Psalm 72

Of Solomon

1 Give the king your justice, O God, and your righteousness to the royal son!

2 May he judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with justice!

Book 2 ends with a psalm celebrating the reign of the messiah. While the psalm is specifically about Solomon and a prayer for later Judaic kings, these kings are all mere shadows of the reality of Jesus the messiah. When Jesus arrived on the scene in the first century, this psalm was well known and thought to refer to an earthly king that God would raise up to throw off the yoke of the Romans and usher in a golden age. Instead, God would send Jesus and forty years later Rome would crush the nascent Jewish rebellion. God established his king and his kingdom all right but it was of a different nature than this psalm had led them to expect. May we understand the true nature of his kingdom as well, particularly when it comes to interpreting this psalm today. The king’s first prayer is that he may judge with justice. One of the primary responsibilities of the king was to secure justice for all. We think of this as an American or western concept, but here it is, 3,000 years ago. The king is to show special concern for the poor, the most vulnerable in society. Not that he is to tip the scales in their favor, but he is simply to treat all people equally. The king was the final arbiter in settling disputes between citizens, so he needed to have a high level of discernment and understanding. Solomon famously displayed this in the courtroom, a judgment that is still cited today as “Solomonic” in wisdom,  but he failed to exercise good judgment in his own home, giving into the cultural norms of having multiple wives, something that led him and Israel astray. My prayer today is the same as Solomon. Give me justice and righteousness that I may judge others with them both. Give me discernment to assess motive and heart, along with a strong dose of humility. Of course Jesus is the messiah of this psalm, and he came to bring justice to the poor, the good news that he could satisfy their needs and he could be trusted to treat them fairly. 

3 Let the mountains bear prosperity for the people, and the hills, in righteousness!

4 May he defend the cause of the poor of the people, give deliverance to the children of the needy, and crush the oppressor!

The king prays that the mountains would bring prosperity for the people. The word for prosperity is shalom, peace or wholeness. The mountains to the north provided snow melt water for the northern hill country and the Jordan valley, so they were a source of refreshment to the land as well as a symbol of strength and endurance. In Solomon’s day the nation’s borders extended up into these mountains and he formed trade relationships with the people of Lebanon, supplying wood for palaces and temples. The second prayer is a continuation of the prayer in the first two verses, a prayer that the king would rule with justice. Here the two aspects of justice are highlighted. The king is to defend the cause of the poor and give deliverance to them by crushing their oppressors. Justice has both a restorative and a punitive aspect, and the king is to practice both. But if there is to be prosperity in the land, there must be justice. People must know that the fruit of the labor is secure, that it won’t be stolen, that they can sleep and travel without fear of assault. This requires law enforcement and penalties for disobedience. If sin were not an issue, of course punishment wouldn’t be a part of the system. But it is, and so a justice system must actually punish the guilty as a deterrent to crime. There is always debate about the application of justice and as long as humanity has existed, this has been an imperfect system because it is run by humans, and humans are imperfect. The kingdom of the messiah promises to be one of justice, assisted by the transformation of the hearts of its citizens. 

5 May they fear you [Septuagint He shall endure] while the sun endures, and as long as the moon, throughout all generations!

6 May he be like rain that falls on the mown grass, like showers that water the earth!

The messiah who defends the poor from the oppressor will always be feared by his enemies, as long as the sun shines and the moon reflects its light, from generation to generation. This is the prayer on behalf of the king, and it is most certainly answered by Jesus. As much as it may seem that evil is winning in our culture, the reign of Jesus is more certain than anything else. Generations come and go, changing along the way, but the eternal kingdom of God surpasses them all. If you believe this, it gives you hope. Take the long view of history and it’s clear that Jesus and his followers have the upper hand, truth has a dogged way of winning. Reality trumps fantasy, and we can only pray that it will happen sooner rather than later in this world where truth is turned upside down. May the falsehoods be shown for what they are as the light of eternal sun shines on them. In addition to the metaphor the sun and moon perpetually shining, the psalmist prays that messiah would be like rain that falls on grass that has just been harvested, perfectly timed to grow even more. May he be like showers that water the earth. The miracle of rain should never fail to amaze us -- that millions of gallons of fresh water falls from the sky making life possible. It is a phenomenon that we should never take for granted. Israel depended on the rainy seasons to sustain life. A few years without rain and the people were really hurting. Consistent rain was life-giving and this is what the messiah does for his people. Jesus consistently provides nourishment for our souls. He is the water of life, and when we consume him we will never be thirsty again. He is the rain that showers mown grass and waters the earth, bringing life to all he touches. He is the eternal king of the earth, worthy of our worship, allegiance, and obedience. 

7 In his days may the righteous flourish, and peace abound, till the moon be no more!

8 May he have dominion from sea to sea, and from the River [That is, the Euphrates] to the ends of the earth!

Solomon describes the quality and extent of the messiah’s reign. For the Judaic king, this is hyperbole. Nothing like this ever materialized in Solomon’s lifetime, although it was idealized as so. He did enjoy a 40 year reign of peace and prosperity, which for many in those days was an entire lifetime. Frankly it wasn’t that Israel was so powerful but that there were no other strong rivals at the time. The Neo-Assyrian and Babylonian empires had yet to rise and Egypt was in the doldrums. If the quality of messiah’s reign was peace and every-growing righteousness, the extent of messiah’s reign was universal. From sea to sea referred to the Mediterranean and the Persian Gulf. The River referred to the Euphrates and the ends of the earth -- well everything else in the known world at that time. This is a wonderful foreshadowing of the quality and extent of the rule of Jesus the messiah. His kingdom, the church, has inexorably advanced wherever it has gone. Truly like a mustard seed, small pockets of Christians embedded in various cultures managed to grow and spread out their branches. This is clearly not a man-made phenomenon. The faith itself is marvelously beautiful and explanatory, and it is rooted in actual, verifiable history events setting it apart from anything that is a mere philosophy of man. Solomon could not have conceived of such a kingdom that now numbers in the billions, nor could the disciples of Jesus’ day who were given the command to go into all the nations and preach the gospel. The text reminds me of my place in the kingdom as a herald of the king. In western culture we are to some extent saturated with Christian theology and yet there is a hollowness to it all, a seed that is but an empty shell of its former self. There is much life here, but it comes under a withering attack from a culture that is animated by expressive individualism. Yet our messiah has not changed or left his throne. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end, until the moon is no more and the kingdom has reached every edge of the earth. 

9 May desert tribes bow down before him, and his enemies lick the dust!

10 May the kings of Tarshish and of the coastlands render him tribute; may the kings of Sheba and Seba bring gifts!

11 May all kings fall down before him, all nations serve him!

Solomon now describes the diversity of peoples and rulers that will bow before the messiah. Starting in the south with the desert tribes of Arabia, then the west with the kings of Tarshish and the coastlands, and back to the Arabian peninsula with Sheba and Seba, he describes world leaders bowing and bringing gifts to him. This was slightly true of Solomon and hyperbolically true of Jesus, meaning it’s true beyond even what Solomon was saying. Two thousand years after Jesus established his kingdom, there are people of every nation who bow before him and bring gifts to him. This expansion of the church has rested on at least these two things: the truth of the message and the faithfulness of its bearers. The gospel rests on historical reality and it also offers deep philosophical and psychological resources for dealing with life’s biggest questions and for living life itself, particularly the hard times in life. But the gospel may not have made it out of Judea if it hadn’t been for the fact that Christians were willing to die for this gospel and make tremendous sacrifices to see that the message went out. Solomon saw the first fruits in this glorious description of his reign, but it is but a shadow compared to the reality that is Jesus and his kingdom. May this move us to act today to see that the gospel continues to go out the ends of the earth, that all peoples would know the good news of Jesus and bring him the gift of their lives in response. 

12 For he delivers the needy when he calls, the poor and him who has no helper.

13 He has pity on the weak and the needy, and saves the lives of the needy.

14 From oppression and violence he redeems their life, and precious is their blood in his sight.

These verses strike me as very unusual for an ancient king. The assumption is usually that kings were in it for the power and wealth, but here the ideal king is described as someone who delivers the needy when they call, the poor person who has no one else. It is a friend to all in lowest economic and social positions. Such a king may have only been in their dreams, but the fact that it’s there tells us that there is a longing there for such a leader. Of course this description fits Jesus perfectly. He came bringing good news to the poor -- one of the things that set him apart from the other religious leaders of his day. It is something that would set apart any politician these days. Powerful and rich people tend to associate with people of their own social status, so populist leaders are often able to gain power by breaking the typical mold (or at least appearing to). In this case, the king doesn’t do it to score political points. Rather the text indicates that he has pity on the needy. He feels compassion and uses his power to intervene on their behalf, and this will probably come at a cost. Verse 14 tells us that the life of the needy is one fraught with oppression and violence. They were probably living in the fear of some kind of gang or mob boss, a creditor who had power over them, young men who had greater physical strength than women and could attack with impunity knowing that good ol’ boys in leadership would look the other way. Things haven’t changed in 3,000 years, so it’s probably not going to. This is human nature. What will change is when individuals have an encounter with King Jesus. This new kind of king that uses his power for the good of the needy has the power to genuinely save people by transforming their thoughts and motivations, by making them virtuous by virtue of his love and example. This is the kind of messiah this violent and oppressive world needs. This is the kind of leader we’d like to elect, but even that wouldn’t change things that much. The real power isn’t in politics, it’s in transformed lives. 

15 Long may he live; may gold of Sheba be given to him! May prayer be made for him continually, and blessings invoked for him all the day!

16 May there be abundance of grain in the land; on the tops of the mountains may it wave; may its fruit be like Lebanon; and may people blossom in the cities like the grass of the field!

17 May his name endure forever, his fame continue as long as the sun! May people be blessed in him, all nations call him blessed!

A series of prayers for the king follows these statements of how he will care for the poor and needy. Because he is a great king, the natural desire of the people is that his reign never end. We pray for his long life and for his increase in wealth (the gold of Sheba). We pray for him continually, invoking blessings for him all day long. We pray for an abundance of grain (which means that we will eat well). This is portrayed as fields of grain stretching to the tops of the mountains, like the forests of Lebanon. And since we are thinking of fruit and grain, we pray that people will blossom in cities, that the population will grow like the grass of the field. As a result of this prosperity the population will increase and the king will get the credit. His reputation and fame will endure as long as the sun. The people will be blessed in him and all nations will call him blessed. It would be great to have such a king as this and live in such a time as this -- peace, prosperity, security, population growth, new construction. It is the ideal world, a world without sin and people working in harmony with nature. With everyone trusting in the leadership of a good king, they can focus on the tasks at hand, knowing that the big things are taken care of. This of course is a vision of the world as led by Jesus the Messiah, a king who is truly worthy of our trust and who has demonstrated justice and compassion for all. This is beginning to sound like a political campaign, but it is really just a description of the church. The church is the kingdom that must demonstrate the qualities of our king, praying to him for blessing, spreading his reign by preaching the gospel until all nations call him blessed. This is a call to missions as much as an animating vision of the future. This vision will be actualized when the kingdom of God comes to every nation and people. This is our primary task today, advancing the kingdom of God through the preaching of the gospel, making disciples of all nations. This psalm truly is a great commission psalm, coming at the end of the second book, the prayers of David. 

18 Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who alone does wondrous things.

19 Blessed be his glorious name forever; may the whole earth be filled with his glory! Amen and Amen!

20 The prayers of David, the son of Jesse, are ended.

Following the conclusion of Psalm 72, the editor added three verses of doxology, the longest in the Psalter. It follows in a similar vein to the psalm and other psalms in book 2, noting the universal reign of YHWH. While he is the God of Israel, his glorious name is forever (at all times) and his glory itself fills the whole earth (all places). He is bigger than a local deity, a national god, and this is consistent throughout the Psalms. The doxology declares that YHWH’s deeds are unique, they stand alone among the acts of the gods. He does wondrous things, actions that evoke marvel and awe, deeds that surprise and delight. This is the story of Israel and it is the story of David as told in the previous pages of the Psalter. What wondrous deeds has he done for you? Psalm 103 lists them for us -- forgives all your sins, heals all your diseases, redeems your life from the pit, crowns you with love and compassion, satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagles -- and that’s just getting started. In addition to contemplating his wonders in your life, consider his glory in all the earth. Creation is calling in bird song and wind whisper, in the trickle of moving water, and the light of sun painting the clouds warm and beautiful. Pause today to take it all in, to listen and observe the glory of God filling the earth. The doxology is so true to reality that it deserves a double “Amen”. Rooted in the word for “truth” and “faithfulness”, it might be translated, “Now that’s the way it really is.” Our culture desperately needs a good dose of “amen and amen”. The philosophical underpinnings of society have shifted and not only is everyone encouraged to have their own reality, but the rest of society is being forced to affirm those private realities. Denying reality is never a good foundation for living. In these times when the foundations are being destroyed, how good it is to know that one who laid the foundations of the earth, who never stops working wonders for his people, and whose glory fills the whole earth.