# 39 2019 Dev. Psalm 72:17. The King! Read all of Ps. 72. The purpose of these devotionals is to draw Gremar and I closer to God and grow spiritually by applying His Word to our daily living. All passages are taken from the NIV.
Ps. 72:17 “May his name endure forever; may it continue as long as the sun. Then all nations will be blessed through him, and they will call him blessed.”
Psalm 72 is David’s prayer for his son Solomon who is about to be anointed as king. His prayers include requests for all that is expected from a leader: “Endow the king with justice…” and “righteousness, prosperity” for the needy. He is compared to the benefit of creation: the sun, moon, rain, may “righteousness flourish and prosperity abound. May all kings bow down to him and all nations serve him.” All this came to pass in Solomon’s time.
Verses 12-14 switches to the those “who cry out…, who have no help”. The king “takes pity on the weak and the needy…, precious is their blood in his sight”.
Verses 15-16 addresses the physical needs of the land and of his people. Also, this came to pass in Solomon’s time.
Verse 17 is what this Psalm is about: God’s plan for His people, for His world and for His Kingdom. This is applied to Solomon, in as far as people of his time understood, but in our time we see the second meaning of this Psalm in the incarnation of Jesus Christ. This second meaning is confirmed in 2 Samuel 7:16 “Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.’” This is the last sentence of God’s promise to David.
The rest of the Psalm praises God for his deeds and glory. As we understand this Psalm today, everything in this prayer is applied to Jesus Christ. In our time, by this Psalm, our hope is confirmed, our faith is built up and the Kingdom of God in our hearts is displayed. Amen!
By the power of the Holy Spirit we are strengthened to live out our Christ centered worldview. David, in spite of his short comings, that we all share in one degree or another, is our example as “a man after God’s own heart”. I pray that all followers of Jesus may be people “after God’s own heart”. Praise be to God!
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