By Solomon.
1God, 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.
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.
7In his days, the righteous shall flourish,
and abundance of peace, until the moon is no more.
8He shall have dominion also from sea to sea,
from the River to the ends of the earth.
9Those who dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him.
His enemies shall lick the dust.
10The kings of Tarshish and of the islands will bring tribute.
The kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.
11Yes, all kings shall fall down before him.
All nations shall serve him.
12For he will deliver the needy when he cries;
the poor, who has no helper.
13He will have pity on the poor and needy.
He will save the souls of the needy.
14He will redeem their soul from oppression and violence.
Their blood will be precious in his sight.
15He will live; and Sheba’s gold will be given to him.
Men will pray for him continually.
They will bless him all day long.
16Abundance of grain shall be throughout the land.
Its fruit sways like Lebanon.
Let it flourish, thriving like the grass of the field.
17His name endures forever.
His name continues as long as the sun.
Men shall be blessed by him.
All nations will call him blessed.
18Praise be to Yahweh God, the God of Israel,
who alone does marvelous deeds.
19Blessed be his glorious name forever!
Let the whole earth be filled with his glory!
Amen and amen.
20This ends the prayers by David, the son of Jesse.
King David's son, Solomon, was born of Bathsheba (2 Sam. 5:14). Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all of Israel for 40 years circa 971-931 B.C.. Solomon was graciously blessed by God to become the wisest man ever to live. (1 Kings 3:1-15; Eccl. 2:9) Being the kingly son of David, Solomon also received the benefits of the Davidic Covenant. (1 Chron. 17:1-27; Psa. 89) He and his kingdom of peace (1 Kings 4:20-25) thus became a Messianic type of God's coming eschatological kingom prophesied throughout the Old Testament (Isa. 2:1-4; 11:1-10) - the very kingdom offered by Jesus to the nation of Israel in the New Testament. (Mark 1:14-15; Luke 1:29-33) Solomon also built the first Jerusalem Temple that remained until the time of the Babylonian invasion when King Nebuchadnezzar destroyed it in 586 B.C.. (1-2 Kings) Solomon became a prolific author of Scripture who wrote much of the book of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, Psalm 72, and Psalm 127. According to Jewish tradition, the final version of the book of Job may also have been put together by Solomon and/or during the time of his adminstration. Solomon's reign was internationally renowned at the time for being a most glorious kingdom so that Israel became a Messianic light to the nations. (1 Kings 10; 2 Chron. 9:22) Late in life, however, Solomon contradicted his own wisdom by disobeying the Lord. In disobedience to the Torah, Solomon multiplied horses, wives, and gold for himself. (Deut. 17:14-20; 2 Chron. 9:13-28) Worst of all, he imported idolatry into Israel through his international marriage alliances. (1 Kings 11:1-8) His secular kingdom pursuits also dulled his earlier spirituality. (Eccl. 2:1-7) Because of Solomon's disobedience, God divided the great unity achieved by King David, but waited until after his death to do so (1 Kings 11-12). After Solomon's death, Israel will be divided between the north and south, between what was called the northern kingom of Israel/Ephraim and the southern kingdom of Judah.