The Meaning of Psalms 72:12 Explained

Psalms 72:12

KJV: For he shall deliver the needy when he crieth; the poor also, and him that hath no helper.

YLT: For he delivereth the needy who crieth, And the poor when he hath no helper,

Darby: For he will deliver the needy who crieth, and the afflicted, who hath no helper;

ASV: For he will deliver the needy when he crieth, And the poor, that hath no helper.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

For he shall deliver  the needy  when he crieth;  the poor  also, and [him] that hath no helper. 

What does Psalms 72:12 Mean?

Context Summary

Psalms 72:12-20 - "his Name Shall Endure For Ever"
How is it that lands so distant as Tarshish, by the Strait of Gibraltar; so rich as Sheba and Seba in south Arabia; tribes so wild as the Bedouin of the desert; and nations so imperial as those beyond the River, shall own the sway of Christ? The answer is given in Psalms 72:12 -For! The world is full of sorrow and injustice, and He who can stanch flowing wounds and mete out justice to the oppressed, will win all hearts and become the acknowledged Leader of mankind.
He shall live! We cannot forget our Lord's own words: "I am He that liveth and was dead, and behold I am alive for evermore," Revelation 1:18. Jesus is possessed of the ageless life of the eternal Word, of the human life which He bore through His sojourn on earth, and of that indissoluble life in virtue of which He exercises His priesthood, Hebrews 7:17, r.v. margin.
"We pray for Christ," says; Augustine, "when we pray for His Church, because it is His body; and when we say, "˜Thy kingdom come.'" His name shall have issue, Psalms 72:17, r.v., margin. It will reproduce itself. The children of "the Name" are found in every land, and will ultimately people the world.
For Review Questions, see the e-Sword Book Comments. [source]

Chapter Summary: Psalms 72

1  David, praying for Solomon, shows the goodness and glory of God's kingdom
18  He blessed God

What do the individual words in Psalms 72:12 mean?

For He will deliver the needy when he cries and the poor and no [him]who has helper to
כִּֽי־ יַ֭צִּיל אֶבְי֣וֹן מְשַׁוֵּ֑עַ וְ֝עָנִ֗י וְֽאֵין־ עֹזֵ֥ר לֽוֹ

יַ֭צִּיל  He  will  deliver 
Parse: Verb, Hifil, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: נָצַל  
Sense: to snatch away, deliver, rescue, save, strip, plunder.
אֶבְי֣וֹן  the  needy 
Parse: Adjective, masculine singular
Root: אֶבְיׄון  
Sense: in want, needy, chiefly poor, needy person.
מְשַׁוֵּ֑עַ  when  he  cries 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Participle, masculine singular
Root: שָׁוַע  
Sense: (Piel) to cry out (for help), shout.
וְ֝עָנִ֗י  and  the  poor 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adjective, masculine singular
Root: עָנִי  
Sense: poor, afflicted, humble, wretched.
וְֽאֵין־  and  no 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb
Root: אַיִן 
Sense: nothing, not, nought n.
עֹזֵ֥ר  [him]who  has  helper 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: עָזַר  
Sense: to help, succour, support.