Today, the reading plan called for Psalm 72, the last psalm in Book II. We start Proverbs tomorrow. There aren’t many of these: “A Psalm of Solomon.” The New King James Version I’m using gives it the title:

Glory and Universality of the Messiah’s Reign

But like a lot of the Old Testament, we really don’t know if it’s talking about Solomon’s present (past, now) reign or Jesus’ future reign. This part sounds like Solomon:

Give the king Your judgments, O God, And Your righteousness to the king’s Son…The kings of Tarshish and of the isles Will bring presents; The kings of Sheba and Seba Will offer gifts. (Psalm 72.1, 10, NKJV)

These verses sound more like Jesus:

Yes, all kings shall fall down before Him; All nations shall serve Him…His name shall endure forever; His name shall continue as long as the sun. And men shall be blessed in Him; All nations shall call Him blessed. Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, Who only does wondrous things! And blessed be His glorious name forever! And let the whole earth be filled with His glory. Amen and Amen. (Psalm 72.11, 17 – 19, NKJV)

Reminds one of Psalm 67, that we looked at recently.

But the real lesson is, What does good government look like? If we’re looking at the righteous rule of Jesus or looking for righteous rule now, what are we looking for?

He will judge Your people with righteousness, And Your poor with justice. The mountains will bring peace to the people, And the little hills, by righteousness. He will bring justice to the poor of the people; He will save the children of the needy, And will break in pieces the oppressor…For He will deliver the needy when he cries, The poor also, and him who has no helper. He will spare the poor and needy, And will save the souls of the needy. He will redeem their life from oppression and violence… (Psalm 72.2 – 4, 12 – 14, NKJV)

Seems clear. A provocative Christianity Today piece, Who Are the “Court Evangelicals,” ends with this challenge:

While the court evangelicals enjoyed Easter dinner, worshiped in the White House, and expressed their grievances about anti-Christian bias, other evangelicals in the United States and around the world were saving lives with vaccines, defending Christians in Ukraine, finding solidarity with the suffering, and bringing attention to the globally displaced. – John Fea, June 4, 2025

What would Jesus do? He told us:

And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:

“The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD.” (See Isaiah 61.1, 2a)

Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” (Luke 4.17 – 21, NKJV)

PS In Daniel 4, Nebuchadnezzar’s account of his meltdown, what did Daniel advise Nebuchadnezzar to do?

Therefore, O king, let my counsel be acceptable to you: break off your sins by practicing righteousness, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed, that there may perhaps be a lengthening of your prosperity. (Daniel 4.27, ESV, emphasis mine)