Scripture Reading(s)
Psalm 72:1-7, 10-14
72:1 Give the king your justice, O God, and your righteousness to a king’s son.
72:2 May he judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with justice.
72:3 May the mountains yield prosperity for the people, and the hills, in righteousness.
72:4 May he defend the cause of the poor of the people, give deliverance to the needy, and crush the oppressor.
72:5 May he live while the sun endures, and as long as the moon, throughout all generations.
72:6 May he be like rain that falls on the mown grass, like showers that water the earth.
72:7 In his days may righteousness flourish and peace abound, until the moon is no more.
72:10 May the kings of Tarshish and of the isles render him tribute, may the kings of Sheba and Seba bring gifts.
72:11 May all kings fall down before him, all nations give him service.
72:12 For he delivers the needy when they call, the poor and those who have no helper.
72:13 He has pity on the weak and the needy, and saves the lives of the needy.
72:14 From oppression and violence he redeems their life; and precious is their blood in his sight.
Reflections
In this Psalm we see David not only praying for Solomon to be wise in his future leadership of the kingdom but also for God’s hand to continually be put on display. This is not a selfish prayer filled with David wanting good for his son. This is a genuine prayer that is filled with David’s longing desire to see the future of this nation being on fire and devoted to loving and worshiping God.
The nation of Israel and David himself had seen some good and dark times during his reign as king. He wanted for Israel and Solomon to reflect God and all that He is. In this passage we several things that David prays for:
- Ruling with a righteous and just heart
- Have gracious heart towards those who are in need and less fortunate and defend those who can’t fight for themselves
- To live a long life
- To be productive and wise in his ruling
- To bring peace to the nation and not strife
In the last part of the Psalm we see the context begin to shift a little bit. In verses 11-14 we see how David begins to describe characteristics of none other then Christ. David’s prayer is that Solomon exemplifies Christ but above all else there is no ruler who compares to Christ. This is a picture to the future Kingdom when Christ rules the earth once again. This is what our future hope should be set on and the ultimate prayer that David longed for was to see God’s rule on this earth once again.
Israel as well as the other followers of God longed for a king that would rule with justice and righteousness. David longed also for his son Solomon to be a king the ruled with peace and justice. Indeed, all of Israel prayed along with David and the succession of kings that would be led by a king who enacted just laws and brought peace to the land.
Likewise we must pray for the leadership in our own countries. Whether we are Canadian, American, British, or from any other nation. We must pray that our leaders will do what is right and not what is politically or financially expedient. Whether we voted for them or not we must pray that they succeed in doing what is right because when they succeed we all succeed.