Psalm 72-73

New King James Version

Glory and Universality of the Messiah’s Reign

A Psalm ^(A)of Solomon.

72 Give the king Your judgments, O God,
And Your righteousness to the king’s Son.
²^(B)He will judge Your people with righteousness,
And Your poor with justice.
³^(C)The mountains will bring peace to the people,
And the little hills, by righteousness.
⁴^(D)He will bring justice to the poor of the people;
He will save the children of the needy,
And will ^[a]break in pieces the oppressor.

⁵^[b]They shall fear You
^(E)As long as the sun and moon endure,
Throughout all generations.
⁶^(F)He shall come down like rain upon the grass before mowing,
Like showers that water the earth.
⁷In His days the righteous shall flourish,
^(G)And abundance of peace,
Until the moon is no more.

⁸^(H)He shall have dominion also from sea to sea,
And from the River to the ends of the earth.
⁹^(I)Those who dwell in the wilderness will bow before Him,
^(J)And His enemies will lick the dust.
¹⁰^(K)The kings of Tarshish and of the isles
Will bring presents;
The kings of Sheba and Seba
Will offer gifts.
¹¹^(L)Yes, all kings shall fall down before Him;
All nations shall serve Him.

¹²For He ^(M)will deliver the needy when he cries,
The poor also, and him who has no helper.
¹³He will spare the poor and needy,
And will save the souls of the needy.
¹⁴He will redeem their life from oppression and violence;
And ^(N)precious shall be their blood in His sight.

¹⁵And He shall live;
And the gold of ^(O)Sheba will be given to Him;
Prayer also will be made for Him continually,
And daily He shall be praised.

¹⁶There will be an abundance of grain in the earth,
On the top of the mountains;
Its fruit shall wave like Lebanon;
^(P)And those of the city shall flourish like grass of the earth.

¹⁷^(Q)His name shall endure forever;
His name shall continue as long as the sun.
And ^(R)men shall be blessed in Him;
^(S)All nations shall call Him blessed.

¹⁸^(T)Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel,
^(U)Who only does wondrous things!
¹⁹And ^(V)blessed be His glorious name forever!
^(W)And let the whole earth be filled with His glory.
Amen and Amen.

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

BOOK THREE

Psalms 73–89

The Tragedy of the Wicked, and the Blessedness of Trust in God

A Psalm of ^(X)Asaph.

73 Truly God is good to Israel,
To such as are pure in heart.
²But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled;
My steps had nearly ^(Y)slipped.
³^(Z)For I was envious of the boastful,
When I saw the prosperity of the ^(AA)wicked.

⁴For there are no ^[c]pangs in their death,
But their strength is firm.
⁵^(AB)They are not in trouble as other men,
Nor are they plagued like other men.
⁶Therefore pride serves as their necklace;
Violence covers them ^(AC)like a garment.
⁷^(AD)Their ^[d]eyes bulge with abundance;
They have more than heart could wish.
⁸^(AE)They scoff and speak wickedly concerning oppression;
They ^(AF)speak ^[e]loftily.
⁹They set their mouth ^(AG)against the heavens,
And their tongue walks through the earth.

¹⁰Therefore his people return here,
^(AH)And waters of a full cup are drained by them.
¹¹And they say, ^(AI)“How does God know?
And is there knowledge in the Most High?”
¹²Behold, these are the ungodly,
Who are always at ease;
They increase in riches.
¹³Surely I have ^[f]cleansed my heart in ^(AJ)vain,
And washed my hands in innocence.
¹⁴For all day long I have been plagued,
And chastened every morning.

¹⁵If I had said, “I will speak thus,”
Behold, I would have been untrue to the generation of Your children.
¹⁶When I thought how to understand this,
It was ^[g]too painful for me—
¹⁷Until I went into the sanctuary of God;
Then I understood their ^(AK)end.

¹⁸Surely ^(AL)You set them in slippery places;
You cast them down to destruction.
¹⁹Oh, how they are brought to desolation, as in a moment!
They are utterly consumed with terrors.
²⁰As a dream when one awakes,
So, Lord, when You awake,
You shall despise their image.

²¹Thus my heart was grieved,
And I was ^[h]vexed in my mind.
²²^(AM)I was so foolish and ignorant;
I was like a beast before You.
²³Nevertheless I am continually with You;
You hold me by my right hand.
²⁴^(AN)You will guide me with Your counsel,
And afterward receive me to glory.

²⁵^(AO)Whom have I in heaven but You?
And there is none upon earth that I desire besides You.
²⁶^(AP)My flesh and my heart fail;
But God is the ^[i]strength of my heart and my ^(AQ)portion forever.

²⁷For indeed, ^(AR)those who are far from You shall perish;
You have destroyed all those who ^[j]desert You for harlotry.
²⁸But it is good for me to ^(AS)draw near to God;
I have put my trust in the Lord God,
That I may ^(AT)declare all Your works.