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PSALM 72

To Solomon.

1. Give the king your judgements, O god, and your justice to the king's son.
2. He shall judge your people in justice, and your afflicted in judgement.
3. The mountains shall bring peace to the people, and the hills in justice.
4. He shall judge the afflicted of the people; he shall save the sons of the needy; but shall break in pieces the oppressor.
5. They shall fear you as long as the sun and moon shall endure; from generation to generation.
6. He shall come down like the rain upon the mown grass; like showers that water the earth.
7. In his days shall the just flourish, and there shall be abundance of peace until the moon shall be no more.
8. And he shall have dominion from sea to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth.
9. The barbarians shall bow before him, and his enemies shall lick the dust.
10. The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring a present, the kings of Sheba and of Seba shall offer a gift.
11. And all kings shall bow down before him; all nations shall serve him.
12. For he shall deliver the needy when he cries; the afflicted also and him that has no helper.
13. He shall spare the miserable and needy, and shall save the souls of the needy.
14. He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence, and their blood shall be precious in his eyes.
15. And he shall live, and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba, and prayer shall be made for him continually; and daily shall he bless him.
16. There shall be an abundance of corn on the earth; upon the top of the mountains his fruit shall shake like Lebanon; and they of the city shall flourish like the grass of the earth.
17. His name shall endure for ever; his name shall flourish as long as the sun stands; and they shall be blessed in him; all nations shall call him blessed.
18. Blessed be jehovah god, the god of Israel, who alone does wondrous things.
19. And blessed be the name of his glory for ever; and let the whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen, and Amen.
20. The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.

Verses 1, 3, 7. Give the king your judgements, O god, and your justice to the king's son; the mountains shall bring peace to the people, and the kills injustice; they shall fear you as long as the sun, and the moon shall endure, from generation to generations; in his days shall the just flourish, and there shall be abundance of peace, until the moon be not. By the sun is signified love, and by the moon faith; by mountains and hills the most ancient church; by generation of generations the churches after the flood, it is said, until the moon be not, because faith shall be love. AC 337.

Verse 3, 7. The mountains shall bring peace to the people, and the hills in justice; in his days shall the just flourish, and abundance of peace until the moon be not. The subject here treated of is concerning the lord, his coming and his kingdom. By the mountains which shall bring peace to the people, is signified love to the lord, and by the hills which are in justice, is signified charity towards the neighbour, by reason that they who are in love to the lord dwell in heaven upon mountains, and they who are in charity towards their neighbour dwell upon hills; hence it is evident that by peace is meant celestial joy, which is from conjunction with the lord, by love; by justice flourishing in his days is signified in the days of him who is in the good of love; hence it is said and abundance of peace, for peace is from no other source than from the lord, and from his conjunction with those who are in the good of love; it is said, until the moon be not, by which is signified that there shall be no truth separate from good, but the two shall be so conjoined that they may be one, that is, that truth also may be good, for all truth is of good because from good, and hence in its essence is good, such is the truth belonging to those who are in the good of love to the lord from the lord, who are here meant by the just. AE 365.

Verse 8. And he shall have dominion from sea to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth. This is said of the lord, and by his dominion from sea to sea is signified the extension of natural things, and by dominion from the river even to the ends of the earth, is signified the extension of things rational and spiritual. AE 569.

Verse 9. The barbarians shall bow before him, and his enemies shall lick the dust. Barbarians and enemies denote those who look only at corporeal and earthly things. AC 249.

Verse 10. The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring a present, the kings of Sheba and of Seba shall offer a gift. These words relate to the lord, and by bringing presents and gifts is meant to worship, and by the kings of Tarshish and of the Isles are meant interior and exterior truths of the natural man, by the kings of Tarshish his interior truths, and by the Isles his exterior truths; by the kings of Sheba and of Seba are meant interior and exterior goods of the natural man, by Sheba his interior goods, and by Seba his exterior goods; by the truths of the natural man are meant the knowledges of truth, and by the goods of the natural man are meant the knowledges of good; that these are meant by Sheba and Seba, see AC 1171, 3240. AE 406. See also AC 1171, 9293.

Verses 11, 15. All kings shall fall before him, all nations shall serve him; he shall save the souls of the needy, and he shall live, and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba. These words have relation to the lord's advent; by the kings who shall fall down before him, and by the nations which shall serve him, are meant all who are in truths from good; by the needy whom he shall save, are meant those who are not in the knowledges of truth and of good, but still desire them; by the gold of Sheba of which he shall give to them, is meant the good of love into which the lord will guide them by knowledges. AE 242.

Verses 14, 15. He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence, and precious shall their blood be in his eyes; and he shall live, and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba, and shall pray for him continually, and daily shall he bless him. The subject here treated of is concerning the needy, by whom are signified those who desire truths from spiritual affection; of these it is said, that he will redeem their soul from deceit and violence, by which is signified deliverance from evils and falses which destroy the goods of love and the truths of faith; the reception of Divine Truth by them is signified by their blood being precious in his eyes; their reformation is described by he shall live, and shall give to him of the gold of Sheba, and shall pray for him continually, and daily shall he bless him; the gold of Sheba is the good of charity; to pray for him continually signifies that they will be continually withheld from falses, and preserved in truths; and daily shall he bless him, signifies that they shall be kept, continually in the good of charity and of faith, for this is the Divine blessing, and this is to pray for him continually. AE 328.

By blessing is signified the lord, and when he is called blessing, it signifies that from him are all celestial and spiritual things, which alone are good, and whereas they alone are good, they also are alone true; wherefore in proportion as natural, worldly, and corporeal things partake of celestial and spiritual goods, in the same proportion the former are goods, and so far they are blessed. AC 1420.