Give the king your justice, O God,
and your righteousness to the royal son!
May he judge your people with righteousness,
and your poor with justice!
Let the mountains bear prosperity for the people,
and the hills, in righteousness!
May he defend the cause of the poor of the people,
give deliverance to the children of the needy,
and crush the oppressor!
May they fear you while the sun endures,
and as long as the moon, throughout all generations!
May he be like rain that falls on the mown grass,
like showers that water the earth!
In his days may the righteous flourish,
and peace abound, till the moon be no more!
This is a Psalm written by King Solomon. He gives praise to the Lord and prays for God’s blessing on him as king of Israel. Perhaps it was sung at his coronation or at an annual feast to confirm him as God’s anointed. Solomon asks the Lord to ensure that he rule with wisdom and justice and never neglect the needs of the poor and oppressed. As long as he, or any King who follows him, rules with humility, fairness, and mercy then he and the nation shall be blessed. The Psalm is also Messianic for it foretells of the one true King who will reign over all the nations with righteousness forever.
Though we should always pray for the peace and joy of God’s reign on earth, we must also pray for the rulers of our nation, all nations, in fact, no matter what ideologies they espouse. Perhaps we fail to do this because we do not trust so many politicians, and few of them, it seems have earned it. Lately they enact laws that condone and promote sin and sinful ways of living. But that is exactly why we should pray for them. For they, like we, are sinners. We should ask the Lord to give them His wisdom and truth, that they would acknowledge their sinfulness and greed, repent, and come to faith in Jesus.
Solomon here gives us a wonderful example of how we should pray for those in authority over us. We should ask that the Lord grant them His wisdom so they may indeed promote justice and fairness for all, not favoring one group over another and also that they may not endorse sin. We should ask that the rulers ensure justice for all, but especially for the oppressed and the poor.