Old/New Testament
Psalm 72[a]
[A Psalm] for Solomon.
1 Give the king [knowledge of] Your [way of] judging, O God, and [the spirit of] Your righteousness to the king’s son [to control all his actions].
2 Let him judge and govern Your people with righteousness, and Your poor and afflicted ones with judgment and justice.
3 The mountains shall bring peace to the people, and the hills, through [the general establishment of] righteousness.
4 May he judge and defend the poor of the people, deliver the children of the needy, and crush the oppressor,
5 So that they may revere and fear You while the sun and moon endure, throughout all generations.
6 May he [Solomon as a type of King David’s greater Son] be like rain that comes down upon the mown grass, like showers that water the earth.
7 In [b]His [Christ’s] days shall the [uncompromisingly] righteous flourish and peace abound till there is a moon no longer.(A)
8 He [Christ] shall have dominion also from sea to sea and from the River [Euphrates] to the ends of the earth.(B)
9 Those who dwell in the wilderness shall bow before Him and His enemies shall lick the dust.
10 The kings of Tarshish and of the coasts shall bring offerings; the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.
11 Yes, all kings shall fall down before Him, all nations shall serve Him.(C)
12 For He delivers the needy when he calls out, the poor also and him who has no helper.
13 He will have pity on the poor and weak and needy and will save the lives of the needy.
14 He will redeem their lives from oppression and fraud and violence, and precious and costly shall their blood be in His sight.
15 And He shall live; and to Him shall be given gold of Sheba; prayer also shall be made for Him and through Him continually, and they shall bless and praise Him all the day long.
16 There shall be abundance of grain in the soil upon the top of the mountains [the least fruitful places in the land]; the fruit of it shall wave like [the forests of] Lebanon, and [the inhabitants of] the city shall flourish like grass of the earth.
17 His name shall endure forever; His name shall continue as long as the sun [indeed, His name continues before the sun]. And men shall be blessed and bless themselves by Him; all nations shall call Him blessed!
18 Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, Who alone does wondrous things!
19 Blessed be His glorious name forever; let the whole earth be filled with His glory! Amen and Amen!
20 The prayers of David son of Jesse are ended.
Book Three
Psalm 73
A Psalm of Asaph.
1 Truly God is [only] good to Israel, even to those who are upright and pure in heart.
2 But as for me, my feet were almost gone, my steps had well-nigh slipped.
3 For I was envious of the foolish and arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
4 For they suffer no violent pangs in their death, but their strength is firm.
5 They are not in trouble as other men; neither are they smitten and plagued like other men.
6 Therefore pride is about their necks like a chain; violence covers them like a garment [like a long, luxurious robe].
7 Their eyes stand out with fatness, they have more than heart could wish; and the imaginations of their minds overflow [with follies].
8 They scoff, and wickedly utter oppression; they speak loftily [from on high, maliciously and blasphemously].
9 They set their mouths against and speak down from heaven, and their tongues swagger through the earth [invading even heaven with blasphemy and smearing earth with slanders].(D)
10 Therefore His people return here, and waters of a full cup [offered by the wicked] are [blindly] drained by them.
11 And they say, How does God know? Is there knowledge in the Most High?
12 Behold, these are the ungodly, who always prosper and are at ease in the world; they increase in riches.
13 Surely then in vain have I cleansed my heart and washed my hands in innocency.
14 For all the day long have I been smitten and plagued, and chastened every morning.
15 Had I spoken thus [and given expression to my feelings], I would have been untrue and have dealt treacherously against the generation of Your children.
16 But when I considered how to understand this, it was too great an effort for me and too painful
17 Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I understood [for I considered] their end.
18 [After all] You do set the [wicked] in slippery places; You cast them down to ruin and destruction.
19 How they become a desolation in a moment! They are utterly consumed with terrors!
20 As a dream [which seems real] until one awakens, so, O Lord, when You arouse Yourself [to take note of the wicked], You will despise their outward show.
21 For my heart was grieved, embittered, and in a state of ferment, and I was pricked in my heart [as with the sharp fang of an adder].
22 So foolish, stupid, and brutish was I, and ignorant; I was like a beast before You.
23 Nevertheless I am continually with You; You do hold my right hand.
24 You will guide me with Your counsel, and afterward receive me to honor and glory.
25 Whom have I in heaven but You? And I have no delight or desire on earth besides You.
26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the Rock and firm Strength of my heart and my Portion forever.
27 For behold, those who are far from You shall perish; You will destroy all who are false to You and like [spiritual] harlots depart from You.
28 But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my trust in the Lord God and made Him my refuge, that I may tell of all Your works.
9 I am speaking the truth in Christ. I am not lying; my conscience [enlightened and prompted] by the Holy Spirit bearing witness with me
2 That I have bitter grief and incessant anguish in my heart.
3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off and banished from Christ for the sake of my brethren and instead of them, my natural kinsmen and my fellow countrymen.(A)
4 For they are Israelites, and to them belong God’s adoption [as a nation] and the glorious Presence (Shekinah). With them were the special covenants made, to them was the Law given. To them [the temple] worship was revealed and [God’s own] promises announced.(B)
5 To them belong the patriarchs, and as far as His natural descent was concerned, from them is the Christ, Who is exalted and supreme over all, God, blessed forever! Amen (so let it be).
6 However, it is not as though God’s Word had failed [coming to nothing]. For it is not everybody who is a descendant of Jacob (Israel) who belongs to [the true] Israel.
7 And they are not all the children of Abraham because they are by blood his descendants. No, [the promise was] Your descendants will be called and counted through the line of Isaac [though Abraham had an older son].(C)
8 That is to say, it is not the children of the body [of Abraham] who are made God’s children, but it is the offspring to whom the promise applies that shall be counted [as Abraham’s true] descendants.
9 For this is what the promise said, About this time [next year] will I return and Sarah shall have a son.(D)
10 And not only that, but this too: Rebecca conceived [two sons under exactly the same circumstances] by our forefather Isaac,
11 And the children were yet unborn and had so far done nothing either good or evil. Even so, in order further to carry out God’s purpose of selection (election, choice), which depends not on works or what men can do, but on Him Who calls [them],
12 It was said to her that the elder [son] should serve the younger [son].(E)
13 As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated (held in [a]relative disregard in comparison with My feeling for Jacob).(F)
14 What shall we conclude then? Is there injustice upon God’s part? Certainly not!
15 For He says to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy and I will have compassion (pity) on whom I will have compassion.(G)
Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation