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Psalm 72:14-16
New Catholic Bible
Psalm 72:14-16
New Catholic Bible
14 He will free them from oppression and violence,
for their blood is precious in his sight.
15 [a]Long may he live!
May the gold of Sheba be given to him.
May people pray for him unceasingly
and invoke blessings[b] on him all day long.
16 May grain abound throughout the land,
even growing abundantly on the mountain tops.
May its crops[c] be as plenteous as those of Lebanon,
and may its people flourish like the grass of the field.
Footnotes
- Psalm 72:15 The psalmist prays that the Messiah-King may enjoy a long and prosperous reign acknowledged by the whole world and be a blessing for all the nations.
- Psalm 72:15 May people pray . . . and invoke blessings: an obscure passage. As it is translated, it means: may the people pray for the Messiah, that he will benefit the poor with the treasures he has received, and may they bless and thank him. But Israel could also pray to ask God for a perfect Messiah and so offer vows for the extension of the Messianic kingdom (see Ps 61:8f). Hence, one could also translate: “He [the Messiah] will pray [intercede] for him [the poor] / and bless him” (see 1 Ki 8:14, 28).
- Psalm 72:16 Fertility of the land was one of the blessings of the Messianic age (see Hos 14:6f; Am 9:13). May its crops . . . Lebanon: may its crops possess the same vital power that the majestic cedars of Lebanon display.
