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Psalm 72:4

He will judge the poor of the people. He will save the children of the needy, and will break the oppressor in pieces.

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.
5They shall fear you while the sun endures; and as long as the moon, throughout all generations.
6He will come down like rain on the mown grass, as showers that water the earth.
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← Psalm 72:3Psalm 72:5 →
Notice

The king’s promise to save needy children ends with an oppressor broken in pieces, making this royal prayer’s vision of justice both tender and severe.

Questions to write on. Each one opens a new entry with this verse already attached.

What changes in your expectations of a ruler when needy children become a measure of justice?

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What do you find hard to read in the promise to break the oppressor in pieces?

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Which children in your community come to mind as you read about the children of the needy?

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Connect

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
Psalm 68:5A father of the fatherless, and a defender of the widows, is God in his holy habitation.Both passages name vulnerable people as recipients of protection: needy children under the king’s rule, and the fatherless and widows under God’s care.
Psalm 72:12For he will deliver the needy when he cries; the poor, who has no helper.Both verses describe the king rescuing the needy, with verse 12 naming the poor person who cries without a helper.
Isaiah 11:4but he will judge the poor with righteousness, and decide with equity for the humble of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; and with …Both passages join righteous judgment for the poor with lethal judgment against those who do evil.
Ezekiel 34:15–16I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will cause them to lie down,” says the Lord GOD.The shared thread is protective care: the king saves needy children, while God shepherds his sheep and gives them rest.
Psalm 109:31For he will stand at the right hand of the needy, to save him from those who judge his soul.Both passages speak of saving the needy from people whose power threatens them.
Job 36:6He doesn’t preserve the life of the wicked, but gives justice to the afflicted.Both passages connect justice for afflicted people with judgment that ends the lives of those who do evil.
Psalm 9:18For the needy shall not always be forgotten, nor the hope of the poor perish forever.Both passages give the poor and needy a future beyond neglect, through promised rescue or hope that will endure.
Zechariah 9:8–10I will encamp around my house against the army, that no one pass through or return; and no oppressor will pass through them any more: for now I have seen with …Both passages promise protection from an oppressor, through the king’s judgment in the psalm and God’s guarding presence in Zechariah.
Job 34:24He breaks mighty men in pieces in ways past finding out, and sets others in their place.Both passages describe powerful people being broken in pieces, though Job speaks of mighty men rather than naming an oppressor.
Zechariah 11:7So I fed the flock to be slaughtered, especially the oppressed of the flock. I took for myself two staffs. The one I called “Favor” and the other I called …Both passages direct care toward those under oppression: the king saves needy children, while Zechariah feeds the oppressed flock.
Revelation 18:20“Rejoice over her, O heaven, you saints, apostles, and prophets, for God has judged your judgment on her.”Both passages present judgment against an adversary, though Revelation’s supplied words do not name the poor or needy children.
Daniel 2:34–35You saw until a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet that were of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces.Both use the language of breaking in pieces, though Daniel describes a stone striking an image rather than a king judging an oppressor.
Where this verse fits

Injustice and anger. leadership weight. parenting.

What the Bible says about anger →What the Bible says about parenting →
One step

Something small to carry out of this verse

Pray for one local leader to protect needy children

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Encouragement

These words entrust judgment to a king under God; they give no warrant for private revenge. The justice sought here includes rescue for children and the destruction of their oppressor.

Now put it in your words.

Start an entry on Psalm 72:4. Write what it stirs. Psalmlog sets your words beside Scripture and gives you one next step. Your first entry is free, no account needed.

Keep goingPsalm 72 · the whole chapter with its connection mapPsalms · every chapterBuild a reading plan through Psalms

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).