Endow the King with Your Justice (1 Kings 3:1–15; 2 Chronicles 1:1–13; Psalm 45:1–17)
1 UST A psalm of Solomon. O God, please enable the man who is now succeeding his father as king to judge cases rightly, as you would do. BSB BSB: Of Solomon. Endow the king with Your justice, O God, and the son of the king with Your righteousness.
2 UST Enable him to judge the cases of Israelite people fairly, especially for people who are vulnerable. BSB BSB: May he judge Your people with righteousness and Your afflicted with justice.
3 UST May the people live rightly so that they will be prosperous as crops grow abundantly on the hillsides of the land. BSB BSB: May the mountains bring peace to the people, and the hills bring righteousness.
4 UST Help the king to defend poor people and rescue needy people and defeat those who are oppressing them. BSB BSB: May he vindicate the afflicted among the people; may he save the children of the needy and crush the oppressor.
5 UST May each successive generation of the people respect you. May they do that for as long as the sun and the moon are in the sky! BSB BSB: May they fear him as long as the sun shines, as long as the moon remains, through all generations.
6 UST May this king make the nation prosperous, just as heavy rains soak the soil and enable more hay to grow after a first cutting. BSB BSB: May he be like rain that falls on freshly cut grass, like spring showers that water the earth.
7 UST May people who live rightly prosper during the time when he reigns, and may the nation be very prosperous for as long as the moon is in the sky. BSB BSB: May the righteous flourish in his days and prosperity abound until the moon is no more.
8 UST May he rule over all of the surrounding territory, right up to the shores of the seas. May his realm extend from the Euphrates River to the limits of the lands that people know. BSB BSB: May he rule from sea to sea, and from the Euphrates to the ends of the earth.
9 UST May the leaders of the desert tribes bow down in front of him{ to acknowledge him as their ruler}, and may his enemies lie facedown on the ground{ in submission to him}. BSB BSB: May the nomads bow before him, and his enemies lick the dust.
10 UST May the kings who rule the land of Tarshish and other coastal areas pay tribute to him. May the king of Sheba and the king of Seba give him gifts. BSB BSB: May the kings of Tarshish and distant shores bring tribute; may the kings of Sheba and Seba offer gifts.
11 UST In fact, may all the kings in the world acknowledge him as their ruler, and may every nation obey him. BSB BSB: May all kings bow down to him and all nations serve him.
12 UST May all these things happen because he rescues needy people when they cry out for help and he helps poor people who have no one else to help them. BSB BSB: For he will deliver the needy who cry out and the afflicted who have no helper.
13 UST May he feel compassion for people who are weak and needy and save their lives. BSB BSB: He will take pity on the poor and needy and save the lives of the oppressed.
14 UST May their lives be important to him so that he rescues them from people who are oppressing and harming them. BSB BSB: He will redeem them from oppression and violence, for their blood is precious in his sight.
15 UST May this king live for a long time! May he receive much fine gold. May people always pray for him and ask God to bless him. BSB BSB: Long may he live! May gold from Sheba be given him. May people ever pray for him; may they bless him all day long.
16 UST May the fields produce such abundant crops that grain grows all the way up to the tops of the hills and sways in the wind like the branches of the trees in Lebanon. May the cities in Israel be as full of people as the fields are full of grass. BSB BSB: May there be an abundance of grain in the land; may it sway atop the hills. May its fruit trees flourish like the forests of Lebanon, the people of its cities like the grass of the field.
17 UST May people always remember what a good king this was, for as long as the sun is in the sky! May he do good things for many people, and may the people of other nations say that he has a good life. BSB BSB: May his name endure forever; may his name continue as long as the sun shines. In him may all nations be blessed; may they call him blessed.
18 UST Praise Yahweh, the God whom we Israelites worship; he does amazing things that no one else can do. BSB BSB: Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who alone does marvelous deeds.
19 UST Praise him forever for how glorious he is! May his glory fill the whole world! Amen! Yes, amen! BSB BSB: And blessed be His glorious name forever; may all the earth be filled with His glory. Amen and amen.
20 UST This is the end of the prayers that David, the son of Jesse, wrote. BSB BSB: Thus conclude the prayers of David son of Jesse.
Select verses for actions: Enter goes to them and Escape comes back.