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Psalm 72
Good News Translation
Psalm 72
Good News Translation
A Prayer for the King[a]
72 Teach the king to judge with your righteousness, O God;
share with him your own justice,
2 so that he will rule over your people with justice
and govern the oppressed with righteousness.
3 May the land enjoy prosperity;
may it experience righteousness.
4 May the king judge the poor fairly;
may he help the needy
and defeat their oppressors.
5 May your people worship you as long as the sun shines,
as long as the moon gives light, for ages to come.
6 May the king be like rain on the fields,
like showers falling on the land.
7 May righteousness flourish in his lifetime,
and may prosperity last as long as the moon gives light.
8 (A)His kingdom will reach from sea to sea,
from the Euphrates to the ends of the earth.
9 The peoples of the desert will bow down before him;
his enemies will throw themselves to the ground.
10 The kings of Spain and of the islands will offer him gifts;
the kings of Sheba and Seba[b] will bring him offerings.
11 All kings will bow down before him;
all nations will serve him.
12 He rescues the poor who call to him,
and those who are needy and neglected.
13 He has pity on the weak and poor;
he saves the lives of those in need.
14 He rescues them from oppression and violence;
their lives are precious to him.
15 Long live the king!
May he be given gold from Sheba;[c]
may prayers be said for him at all times;
may God's blessings be on him always!
16 May there be plenty of grain in the land;
may the hills be covered with crops,
as fruitful as those of Lebanon.
May the cities be filled with people,
like fields full of grass.
17 May the king's name never be forgotten;
may his fame last as long as the sun.
May all nations ask God to bless them
as he has blessed the king.[d]
18 Praise the Lord, the God of Israel!
He alone does these wonderful things.
19 Praise his glorious name forever!
May his glory fill the whole world.
Amen! Amen!
20 This is the end of the prayers of David son of Jesse.
Footnotes
- Psalm 72:1 HEBREW TITLE: By Solomon.
- Psalm 72:10 Sheba was toward the south in Arabia and Seba was on the opposite side of the Red Sea.
- Psalm 72:15 See 72.10.
- Psalm 72:17 as he has blessed the king; or and may they wish happiness for the king.
Psalm 72
New International Version
Psalm 72
New International Version
Psalm 72
Of Solomon.
1 Endow the king with your justice,(A) O God,
the royal son with your righteousness.
2 May he judge your people in righteousness,(B)
your afflicted ones with justice.
3 May the mountains bring prosperity to the people,
the hills the fruit of righteousness.
4 May he defend the afflicted(C) among the people
and save the children of the needy;(D)
may he crush the oppressor.(E)
5 May he endure[a](F) as long as the sun,
as long as the moon, through all generations.(G)
6 May he be like rain(H) falling on a mown field,
like showers watering the earth.
7 In his days may the righteous flourish(I)
and prosperity abound till the moon is no more.
8 May he rule from sea to sea
and from the River[b](J) to the ends of the earth.(K)
9 May the desert tribes bow before him
and his enemies lick the dust.
10 May the kings of Tarshish(L) and of distant shores(M)
bring tribute to him.
May the kings of Sheba(N) and Seba
present him gifts.(O)
11 May all kings bow down(P) to him
and all nations serve(Q) him.
12 For he will deliver the needy who cry out,
the afflicted who have no one to help.
13 He will take pity(R) on the weak and the needy
and save the needy from death.
14 He will rescue(S) them from oppression and violence,
for precious(T) is their blood in his sight.
15 Long may he live!
May gold from Sheba(U) be given him.
May people ever pray for him
and bless him all day long.(V)
16 May grain(W) abound throughout the land;
on the tops of the hills may it sway.
May the crops(X) flourish like Lebanon(Y)
and thrive[c] like the grass of the field.(Z)
17 May his name endure forever;(AA)
may it continue as long as the sun.(AB)
18 Praise be to the Lord God, the God of Israel,(AD)
who alone does marvelous deeds.(AE)
19 Praise be to his glorious name(AF) forever;
may the whole earth be filled with his glory.(AG)
Amen and Amen.(AH)
20 This concludes the prayers of David son of Jesse.(AI)
Footnotes
- Psalm 72:5 Septuagint; Hebrew You will be feared
- Psalm 72:8 That is, the Euphrates
- Psalm 72:16 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text; Masoretic Text Lebanon, / from the city
- Psalm 72:17 Or will use his name in blessings (see Gen. 48:20)
Psalm 72
The Message
Psalm 72
The Message
72 1-8 Give the gift of wise rule to the king, O God,
the gift of just rule to the crown prince.
May he judge your people rightly,
be honorable to your meek and lowly.
Let the mountains give exuberant witness;
shape the hills with the contours of right living.
Please stand up for the poor,
help the children of the needy,
come down hard on the cruel tyrants.
Outlast the sun, outlive the moon—
age after age after age.
Be rainfall on cut grass,
earth-refreshing rain showers.
Let righteousness burst into blossom
and peace abound until the moon fades to nothing.
Rule from sea to sea,
from the River to the Rim.
9-14 Foes will fall on their knees before God,
his enemies lick the dust.
Kings remote and legendary will pay homage,
kings rich and resplendent will turn over their wealth.
All kings will fall down and worship,
and godless nations sign up to serve him,
Because he rescues the poor at the first sign of need,
the destitute who have run out of luck.
He opens a place in his heart for the down-and-out,
he restores the wretched of the earth.
He frees them from tyranny and torture—
when they bleed, he bleeds;
when they die, he dies.
15-17 And live! Oh, let him live!
Deck him out in Sheba gold.
Offer prayers unceasing to him,
bless him from morning to night.
Fields of golden grain in the land,
cresting the mountains in wild exuberance,
Cornucopias of praise, praises
springing from the city like grass from the earth.
May he never be forgotten,
his fame shine on like sunshine.
May all godless people enter his circle of blessing
and bless the One who blessed them.
18-20 Blessed God, Israel’s God,
the one and only wonder-working God!
Blessed always his blazing glory!
All earth brims with his glory.
Yes and Yes and Yes.
Good News Translation (GNT) 
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson