Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible · Psalms Capitolo 72

Psalms 72:0.

David praying for Solomon, sheweth the goodness and glory of his kingdom in type, and in truth of Christ's kingdom: he blesseth God.

A Psalm for Solomon.

Title. לשׁלמה lishlomoh, For Solomon— This psalm was composed by David when he placed Solomon on the throne, and caused his subjects to acknowledge him as their sovereign, 1 Chronicles 29:24. The sight of this raised the spirits of the good old king, and he indited this poem upon the occasion; when the Spirit of God directed him to use some expressions in it, which are properly applicable to the Messiah only, of whom Solomon was a type. Many of the Jewish rabbies themselves interpret these expressions of the Messiah.

Psalms 72:1. Give the king thy judgments, &c.— I do not apprehend, says Dr. Chandler, with the generality of interpreters, that by the king, and the king's son, David means himself and his son; but Solomon only, to whom both the titles agree. As he was David's son, and anointed by him king during his life-time; and as the first part of the psalm is precatory, the verbs in general should be rendered in that form throughout, except where the sense and connection require a different translation.

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Psalms 72:3. The mountains shall bring peace— Peace is here used for that prosperity, ease, and plenty, which are the effects of peace; when the mountains and hills are cultivated and tilled, and so made capable of producing an abundance of grain. Chandler: who renders the verse, Let the mountains and hills produce the plenteous fruits of peace; and begins the 4th verse, because of righteousness, [or through the prevalence of righteousness in the land] let him judge, &c.

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Psalms 72:5. They shall fear thee— Let both high and low equally reverence him throughout all generations; whilst the sun and moon shall endure. Chandler. The meaning is, that all posterity shall revere Solomon continually, and esteem him as the wisest and justest prince: But the more sublime sense is, that all generations shall adore the Messiah.

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Psalms 72:6. He shall come down, &c.— Dr. Chandler explains this verse thus, "Let his government be gentle and refreshing, as the rain that descends on the mown grass, and as the plentiful showers that sweep through the earth."

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Psalms 72:8. He shall have dominion, &c.— This may mean, "From the Sinus Arabicus to the Mediterranean sea;" or may relate more generally to the extent of Solomon's power by sea: From the river unto the ends of the earth, means, from the river Euphrates, which was the boundary of the promised land on the east side, to the tract of country along the Mediterranean sea, which was the boundary of the land on that side. The reader must observe in how much loftier a sense the words are understood when applied to Christ, whose kingdom was to spread itself over the whole world. The same may be said of the following verses.

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Psalms 72:9. In the wilderness— ציים ziim, is derived from a root, which signifies to be dry or thirsty, and is applied to barren grounds or desarts, parched up for want of springs and rains; and it means here, and in the next verse, where it is rendered isles, the inhabitants of those desert countries, and particularly the people and kings of Arabia Deserta. The kings of Arabia are expressly said to bring gifts, or pay tribute to Solomon, 1 Kings 10:15. Sheba and Seba are also countries of Arabia. The queen of Sheba brought him the most valuable presents. To lick the dust, signifies to prostrate themselves before the king, and kiss the ground, in token of reverence towards him; as was, and still is the custom of the eastern nations. D'Herbelot informs us, that kissing the feet, and lying prostrate in the dust before a person, were very ancient customs in the east; and it appears that they were not mere expressions of reverence, but (which is not well known) of vassalage; and kissing the earth, of the most abject vassalage, sometimes arising from the low rank of those who paid their homage, and sometimes from dejectedness and adulation. When, therefore, the Psalmist says, He shall have dominion, &c. he marks out extent of empire: When he adds, they that dwell in the wilderness shall bow, &c. it would be extremely wrong to suppose that he is only specifying one particular part of that extensive authority, which he had before expressed in general terms; for he greatly enlarges the thought. It is equivalent to saying, that those wild Arabs, whom the greatest conquerors could never tame, shall bow before him, or become his vassals; nay, his enemies, and consequently these Arabs, among the rest, shall lick the dust, or court him with the most abject subjection. See Observations, p. 254 and Isaiah 49:23. It is added in the 11th verse, that all kings shall fall down before him; which, in the highest sense, can relate only to Christ, the King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. See Matthew 1:11; Matthew 12:42.

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Psalms 72:14. And precious shall their blood be in his sight— That is, "he shall look upon the life of the poor to be as really valuable as that of others, and not suffer their blood to be shed with impunity."

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Psalms 72:16. There shall be an handful, &c.— "Let there be, or, though there be but an handful of corn thrown into the ground on the top of the mountains, in stony and barren ground, it shall produce an abundant increase; it shall spring up so plentifully, as that its waving and rustling on the hills shall resemble the shaking and noise made by the cedars on mount Lebanon." It is a strong figure, but well denotes the great increase and strength of the standing corn. It is prophetic of the vast plenty of Solomon's reign, but seems to have a further view to the miraculous increase of the Christian religion. Dr. Chandler reads the whole thus: "Let there be but a handful of corn thrown on the land, upon the top of the mountains, yet the produce of it shall arise with such plenty and strength, that it shall wave as the cedars of Lebanon; and the inhabitants of the city shall flourish and increase as the grass upon the ground."

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Psalms 72:17. His name shall be continued— Let his name be perpetuated by a numerous posterity while the sun shall last. Chandler. When we hear David singing the triumphs of his son, to whom the everlasting kingdom was promised, in such strains as these, can we give any tolerable account of these things, but by supposing David to understand that the son promised to him, in whose time righteousness and truth were to be established, was the very seed of the woman who should bruise the serpent's head. Of the same person David and the prophets foretel, that he should rule over all nations; that men should be blessed in him; that all nations should call him blessed; which is the distinguishing characteristic of the blessed Seed promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. See Bishop Sherlock on Prophesy, Dissert. 2.

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