Psalm 22 (KJV)
A Messianic Psalm 
concerning Jesus' Death

This Psalm is one of progressive encouragement starting from a position of despair and ending with a joyful hope. It starts with "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" and ends with "He hath done this", just as Jesus started with the same phrase and ended with "it is finished". It starts with a feeling of God's absence and ends with a sense of God's omnipresence and sovereignty. It is an example of the exercise of encouraging oneself in the Lord. Though it was written by King David about 1000 years before Christ, it is a Psalm which contains many prophecies concerning the details of Christ's death and which Jesus referenced on the cross, and indeed it appears to be a part of his meditation while dying on the cross. As such it is of great value to those interested in being crucified with Christ. For it reflects the quality of faith expected of children of God.

A Psalm related to this one is Psalm 34, which is also Messianic in prophecying that none of Christ's bones would be broken.

Ps 34:
17 The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth,
and delivereth them out of all their troubles.
18  The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart;
and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
19  Many are the afflictions of the righteous:
but the LORD delivereth him out of them all.
20  He keepeth all his bones: not one of them is broken. (John 19:36)

Part I: Praying for Deliverance

My Feelings of Despair

1  <<To the chief Musician upon Aijeleth Shahar, A Psalm of David.>>
My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? (Matt 27:46)
why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?
2  O my God, I cry in the daytime, but thou hearest not;
and in the night season, and am not silent.

How God treated my brethren in the past

3  But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.
4  Our fathers trusted in thee: they trusted, and thou didst deliver them.
5  They cried unto thee, and were delivered:
they trusted in thee, and were not confounded.

How I am Viewed by Others

6  But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people.
7  All they that see me laugh me to scorn: (Matt 27:39)
they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,
8  He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him:
let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him. (Matt 27:43)

How God has been my help in the past

9  But thou art he that took me out of the womb:
thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother's breasts.
10  I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou art my God from my mother's belly.
11  Be not far from me; for trouble is near; for there is none to help.

My present desperate circumstances

12  Many bulls have compassed me: strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round.
13  They gaped upon me with their mouths, as a ravening and a roaring lion.
14  I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint:
my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels.
15  My strength is dried up like a potsherd; and my tongue cleaveth to my jaws; (John 19:28)
and thou hast brought me into the dust of death.
16  For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me:
they pierced my hands and my feet.
17  I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me.
18  They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture. (Matt 27:35)

I pray for God to deliver me

19  But be not thou far from me, O LORD: O my strength, haste thee to help me.
20  Deliver my soul from the sword; my darling from the power of the dog.
21  Save me from the lion's mouth:
for thou hast heard me from the horns of the unicorns

Part II: Responding in Faith 
to God's inevitable Salvation

I will praise God for his deliverance

22  I will declare thy name unto my brethren:
in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.
23  Ye that fear the LORD, praise him;
all ye the seed of Jacob, glorify him;
and fear him, all ye the seed of Israel.
24  For he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted;
neither hath he hid his face from him; but when he cried unto him, he heard.
25  My praise shall be of thee in the great congregation:
I will pay my vows before them that fear him.

I look forward to the Kingdom

26  The meek shall eat and be satisfied:
they shall praise the LORD that seek him:
your heart shall live for ever.
27  All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the LORD:
and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee. (Rev 15:4)
28  For the kingdom is the LORD'S: (John 18:36)
and he is the governor among the nations.
29  All they that be fat upon earth shall eat and worship:
all they that go down to the dust shall bow before him:
and none can keep alive his own soul.
30  A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation.
31  They shall come,
and shall declare his righteousness unto a people that shall be born,
that he hath done this.(John 19:30)

Xrefs

Matt 27:46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

Matt 27:39 And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads,

Matt 27:43 He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.

John 19:28 After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst.

Matt 27:35 And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots.

Rev 15:4 Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.

John 18:36 Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.

John 19:30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.

Summary

I feel like God has forsaken me. I face difficult circumstances and persecution by others. But when I pray it seems that God does not deliver me. But I read in the Bible how God answered prayer even miraculously and saved the godly from difficult circumstances. But maybe God doesn't value me like He did those people. That's the attitude that my persecutors are forcing on me. But I know I have been born of God and God loves me as His child. But I am surrounded by unbelievers who mock me and I am sick and tired of what the world has done to my flesh. The world puts me to shame. It breaks my heart and wastes my life and immobilizes my actions while it steals my things. Save me from these creatures of the earth!

By faith I believe You will inevitably save me. And in view of that fact I will praise You and give public testimony of Your works. Let us all praise God, glorify and fear Him. Yes, He does listen to the despised, and He has not forsaken me.

I look forward with joy to the Kingdom. Despised and humiliated people like myself will eat there and be satisfied. Inevitably there will come a time when all the ends of the earth shall worship the Lord. The Church will go on and serve Him. They will continue to testify God's Word to future generations.

Key Application

When in despair we need to feel free to express our feelings to God, but also in faith to work them out. For our feelings often reflect the world's affect upon us, but don't necessarily encompass the way things really are. Faith develops hope. Yes, we need to identify the causes and influences of our despair. This may include both circumstances and other people's attitude towards us.  But we need to get past dwelling on these and start to dwell on the Word of God. For in it we see how God has dealt in the past with people just like us, and in worst situations than we are. With the Word of God in mind we should pray for deliverance and believe God in faith that such deliverance is inevitable. Of course God does things His own way.

Then we need to consider the bigger picture. For our situation is temporary, but life is eternal and there is an eternal Kingdom awaiting us in the future upon which we should set our hopes. Watch for God's deliverance and give glory to Him.

"Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God." Heb 12:2

The Berean Christian Bible Study Resources Jul 29,2015