each line of the verse to be a prayer for agricultural abundance.