SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR
4/10/2012 8:46:05 AM
My Worship Time Focus: Reigning
in Righteousness and Peace
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Psalm
72:1-7
Message
of the verses: We will begin to look
at Psalm 72 in today’s SD, but first we will look at the introduction.
I have read several introductions to
this psalm and some credit Solomon with the writing and some David when he was
old right before he made Solomon king.
It seems to me that the author of some of the psalms is a great subject
of debate by different commentators who have written commentaries on the
psalms. I believe that the Bible teaches
that the Holy Spirit is the author of all Scripture using man to render what He
wants to be written, however it does seem more helpful at times in our
understanding of Scripture to know the background and the human author.
“This is a Coronation Psalm,
dedicated to the prosperity of Solomon at the beginning of his reign (1Ki. 2).
No NT writer applies any of the psalm to Christ. Still, since the Davidic kings and the
Messiah’s rule occasionally merge into each other in the OT literature, the
messianic inferences here ought not to be missed (vv. 7, 17, cf. Is. 11:1-5;
60-62). This psalm describes a reign
when God, the king, nature, all classes of society, and foreign nations all
live together in harmony.” (The John
MacArthur Study Bible)
“Solomon is connected with this
psalm and 127. If the inscription is
translated ‘of Solomon,’ then he was the author and wrote of himself in the
third person. This would make it a prayer for God’s help as he sought to rule
over the people of Israel. But if the inscription is translated ‘for Solomon,’
David may have been the author (v. 20), and the psalm would be a prayer for the
people to use to ask God’s blessing upon their new king. If Solomon did write the psalm, then it had
to be the early years of his reign, for in his later years, he turned from the
Lord (1Kings 11; Prov. 14:34). But beyond
both David and Solomon is the Son of David and the one ‘greater than Solomon’
(Matt. 12:42), Jesus Christ, the Messiah of Israel. The psalm is quoted nowhere in the New
Testament as referring to Jesus, but certainly it describes the elements that
will make up the promised kingdom when Jesus returns.” (Dr. Warren Wiersbe)
A
Righteous King (vv. 1-7): “1 A Psalm
of Solomon: Give the king Your judgments, O God, And Your righteousness to the
king’s son.
“2 May he judge Your people with righteousness And Your
afflicted with justice. 3 Let the mountains bring peace to the people, And the
hills, in righteousness.
4 May he vindicate the afflicted of the people, Save the children of the needy
And crush the oppressor. 5 Let them fear You while the sun endures, And as long
as the moon, throughout all generations. 6 May he come down like rain upon the
mown grass, Like showers that water the earth. 7 In his days may the righteous flourish, And
abundance of peace till the moon is no more.”
In Deuteronomy 17:14-20 we see what
God told the people of Israel through Moses were the qualifications of a king
who would eventually reign over the nation of Israel. God was the true King in Israel, but He knew
that there would come a day when the people would ask for a king and this king
would be His representative, obligated to lead the people according to the law
of God. “14 "When you enter the
land which the LORD your God gives you, and you possess it and live in it, and you say, ’I will set a king over me like
all the nations who are around me,’ 15 you shall surely set a king over
you whom the LORD your God
chooses, one from among your countrymen you shall set as king over
yourselves; you may not
put a foreigner over yourselves who is not your countryman. 16 "Moreover,
he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor shall he cause the people to
return to Egypt to multiply horses, since the LORD has said to you, ‘You shall
never again return that way.’ 17 “He shall not multiply wives for himself, or
else his heart will turn away; nor shall he greatly increase silver and gold
for himself. 18 "Now it shall come about when he
sits on the throne of his kingdom, he shall write for himself a copy of this
law on a scroll in the presence of the Levitical priests. 19 “It shall be with
him and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear
the LORD his God, by carefully observing all the words of this law and these
statutes, 20 that his heart may not be lifted up above his countrymen
and that he may not turn aside from the commandment, to the right or the left,
so that he and his sons may continue long in his kingdom in the midst of
Israel.” Not many of the kings followed
what these verses in the Law told them to do, especially Solomon.
We notice that “righteousness” is
mentioned four times in verses 1-3 and verse seven, and when the day comes that
Jesus Christ takes His seat in Jerusalem to rule the world for 1000 years that
He will rule in righteousness. When
Solomon begin his reign he was very young and the Lord came to him and asked
him what he wanted and Solomon replied that he desired wisdom from the Lord in
order to rule His people Israel and God gave him wisdom, more than any man
would possess. There was peace during
the reign of Solomon and Israel prospered more than any other time in her history. Both peace and prosperity depend upon
righteousness and for the most part of Solomon’s reign that was true. When Jesus reigns for 1000 years on the earth
it will be true for His entire reign upon this earth, and He will rule over all
the earth for Jesus is are King of righteousness and our King of peace (Heb.
7:1-3).
Dr. Wiersbe points out that
Solomon’s name is related to the Hebrew word shalom which means “peace, prosperity, and well-being.” We have seen from reading about Solomon’s
reign that he cared for the poor and for the afflicted which reminds us of what
Jesus did while ministering upon this earth.
Early in his reign Solomon cared for all of the people, but in the later
stages he burdened them with high taxes, which would eventually cause the
division in the nation of Israel after he died.
In verse five of Psalm 72 we can see
that the author could have written “long live the king” for that is what he is
implying when he wrote that verse. Then
we see in verses six and seven how the king should reign, as these verses speak
of reigning in peace and righteousness.
Dr. Wiersbe says “Godly leaders are like the refreshing rain that makes
the land fruitful and beautiful, so that even the newly mown fields will
produce a second crop. They are also
like lamps that light the way (2Sam. 21:17), shields that protect (84:9;
89:16), and the very breath of life that sustains us (Lam. 4:20). Alas, very few of the kings who reigned after
David were models of godliness.”
Spiritual
meaning for my life today: As I look
at this psalm and think about righteousness it makes me think of what Jesus
Christ did for me upon the cross. Jesus
Christ took my sin, my
unrighteousness upon Himself on the cross so that it was judged by His
Father and therefore when His Father looks at me He sees His righteousness and
not my unrighteousness and therefore I am one of His children. Jesus exchanged my sin for His righteousness
and this is the most unfair exchange there can be, but because of His great
love He did this.
My Steps of Faith for Today:
Sanctification is a process in that we are sanctified at the new birth
and that in position we are sanctified before the Lord. My walk must be moving toward a life that is
what I am in position. Continue to learn
contentment is also a step of faith for me and will be for the rest of my life.
4/10/2012
10:06:45 AM
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