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Psalm 72:2
He will judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with justice.
1By Solomon. God, give the king your justice; your righteousness to the royal son.
2He will judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with justice.
3The mountains shall bring prosperity to the people. The hills bring the fruit of righteousness.
4He will judge the poor of the people. He will save the children of the needy, and will break the oppressor in pieces.
Notice
The words “your poor” place people with little wealth under God’s claim, making their treatment a measure of the king’s righteousness and justice.
Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.
What difference might the phrase “your poor” make to how you judge a leader’s actions?
Write on thisWhat would justice for someone with little money look like in a decision you influence?
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Where else Scripture says this
12 passages readers most often link with this verse, and the thread each one shares with it.
This verse's connections, by chapterThe Bible's strongest chapter linksHover or tap a book to trace it
John 14:27Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, I give to you. Don’t let your heart be troubled, neither let it be fearful.The connection is limited: Psalm 72 describes righteous judgment for God’s people, while Jesus speaks of the peace he gives his followers.
1 Kings 10:9Blessed is the LORD your God, who delighted in you, to set you on the throne of Israel. Because the LORD loved Israel forever, therefore he made you king, to …Both passages link the king’s rule over God’s people with the duty to exercise justice and righteousness.
Isaiah 32:1Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in justice.Both describe royal rule marked by righteousness and justice, naming these as qualities of a king’s government.
2 Samuel 23:3The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spoke to me, ‘One who rules over men righteously, who rules in the fear of God,Both connect rule over people with righteousness, and Samuel’s passage names the fear of God as a ruler’s disposition.
Psalm 4:2You sons of men, how long shall my glory be turned into dishonor? Will you love vanity and seek after falsehood? Selah.The shared concern is limited to human conduct: Psalm 72 describes righteous judgment, while Psalm 4 protests dishonor and falsehood.
Psalm 68:5A father of the fatherless, and a defender of the widows, is God in his holy habitation.Both name vulnerable people as objects of God’s concern: the poor in Psalm 72, and the fatherless and widows in Psalm 68.
Psalm 98:9Let them sing before the LORD, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with equity.Both describe judging people with righteousness; Psalm 72 speaks of the king, while Psalm 98 speaks of the LORD.
Exodus 23:2“You shall not follow a crowd to do evil. You shall not testify in court to side with a multitude to pervert justice.Both concern justice in judgment: Psalm 72 describes its exercise, while Exodus forbids testimony that bends justice to a crowd’s wishes.
2 Samuel 8:15David reigned over all Israel; and David executed justice and righteousness for all his people.David’s exercise of justice and righteousness for his people shares the same terms used for the king’s judgment in Psalm 72.
Psalm 72:12–14For he will deliver the needy when he cries; the poor, who has no helper.The same king who judges the poor with justice is described as delivering the needy person who cries without a helper.
Isaiah 32:17The work of righteousness will be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and confidence forever.Righteousness is the shared word: Psalm 72 links it with the king’s judgment, while Isaiah describes its fruit as peace.
1 Kings 3:28All Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to do justice.Both connect the king’s judgment with justice from God; Kings describes the people recognizing God’s wisdom in their king.
Where this verse fits
Injustice and anger. leadership weight. job loss or money fear.
One step
Something small to carry out of this verse
Encouragement
The king answers to God for how he judges God’s people. Those with little wealth are named in this prayer and have a claim to justice.
Now put it in your words.
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Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).