Discovery BoxPsalms 72:8-12 
Context72:8 May he rule 1 from sea to sea, 2
and from the Euphrates River 3 to the ends of the earth!
72:9 Before him the coastlands 4 will bow down,
and his enemies will lick the dust. 5
72:10 The kings of Tarshish 6 and the coastlands will offer gifts;
the kings of Sheba 7 and Seba 8 will bring tribute.
72:11 All kings will bow down to him;
all nations will serve him.
72:12 For he will rescue the needy 9 when they cry out for help,
and the oppressed 10 who have no defender.
1 tn The prefixed verbal form is a (shortened) jussive form, indicating this is a prayer of blessing.
2 sn From sea to sea. This may mean from the Mediterranean Sea in the west to the Dead Sea in the east. See Amos 8:12. The language of this and the following line also appears in Zech 9:10.
3 tn Heb “the river,” a reference to the Euphrates.
4 tn Or “islands.” The term here refers metonymically to those people who dwell in these regions.
5 sn As they bow down before him, it will appear that his enemies are licking the dust.
6 sn Tarshish was a distant western port, the precise location of which is uncertain.
7 sn Sheba was located in Arabia.
8 sn Seba was located in Africa.
9 tn The singular is representative. The typical needy individual here represents the entire group.
10 tn The singular is representative. The typical oppressed individual here represents the entire group.
