Psalm 128

Structurally, Psalm 128 has two sections: vv. 1–4 and vv. 5–6. The first 4 verses cohere as a result of the repetition (i.e., an inclusio) in v. 1 and v. 4, as shown below:

¹ Blessed is everyone who fears the LORD, who walks in his ways!
² You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands;
you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you.
³ Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house;
your children will be like olive shoots around your table.
⁴ Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the LORD. (ESV)

I did not highlight the term “blessed” in these two verses because we are dealing with two different words. The first (אַשְׁרֵי) is the same form used in Psalm 127:5 (“Blessed is the man …”) among other places in the Psalter (such as Pss. 1:1; 2:12). It is used here in Psalm 128:2, as well, in the phrase “you shall be blessed.” These verses imply a tangible happiness (or satisfaction) for the one who fears the Lord. Likewise, the psalmist describes the fear of the Lord tangibly as walking in the ways of Yhwh. Just as the one who fears the Lord—manifested by following his word—is blessed, so the reader is again invited to relate this to the opening two psalms. In Psalm 1, the one who mediates upon the teachings of the Lord is blessed; in Psalm 2, kings are exhorted to worship Yhwh “in fear” (v. 11), and blessing is found for those who take refuge in the Son. Moreover, the tangible evidences of this blessing in Psalm 128 (eating the fruit of the land as a result of work, a fruitful wife, prospering children) set this hope within the context of Genesis 1–3. These blessings show a virtual reversal of the curses of Genesis 3 within the context of the original creation blessing and mandate to “be fruitful and fill the land” (Gen 1:28).

The second term for blessing (יְבֹרַךְ) refers to blessing that is bestowed upon the one who fears the Lord. The presence of this term here prepares the reader for the second section of the psalm (vv. 5, 6), where such blessing is spoken over the individual. It thus links the physical blessings of vv. 2, 3 with the act of blessing done by Yhwh (v. 5, see below). This ensures that the source of this blessing is not missed.

⁴ Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the LORD.
⁵ The LORD bless you from Zion!
May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life!
⁶ May you see your children’s children!
Peace be upon Israel! (ESV)

The promise of blessing upon the one who fears Yhwh in v. 4 has become the request for blessing upon the one over whom this blessing is spoken in v. 5. This request for blessing in v. 5 is echoed later in Psalm 134:3 verbatim.

Throughout the Songs of Ascents, there have been a number of connections with the Priestly Blessing of Numbers 6, and that trend continues in Psalm 128. Just as the priests were commanded to “bless” (using the latter term) the people of Israel, so the writer of Psalm 128 speaks with confidence of Yhwh’s blessing on those who fear Yhwh (v. 4) and also speaks a blessing upon the reader(s) (v. 5). As such, Psalm 128 acts as a rehearsal of the Priestly Blessing (in much the same way was Psalm 134 will also) but carefully places the origin of that blessing from Zion. The phrase, “peace upon Israel,” both enhances the connection to the Priestly Blessing and brings coherence within the Songs of Ascents as it echoes Psalm 125:5.

One of (if not the) central point of the psalm is to show that the blessing of one who fears Yhwh (vv. 1–4) manifests itself within the promise of a peaceful Zion/Jerusalem/Israel (vv. 5–6). As such, within the context of the Songs of Ascents and the Psalter, the blessing comes as part of the eschatological Messianic kingdom, which will continue to be described in the rest of the Songs of Ascents (see especially Psalm 132).

Psalm 123

Like the three previous Songs of Ascents [see previous posts on Psalms 120, 121, 122], Psalm 123 opens in the first person singular, meaning that an individual is speaking using “I” or “me.” Also, like Psalms 120 and 121, the psalm does not identify the speaker. In these cases, they are written as expressions of any of the faithful who are personally committed to Yhwh and find themselves on a journey to meet with him. But, like the speakers in the previous psalms, the unnamed speaker of Psalm 123 is addressing a prayer to Yhwh because of a precarious situation. In this case, as vv. 2–3 make clear, the speaker joins with the congregation as one seeking the grace of Yhwh, and about this request, they are desperate.

So the poet begins: “To you I lift up my eyes, O you who are enthroned in the heavens!” As is readily apparent, there is somewhat of an echo here with Ps 121:1–2 both in the lifting of the eyes and in the use of heaven(s).[1] In Psalm 121, the psalmist expressed confidence in lifting the eyes to the mountains because help was coming from Yhwh, who is the maker of heaven and earth. Here the psalmist directs an address to Yhwh in a personal way (“to you”) but then identifies the object of that gaze as the one who sits in the heavens. He is both the one who made the heavens, and he is the one who dwells above mankind in the heavens, perhaps metaphorically speaking. Thus, lifting the eyes is the certain posture of the one who directs his or her attention to Yhwh.[2]

Elsewhere, the Psalter describes Yhwh as the one dwelling in the heavens (among other places, such as 11:4) in Ps 2:4, where the one sitting in the heavens cannot but laugh at those who would dare try to usurp him and his king. But much in the same way that Psalms 1 and 2 laid out a definite relationship between Yhwh and the righteous versus Yhwh and the wicked, so here the speaker does not find a God who scoffs at him, rather, the speaker looks with hopeful expectation at this God.

The poet further describes what is meant by the lifting of the eyes and the significance of such by making an analogy in v. 2a: “Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maidservant to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God.”

And the psalmist’s point is driven home by a clear use of repetition in the parallelism throughout vv. 1–2. Consider the following (my translation for clarity sake):

To you I lift my eyes.
Like the eyes of servants to the hand …
Like the eyes of a maidservant to the hand …
Thus our eyes to Yhwh, our God.[3]

The you of “to you” in v. 1 has now been identified as (1) the one who is enthroned in the heavens and (2) Yhwh our God. Yhwh, the covenant God, is both the majestic king of the heavens and the personal God of Israel. As such, the writer pens a request by the people reasonably founded upon their knowledge of Yhwh as the mighty King of heaven and the personal God of his people.

With their God properly identified, the congregation commits to lift their eyes to Yhwh their God “till he has mercy upon us” (v. 2b). They long for grace, and they are confident that Yhwh has the ability and desire to bring it about. They will not turn their eyes until he does it. They desire mercy so intently that the author uses step parallelism (or anadiplosis) once again to focus the reader’s attention upon it. V. 2 ends with the phrase “he has mercy upon us,” and v. 3 begins with the imperative, “Have mercy upon us.” What is more, the imperative is repeated, “Have mercy upon us.”

But why do they need the grace (or mercy) of Yhwh? According to v. 3b, because “we have had more than enough of contempt.” The people of Yhwh feel satiated with the sins of those with whom they dwell (see also Psalm 120). Although there is not a specific setting that is described here, it seems that the psalm is intended to fit any situation in which the people of God are the object of contempt.

Moreover, 3 of the 4 (Hebrew) words of v. 3b are repeated in v. 4:[4] “Our soul has had more than enough of the scorn of those who are at ease, of the contempt of the proud.” The writer echoes a complaint of Asaph in Psalm 73.

While waiting for worship and satisfaction in a peaceful, New Jerusalem (Psalm 122), the people of God ought to continue to lift up their eyes to the one who dwells in the heavens and to ask for his grace.[5] David will reflect on this, as well, in the Psalm 124.

Notes

[1] As such, Pss 121 and 123 form a kind of parenthesis around the center of this third of the Songs of Ascents, namely, Psalm 122. It should be noted that 121:1 uses the yiqtol; 123:1 the qatal.

[2] A good example of this is also seen in Dan 9:3: “I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and please for mercy….” The first phrase is not the same, but note how the face is being turned toward the Lord looking for mercy.

[3] Psalm 122 also spoke of “our God” (122:9). These are the only 2 occurrences of this phrase in the Songs of Ascents. It occurs also in Ps 135:2 in the phrase “house of our God,” which only occurs in Ezra-Nehemiah.

[4] With the other being implied (“for”).

[5] Zenger, 468 believes that Pss 123 and 124 form a unit: “Dass JHWH seiner Fürsorgepflicht nachkommt, wird freilich im folgenden Ps 124 feierlich proklamiert. In dieser Hinsicht bilden Ps 123 and Ps 124 eine kompositionelle Einheit.”

Psalm 122

The significance of Jerusalem stems from the presence of the house of Yhwh in its midst. In this Song of Ascents, David will express excitement that should be inherent to any who go to Jerusalem, for the thrones of the house of David and house of Israel’s God reside there. As such, this psalm perpetuates the hope in a restored Jerusalem and a restored Davidic kingdom. Moreover, the psalmist provides the ways by which the reader can respond to this hope, namely, by praying for the peace of the city of peace.

Although there is some disagreement on attributing the psalm to David,[1] the title at least expects the reader to hear the speaker as David.[2] Thus, when the psalm opens, “I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord!’”, the “I” and “me” should be understood as David. This provides an interesting perspective for the psalm, because the psalm reflects on the importance of Jerusalem for both the worship of the people at the house of Yhwh and the judgment that would take place in the house of David. The psalm highlights the importance of the house of Yhwh by virtue of a literary device called inclusion, whereby the psalm opens with a reference to the house of Yhwh (v. 1) and closes with it (v. 9). Yet, during the lifetime of David, only the kingdom was residing at Jerusalem. The house of Yhwh had not yet been built, and the city had not yet taken on the status of “the city.” As a result, the psalm takes on a note of anticipation and hope for the fulfillment of what Yhwh had promised to David. In other words, David could only hope to go to the house of Yhwh in Jerusalem as an anticipation of a future fulfillment of the Davidic covenant (see 2 Samuel 7). This fact accentuates the larger scheme within the Songs of Ascents in which after the exile, the Songs interpret eschatologically the promises made to David.

In the greater context of the Psalter, this psalm (1) joins the resounding voice of expectation for the coming King and (2) provides an important hermeneutical clue for a proper reading of the Songs of Ascents. The former has been established in the Psalter by Psalms 1 and 2; the latter will be confirmed among other places in Psalm 132, a psalm about David and his kingdom. Subsequent readers, then, join David’s hope for God’s faithfulness to these promises, specifically in establishing a kingdom of David’s Son in a peaceful, worshiping Jerusalem.

V. 2 elucidates our understanding of v. 1 as David’s anticipation of going to the house of Yhwh in Jerusalem: “Our feet have been standing within your gates, O Jerusalem!” Moving from singular to plural brings corporate implications to the psalmist’s words. Joy can be found by the congregation as they simply stand within Jerusalem’s gates.[3] On the one hand, the help and security hoped for in Psalm 121 at the hands of Yhwh, their keeper, would be tangibly realized in Jerusalem’s walls and spiritually enjoyed by the presence of God in her midst. On the other hand, joy in Jerusalem would also be found in the presence of the monarchy, as vv. 4–5 make clear.

Once again, the writer connects vv. 2 and 3 through step parallelism, where v. 2 ends with Jerusalem and v. 3 begins with it. The first person hope and recollection of vv. 1 and 2, respectfully, gives way to a general description of Jerusalem’s importance and status among the nation.[4]

First, Jerusalem is described as being “built as a city that is bound firmly together” (v. 3). This is another difficult verse to understand or translate exactly, but the focus seems to be on the compactness or security of the city as it was built. Thus, the poet highlights the hope that comes as being found within the gates of this well-built, secure city.

Second, Jerusalem is described as the place “to which the tribes go up” (v. 4). The place to which the nation would go to worship Yhwh was anticipated in Deuteronomy 12; it was confirmed to be Jerusalem at the end of 2 Samuel. Interestingly, v. 4 uses the verb for “go up” that is also used within the titles of the Songs of Ascents. The general conclusion can therefore be made that these songs were perhaps intended to speak of the congregation’s going up to Jerusalem. At the same time, this may have not just a physical understanding of returning to Jerusalem as part of the nation’s responsibility during the feasts, but it may also join in the larger hope of the Psalter for the culmination of David’s kingdom by the Son, in whom the nation and the nations will find their refuge (see Ps 2:12).

However, the immediate purpose for going up to Jerusalem is to fulfill a decree that Israel was to be a nation that came to Jerusalem for the purpose of giving thanks to Yhwh. V. 4 speaks of Jerusalem as the city “to which the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord, as was decreed for Israel, to give thanks to the name of the Lord.” The pattern established for God’s people was to travel to the central location where Yhwh would be worshiped. Although not specifically decreed in a particular passage, this expectation of giving thanks was centered on “the name of Yhwh,” a phrase that is often used of David’s and Solomon’s building of a house “for the name of Yhwh” (see e.g. 1Kgs 8:17; 1Chr 22:7).

Third, Jerusalem was the place where thrones of justice were established. V. 5 states, “There thrones for judgment were set, the thrones of the house of David.” By using poetic parallelism in which the first line is further described by the second, the thrones for judgment are identified as the thrones set up for the house of the David. Here, David anticipates a series of kings, a series of thrones, as part of his house. An important responsibility of those who would sit on those thrones is to administer justice (see Psalm 72 and Isaiah 11). In the prophetic promises regarding the kingdom of David and his sons, Jerusalem would be the place where Yhwh judges the nations (see e.g. Isaiah 2). This continues the pattern that David sees established in his days and in the days of his sons.

In that David describes in vv. 3–5 the security, the true worship, and the administration of justice to be found in Jerusalem, this provides the proper basis from which to make the requests of vv. 6–7:

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem! “May they be secure who love you!
Peace be within your walls and security within your towers!”

David beckons the readers to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, and he provides the words that they should pray.[5] For Jerusalem to be this haven of rest, it must be characterized by peace, a theme that has already been established in the Songs of Ascents (see e.g. 120:6–7). As such, Psalm 122 joins the chorus of reflection on the Priestly Blessing in expressing peace from Yhwh as specifically related to Jerusalem and the security (or perhaps prosperity) that she provides.

David closes his psalm with two commitments. First, in v. 8 he calls upon himself to speak: “For my brothers and companions’ sake I will say, ‘Peace be within you!’” Peace in Jerusalem will mean security not just for the future of his kingdom, but also for those who are his brothers and friends. Second, in v. 9 he calls upon himself to seek the good of the city: “For the sake of the house of the Lord our God, I will seek your good.” So David, the king, commits himself (1) to promote peace and (2) to work for the good of Jerusalem. Moreover, he focuses on those who populate his kingdom and the house of Yhwh, the God who is personally related to David’s people (“our God”).

In essence, then, Psalm 122 gives us a clearer picture of the expectations of the Davidic kings and of the Son of David to come. There existed (and would exist) a close relationship between the king and the worship of Yhwh at Jerusalem in the house of Yhwh. Both the king and the congregation would work toward that end. The former would administer justice as part of a reign that promoted peace and goodness; the latter would pray for the peace of the city within which they would gives thanks to the name of their God. Thus, the hope that David had in the establishment of the central sanctuary of worship and justice becomes the hope of all who subsequently read this psalm. “To pray for the peace of Jerusalem (v.6) is to pray for the coming of the Promised Seed of David, the Messiah.”[6]

Notes

[1] For example, a couple Hebrew manuscripts do not contain it, as well as the Septuagint and Targums.

[2] Zenger points out that Psalm 122, the middle psalm in the first 5, has a reference to David in the title, as does the middle psalm in the last 5 (Psalm 132). Moreover, the title of Psalm 127 refers to Solomon.

[3] Zenger, 458: “Dass der Psalm nicht den Gottesberg Zion als den mythischen Thronsitz des Weltkönigs JHWH, sondern die Stadt Jerusalem mit dem ‘Haus JHWHs’ in seiner Mitte beschreibt, ist typisch für seine nachexilische Entstehung.” That the psalm does not describe Zion, the mountain of God, as the mythical throne of the king of the world, Yhwh, rather the city of Jerusalem with the “house of Yhwh” in its midst, is typical for its post-exilic origin.

[4] Zenger, 458: “Der zweite Teil V 3–5 nennt drei Gründe, die die Stadt Jerusalem zu einer besonderen Stadt und zum ‘Realsymbol’ der Gegenwart JHWHs in einer feindlichen Welt machen.” The second part in vv. 3–5 gives three reasons that make the city of Jerusalem a significant city and the “real symbol” of the presence of Yhwh in a hostile world. He goes on to say that Jerusalem was not just any city of Israel, rather took on the title of “the city,” especially in post-exilic texts (see 1Kgs 8:44, 48; Jer 8:16; Lam 1:19; 2:12; Ezek 7:23; 9:4, 9; Mic 6:9).

Zenger, 460: “Nur wenn und insofern JHWH selbst Jerusalem ‘baut,’ kann und wird es seine ‘Stadt-Funktion’ erfüllen können.” Only when and if Yhwh himself “builds” Jerusalem can and will it be able to fulfill its “city-function.”

[5] Although the repetition of the words “peace” and “secure/security” can be seen, an element of the poetic artistry is missing in the English. Six of the ten words in the verse have the consonantal sounds “sh” and “l” in order. This has been observed by Allen, 158, as a play on the name of Jerus(h)alem, describing here as a city of peace (see Hebrews). Zenger, 452, also notes the alliteration and assonance in vv. 6–9.

[6] Sailhamer, 218.

Songs for the Journey Home: The Purpose of the Songs of Ascents

Psalms is a book. As such, it demands to be read like others, especially taking into account context and structure. Although this is often difficult, collections within the larger Psalter demonstrate the benefit and justify the methodology. I say this, because I would like to share a few thoughts regarding the collection of Songs of Ascents (Psalms 120-134), beginning with the larger picture and then perhaps providing some further reflections on individual psalms in later days. So … today you get my purpose statement (albeit with little explanation).

The collection of Songs of Ascents is an eschatological interpretation/application of the Priestly Blessing based upon the psalmists’ hope in Yahweh’s faithfulness to fulfill the Davidic Covenant at Zion.

Put another way: Through the lens of the Priestly Blessing (Num 6:24-26), the Songs of Ascents encourage the faithful to look forward to the fulfillment of Yahweh’s promises to David at Zion. They fill out what it means for the Lord to bless, to keep, to be gracious to, and to give peace to His people. They do this by interpreting their past, present, and future in light of God’s intention to bless them through the Son of David at Zion.

The eschatological fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant provides the basis for understanding the journey to Zion that is painted in these psalms not as a simple, historical pilgrimage theme but as a journey toward an idealized/new Zion in the eschaton.

The Royal Son (Psalm 72)

It should go without saying in the church that our identity as Christians comes from our connection to the one whose name we bear—Christ. If we are truly convinced that a believer has a personal relationship with God, through Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit, then it would behoove us to cultivate that relationship by investing our time in coming to know the one whom we serve. The way we do that is not through some mystic, sweet communion that is highly esoteric but through a consistent, lifelong commitment to learning about Christ. In other words, growing spiritually is paramount to growing in our knowledge of Christ.

This precedes all other efforts, because it is Christ Jesus Himself who has become to us “wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption” (1Cor 1:30). In fact, before proceeding to tell us how to put off sin and to put on right actions, Paul says that in contrast to the lost, believers “did not learn Christ in this way” (Eph 4:20). What distinguishes us from unbelievers is that we have “learned” Christ. Even more, the large narrative of Scripture points to this One who was involved in creating the world and redeeming the world, whose name is the Son of God. The overwhelming testimony of Scripture as we have it points to the identity of this One in whom we find our new identity as children of God. He is the Messiah; His name is Jesus Christ, the Son of God. So from beginning to end, it’s all about Him—who He is, why He came, etc.

What this means for us, then, is this: if we want to know Christ, then we find Him on the pages of the Scripture that testifies to Him. Paul put it this way (1Cor 15:1–4):

Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.

For the most part, I think we would all give a hearty, “Amen,” to that. After all, “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so.” Too often, however, I think we miss the full impact of what Paul is saying. Paul is saying that the Gospel as it had been revealed to him as an Apostle was none other than the truth of the Old Testament Scriptures. So let me ask you a question: If I were to cut off the final 27 books of the Bible you have before you, could you still lead someone to Christ? Could you give a Gospel presentation from the Old Testament?

You might answer, “Why bother. We have the NT.” Well, you may never have to. However, those who wrote the NT and those in the early church would have none of that. What they understood was that a comprehensive knowledge of Christ came only when He and His work, as well as the believer’s place in the story of the world, were understood in light of the texts that pointed to our Savior.

Like most books of the Old Testament (or “The Gospel According to the Prophets”), Psalms ultimately points us to the Son, the One who was to come and now has. Psalm 72 turns our attention to this King, teaching us about Him, about His kingdom, and ultimately about a proper response to Him.

What we find in Psalm 72 is another passage that points to the One who was to come, the Messiah. In it, the ideal reign of the king is described.[1] We thus see several aspects of this king and his kingdom and the author’s response to these things. Let me bring some of these to our attention.

Justice, Righteousness, and Peace (vv. 1–7)

Solomon begins his prayer for this king by asking the Lord to give the king his justice and righteousness. A good king would be one who led his people by justice and righteousness that is only truly provided by God Himself. That is, a godly ruler will rule as a reflection of the character of God, who is righteous and just.[2]

In Scripture, most kings aren’t like this. Sure, Solomon is given wisdom from the Lord and exemplifies it with the way he ruled the nation (at least for the most part). However, the overarching point of the story of Solomon is to show that he was not the son of David who would be the object of the promises the Lord made to David. In fact, given that we are reading a prayer written by Solomon for the future king reveals that he himself understood that the ideal king ruling over the ideal kingdom had yet to come. He could only hope and pray that one of his sons would be found worthy to rule as that king.

But as we know from Scripture, Solomon’s kingdom was ripped apart immediately after his death. Turmoil continued to ensue until ultimately David’s/Solomon’s kingdom was in shambles and in fact was overthrown and removed from the land. The “son of David” had yet to come.

The book of Psalms reflects this story as well as it is read as a book (see this post and this one). Two quotes by Hutchinson elucidate this point:

[P]raise in the Psalter arises particularly from a circumstance-defying belief that Yahweh’s covenant promises will come to realization – through the arrival of the Davidic king.[3]

[T]here is an eschatological or teleological thrust to the book of Psalms, as signaled right from the start by the introductory and programmatic Ps. 2. … The Psalter insists that the king of Ps. 2 will appear – an absolute supreme and righteous ruler who will be greater than Solomon (Pss. 45; 72), in whom the Abrahamic promises will find fulfilment (72:17b), a ‘horn … for David’ (132:17) whose coming will prove that Yahweh has not renounced his commitment to the Davidic covenant.[4]

Such a rule as depicted in these verses—one characterized by justice/equity for the oppressed, flourishing righteousness, and peace for all—could only be led by one who had been given divine ability to do so. Isaiah’s prophecy about this king reflects this (Isa 11:1–5):

Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. And He will delight in the fear of the Lord, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make decisions by what His ears hear; But with righteousness He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked. Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, And faithfulness the belt about His waist.

Dominion, Worship, and Compassion (vv. 8–14)

V. 8 joins with other important messianic passages in the OT to point unambiguously to a king who would come and would one day enjoy a universal reign. Consider the following verses:

Numbers 24:17–19
I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near; A star shall come forth from Jacob, A scepter shall rise from Israel, And shall crush through the forehead of Moab, And tear down all the sons of Sheth. Edom shall be a possession, Seir, its enemies, also will be a possession, While Israel performs valiantly. One from Jacob shall have dominion, And will destroy the remnant from the city.

Psalm 110:2
The Lord will stretch forth Your strong scepter from Zion, saying, “Rule in the midst of Your enemies.”

Zechariah 9:9–10
Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; He is just and endowed with salvation, Humble, and mounted on a donkey, Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim And the horse from Jerusalem; And the bow of war will be cut off. And He will speak peace to the nations; And His dominion will be from sea to sea, And from the River to the ends of the earth.

According to vv. 9–11, the response to this king’s rule should be marked by (1) compulsory submission (v. 9), (2) tribute from other kings (v. 10), and (3) worship by kings and all nations (v. 11). Interestingly, though, the reason for this response is given in vv. 12–14: the king’s disposition and beneficent actions toward those in need.[5]

Blessing and A Name (vv. 15–17)

Solomon concludes his prayer by focusing our minds around an important biblical theme—blessing. These verses tie the rule of the king to the promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. In Genesis 12:1–3, God called upon Abraham to leave his father’s land and to become the recipient of divine favor and blessing as the Lord made these promises to him:

I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.

Thus, the following connections between Genesis 12 and Psalm 72 can be made:

• Abraham’s name would be great, just as the king’s name would be.
• Abraham would be blessed, just as the psalmist calls upon all to bless the king.
• All nations would find their blessing in Abraham’s seed, just as all nations would find their blessing in the king.

The Response: Blessing, Name and Glory (vv. 18–19)

Vv. 18–19, while capping off the second book of psalms, plays an important role in bringing this prayer for the king directly into the reader’s life. The proper response, as given by the author, is to bless the Lord.

What I find interesting is how this doxology, which plays an important role in the larger context of the Psalter, also connects to the psalm we just read.

• Just as the king was to be blessed by all nations, so the psalmist gives a two-fold “blessing” to the Lord.
• Just as the king’s name would endure forever, so the psalmist proclaim: “Blessed be His glorious name forever.”
• Just as the king’s kingdom would stretch from sea to sea, so the psalmist prays: “May the whole earth be filled with His glory.”

I believe it’s quite likely that the object of this last request is none other than the king that is described in the psalm. Consider these two passages from Isaiah

6:1–3 – “In the year of King’s Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. … And one called out to another and said, ‘Holy, Holy, Holy, is the Lord of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory.’”

11:9 – “They will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord As the waters cover the sea.”

In this light, this also agrees with the NT conclusion about Christ. The earth will be filled with the glory of God by means of the Son, who bears the name Lord. Consider what Paul says (Phil 2:9–11): “God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Without a doubt, these last verses bring the psalm to its rightful end: The son of Solomon, the son of David, the One who was to come, deserves and will receive worship, fear, praise, glory that only God deserves. The conclusion: He is divine, the son of God; He is our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

How then do we respond?

1. By repenting of our rebellion to this king. In Acts 17:30–31, Paul said to a group of unbelieving Gentiles: “Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.”
2. By embracing the Lordship of this king, who came and who is yet to come. “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Rom 10:9).
3. By singing the blessing of the psalm to the Lord.

In 1719, Isaac Watts published his Psalms of David, Imitated in the Language of the New Testament, which included hymns based on 138 of the 150 psalms. His purpose was to “accommodate the book of Psalms to Christian worship.” Among these hymns was a paraphrase or imitation of the second half of Psalm 72 named “Jesus Shall Reign Where’er the Sun.” It’s readily apparent from reading the words of Watts’ hymn that he saw in Psalm 72 a call for the Gospel to extend to the nations. Note how his words reflect this psalm:

Jesus shall reign where’er the sun
Does his successive journeys run;
His kingdom stretch from shore to shore,
Till moons shall wax and wane no more.

To Him shall endless prayer be made,
And praises throng to crown His head;
His Name like sweet perfume shall rise
With every morning sacrifice.

People and realms of every tongue
Dwell on His love with sweetest song;
And infant voices shall proclaim
Their early blessings on His Name.

Blessings abound wherever He reigns;
The prisoner leaps to lose his chains;
The weary find eternal rest,
And all the sons of want are blessed.

Let every creature rise and bring
Peculiar honors to our King;
Angels descend with songs again,
And earth repeat the loud amen!

Great God, whose universal sway
The known and unknown worlds obey,
Now give the kingdom to Thy Son,
Extend His power, exalt His throne.

With power He vindicates the just,
And treads th’oppressor in the dust:
His worship and His fear shall last
Till hours, and years, and time be past.

The saints shall flourish in His days,
Dressed in the robes of joy and praise;
Peace, like a river, from His throne
Shall flow to nations yet unknown.

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[1] Although it appears I am just assuming this psalm is messianic, the messianic character will become more apparent throughout these comments.

[2] This is borne out on the seams of the Psalter, as well. Cf. Pss 41:1–2; 89:14; 106:3; 146:3ff.

[3] James Hely Hutchinson, “The Psalm and Praise,” in Interpreting the Psalms: Issues and Approaches, ed. David Firth and Philip S. Johnston (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2005), 97.

[4] Hutchinson, 97–98.

[5] “The king of Psalm 72 is to exercise it [power] in a direction contrary to the politics of power. He acts on behalf of the powerless, not so as to ingratiate the nobles and the powerful. By ignoring the politics of power, he—remarkably—in turn gains a powerful empire.” Craig C. Broyles, Psalms, 297.