May he rule from sea to sea, and from the Euphrates to the ends of the earth.
Parallel translations
- WEB He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, from the River to the ends of the earth.
- KJV He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth.
- NKJV He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, And from the River to the ends of the earth.
- NASB ¶May he also rule from sea to sea, And from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.
- NLT May he reign from sea to sea, and from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The king's dominion will stretch from sea to sea and to the ends of the earth.
Overview
The prayer envisions a worldwide reign extending far beyond Israel's borders. Such universal dominion exceeds any historical Israelite king. The New Testament applies this global rule to Christ, to whom all authority in heaven and on earth has been given (Matthew 28:18; Zechariah 9:10).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 9
- Exod 23:31And I will establish your borders from the Red Sea to the Sea of the Philistines, and from the desert to the Euphrates. For I will deliver the inhabitants into your hand, and you will drive them out before you.
- Zech 9:10And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the horse from Jerusalem, and the bow of war will be broken. Then He will proclaim peace to the nations. His dominion will extend from sea to sea, and from the Euphrates to the ends of the earth.
- 1 Kgs 4:21–24And Solomon reigned over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines, as far as the border of Egypt. These kingdoms offered tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life.
- Ps 80:11It sent out its branches to the Sea, and its shoots toward the River.
- Ps 2:8Ask Me, and I will make the nations Your inheritance, the ends of the earth Your possession.
- Ps 89:25I will set his hand over the sea, and his right hand upon the rivers.
- Ps 22:27–28All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD. All the families of the nations will bow down before Him.
- Ps 89:36his offspring shall endure forever, and his throne before Me like the sun,
- Rev 11:15Then the seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and loud voices called out in heaven: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever.”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The Psalms are Christ's own prayer book and a gallery of his portraits — the suffering one of Psalm 22, the risen Lord of Psalm 16, the priest-king of Psalm 110, the Son to whom the nations are given.
How Psalms 72:8 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.