Pastor Billington's Blog

Psalm 72:15-20 “He will live; and Sheba’s gold will be given to him. Men will pray for him continually. They will bless him all day long. Abundance of grain shall be throughout the land. Its fruit sways like Lebanon. Let it flourish, thriving like the grass of the field. His name endures forever. His name continues as long as the sun. Men shall be blessed by him. All nations will call him blessed. Praise be to the LORD God, the God of Israel, who alone does marvelous deeds. Blessed be his glorious name forever! Let the whole earth be filled with his glory! Amen and amen. This ends the prayers by David, the son of Jesse.”

Psalms 41 and 72 both end with a benediction and what appears to be an editorial note. Although Psalm 72 is from Solomon, many of Psalms 42-72 were penned by David, and the next section of Psalms is written by Asaph, so this does signify a distinction from one section to another. There are more Psalms written by David later, but this reminds us that there was a process of collection with the Psalms as well as distinctions within the overall book itself.

These verses should remind us of the promises God gave to Abraham many years before. Although those promises could refer to an earthly king, there is a distinct Messianic sense to them. All of the nations truly will be blessed through Abraham in Jesus Christ, and He becomes the perfect, compassionate, and righteous king that this world is looking for!

Genesis 12:1-3 “Now the LORD said to Abram, ‘Leave your country, and your relatives, and your father’s house, and go to the land that I will show you. I will make of you a great nation. I will bless you and make your name great. You will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who treats you with contempt. All the families of the earth will be blessed through you.’ ”

For additional worship: Precious Name (Take the Name of Jesus with You)

Psalm 72:8-14 “He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, from the River to the ends of the earth. Those who dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him. His enemies shall lick the dust. The kings of Tarshish and of the islands will bring tribute. The kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts. Yes, all kings shall fall down before him. All nations shall serve him. For he will deliver the needy when he cries; the poor, who has no helper. He will have pity on the poor and needy. He will save the souls of the needy. He will redeem their soul from oppression and violence. Their blood will be precious in his sight.”

The king’s dominion points again to the kingdom of the coming Messiah. But notice the nature of that kingdom! The world is in need of a compassionate and merciful savior, and God will provide. Our blood is precious in His sight!

Luke 12:6-7 “Aren’t five sparrows sold for two assaria coins? Not one of them is forgotten by God. But the very hairs of your head are all counted. Therefore don’t be afraid. You are of more value than many sparrows.”

Revelation 6:9-11 “When he opened the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been killed for the Word of God, and for the testimony of the Lamb which they had. They cried with a loud voice, saying, ‘How long, Master, the holy and true, until you judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?’ A long white robe was given to each of them. They were told that they should rest yet for a while, until their fellow servants and their brothers, who would also be killed even as they were, should complete their course.”

For additional worship: Hail to the Lord’s Anointed (feat. Sandra McCracken)

Psalm 72:1-7 “By Solomon. God, give the king your justice; your righteousness to the royal son. He will judge your people with righteousness, and your poor with justice. The mountains shall bring prosperity to the people. The hills bring the fruit of righteousness. He will judge the poor of the people. He will save the children of the needy, and will break the oppressor in pieces. They shall fear you while the sun endures; and as long as the moon, throughout all generations. He will come down like rain on the mown grass, as showers that water the earth. In his days, the righteous shall flourish, and abundance of peace, until the moon is no more.”

Think of this as Solomon’s prayer that he, and the future heirs of David’s kingdom, will judge God’s people rightly and that people will learn to fear God because of the king’s reign. But this is also a messianic psalm. It looks forward to an undying and blessed reign that endures as long as the sun and is as refreshing as rain on grass. And who isn’t looking forward to that!

For additional worship: Hark the Glad Sound! The Savior Comes (Koine)

Psalm 71:22-24 “I will also praise you with the harp for your faithfulness, my God. I sing praises to you with the lyre, Holy One of Israel. My lips shall shout for joy! My soul, which you have redeemed, sings praises to you! My tongue will also talk about your righteousness all day long, for they are disappointed, and they are confounded, who want to harm me.”

Have you ever heard of churches that only do music a Cappella? Or with just a piano? I’ve never been able to figure that out when we have such clear indications from Scripture that instruments should accompany lips! How can we not want to use everything we can to praise God? How can we not want to talk about Him all the time? After all, He has redeemed us, He watches over us, and He has promised us a wonderful future!

For additional worship: How Can I Keep from Singing (Chris Tomlin)

Psalm 71:17-21 “God, you have taught me from my youth. Until now, I have declared your wondrous works. Yes, even when I am old and grey-haired, God, don’t forsake me, until I have declared your strength to the next generation, your might to everyone who is to come. God, your righteousness also reaches to the heavens. You have done great things. God, who is like you? You, who have shown us many and bitter troubles, you will let me live. You will bring us up again from the depths of the earth. Increase my honor and comfort me again.”

To paraphrase: God, you’ve been with me since I was young – continue to protect me so that I can praise you to my children and grandchildren! Notice the acknowledgement that trouble comes to everyone, but there is an expectation that God will continue to bring his people through. The takeaway: faith is meant to be passed on!

For additional worship: I Love to Tell the Story (Oak Ridge Boys)

Psalm 71:7-16 “I am a marvel to many, but you are my strong refuge. My mouth shall be filled with your praise, with your honor all day long. Don’t reject me in my old age. Don’t forsake me when my strength fails. For my enemies talk about me. Those who watch for my soul conspire together, saying, ‘God has forsaken him. Pursue and take him, for no one will rescue him.’ God, don’t be far from me. My God, hurry to help me. Let my accusers be disappointed and consumed. Let them be covered with disgrace and scorn who want to harm me. But I will always hope, and will add to all of your praise. My mouth will tell about your righteousness, and of your salvation all day, though I don’t know its full measure. I will come with the mighty acts of the Lord GOD. I will make mention of your righteousness, even of yours alone.”

Is there a new takeaway from this section that we haven’t mentioned before? Yes! “My mouth will tell about your righteousness, and of your salvation all day, though I don’t know its full measure.” Even though we humbly request, there is also hope and expectancy with our prayers. God will do what is best for His kingdom, but we expect Him to defend us against unjust accusations, and we believe that He will continue to watch over us in our weakness. That’s why we continue to praise, even though we don’t yet know the outcome of our prayers!

For additional worship: Blessed Assurance (Reawaken Hymns)

Psalm 71:1-6 “In you, LORD, I take refuge. Never let me be disappointed. Deliver me in your righteousness, and rescue me. Turn your ear to me, and save me. Be to me a rock of refuge to which I may always go. Give the command to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress. Rescue me, my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man. For you are my hope, Lord GOD, my confidence from my youth. I have relied on you from the womb. You are he who took me out of my mother’s womb. I will always praise you.”

God is our rock and fortress, but we shouldn’t presume that He has to help us. He is our hope, and we should reach out to him with humility.

1 Peter 5:6-7 “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time, casting all your worries on him, because he cares for you.”

For additional worship: O God of Mercy, Hear Our Plea (Sovereign Grace Music)

Psalm 70:1-5 “For the Chief Musician. By David. A reminder. Hurry, God, to deliver me. Come quickly to help me, LORD. Let them be disappointed and confounded who seek my soul. Let those who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace. Let them be turned because of their shame who say, ‘Aha! Aha!’ Let all those who seek you rejoice and be glad in you. Let those who love your salvation continually say, ‘Let God be exalted!’ But I am poor and needy. Come to me quickly, God. You are my help and my deliverer. LORD, don’t delay.”

“A reminder” is literally “to bring to remembrance.” It is believed that this prayer would accompany a memorial offering, serving as a “reminder” to God that we need help! Think of it as knocking on the door more than once. And that may be a good reminder for us from this Psalm. It covers many of the ideas we’ve seen before, regarding salvation from our enemies and them being put to shame. But it also encourages us to be persistent in prayer.

Luke 18:1-5 “He also spoke a parable to them that they must always pray and not give up, saying, “There was a judge in a certain city who didn’t fear God and didn’t respect man. A widow was in that city, and she often came to him, saying, ‘Defend me from my adversary!’ He wouldn’t for a while; but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow bothers me, I will defend her, or else she will wear me out by her continual coming.’ ”

For additional worship: Pray (Sanctus Real)

Psalm 69:30-36 “I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify him with thanksgiving. It will please the LORD better than an ox, or a bull that has horns and hoofs. The humble have seen it, and are glad. You who seek after God, let your heart live. For the LORD hears the needy, and doesn’t despise his captive people. Let heaven and earth praise him; the seas, and everything that moves therein! For God will save Zion, and build the cities of Judah. They shall settle there, and own it. The children also of his servants shall inherit it. Those who love his name shall dwell therein.”

We can trust in God. What he has said He will do, He will do! He deserves and desires our praise, and it pleases Him even greater than a sacrifice. Why? Because presumably praise comes from the heart, while we can give a sacrifice for any number of reasons.

Hebrews 13:15 “Through him [Jesus], then, let’s offer up a sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of lips which proclaim allegiance to his name.”

For additional worship: We Bring The Sacrifice Of Praise (The Maranatha Singers)