The Suffering, Praise, and Posterity of the Messiah

To the Chief Musician. Set to [a]“The Deer of the Dawn.” A Psalm of David.

22 My (A)God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?
Why are You so far from helping Me,
And from the words of My groaning?
O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear;
And in the night season, and am not silent.

But You are holy,
Enthroned in the (B)praises of Israel.
Our fathers trusted in You;
They trusted, and You delivered them.
They cried to You, and were delivered;
(C)They trusted in You, and were not ashamed.

But I am (D)a worm, and no man;
(E)A reproach of men, and despised by the people.
(F)All those who see Me ridicule Me;
They [b]shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,
“He(G) [c]trusted in the Lord, let Him rescue Him;
(H)Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!”

(I)But You are He who took Me out of the womb;
You made Me trust while on My mother’s breasts.
10 I was cast upon You from birth.
From My mother’s womb
(J)You have been My God.
11 Be not far from Me,
For trouble is near;
For there is none to help.

12 (K)Many bulls have surrounded Me;
Strong bulls of (L)Bashan have encircled Me.
13 (M)They [d]gape at Me with their mouths,
Like a raging and roaring lion.

14 I am poured out like water,
(N)And all My bones are out of joint;
My heart is like wax;
It has melted [e]within Me.
15 (O)My strength is dried up like a potsherd,
And (P)My tongue clings to My jaws;
You have brought Me to the dust of death.

16 For dogs have surrounded Me;
The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me.
(Q)They[f] pierced My hands and My feet;
17 I can count all My bones.
(R)They look and stare at Me.
18 (S)They divide My garments among them,
And for My clothing they cast lots.

19 But You, O Lord, do not be far from Me;
O My Strength, hasten to help Me!
20 Deliver Me from the sword,
(T)My[g] precious life from the power of the dog.
21 (U)Save Me from the lion’s mouth
And from the horns of the wild oxen!

(V)You have answered Me.

22 (W)I will declare Your name to (X)My brethren;
In the midst of the assembly I will praise You.
23 (Y)You who fear the Lord, praise Him!
All you [h]descendants of Jacob, glorify Him,
And fear Him, all you offspring of Israel!
24 For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted;
Nor has He hidden His face from Him;
But (Z)when He cried to Him, He heard.

25 (AA)My praise shall be of You in the great assembly;
(AB)I will pay My vows before those who fear Him.
26 The poor shall eat and be satisfied;
Those who seek Him will praise the Lord.
Let your heart live forever!

27 All the ends of the world
Shall remember and turn to the Lord,
And all the families of the [i]nations
Shall worship before [j]You.
28 (AC)For the kingdom is the Lord’s,
And He rules over the nations.

29 (AD)All the prosperous of the earth
Shall eat and worship;
(AE)All those who go down to [k]the dust
Shall bow before Him,
Even he who cannot keep himself alive.

30 A posterity shall serve Him.
It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation,
31 They will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born,
That He has done this.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 22:1 Heb. Aijeleth Hashahar
  2. Psalm 22:7 Show contempt with their mouth
  3. Psalm 22:8 LXX, Syr., Vg. hoped; Tg. praised
  4. Psalm 22:13 Lit. have opened their mouths at Me
  5. Psalm 22:14 Lit. in the midst of My bowels
  6. Psalm 22:16 So with some Heb. mss., LXX, Syr., Vg.; MT Like a lion instead of They pierced
  7. Psalm 22:20 Lit. My only one
  8. Psalm 22:23 Lit. seed
  9. Psalm 22:27 Gentiles
  10. Psalm 22:27 So with MT, LXX, Tg.; Arab., Syr., Vg. Him
  11. Psalm 22:29 Death

Psalm 22

For the music leader. According to the “Doe of Dawn.” A psalm of David.

22 My God! My God,
    why have you left me all alone?
    Why are you so far from saving me—
        so far from my anguished groans?
My God, I cry out during the day,
    but you don’t answer;
    even at nighttime I don’t stop.
You are the holy one, enthroned.
You are Israel’s praise.
Our ancestors trusted you—
    they trusted you and you rescued them;
    they cried out to you and they were saved;
    they trusted you and they weren’t ashamed.

But I’m just a worm, less than human;
    insulted by one person, despised by another.
All who see me make fun of me—
    they gape, shaking their heads:
    “He committed himself to the Lord,
        so let God rescue him;
        let God deliver him
        because God likes him so much.”
But you are the one who pulled me from the womb,
    placing me safely at my mother’s breasts.
10 I was thrown on you from birth;
    you’ve been my God
    since I was in my mother’s womb.
11 Please don’t be far from me,
    because trouble is near
        and there’s no one to help.

12 Many bulls surround me;
    mighty bulls from Bashan encircle me.
13 They open their mouths at me
    like a lion ripping and roaring!
14 I’m poured out like water.
    All my bones have fallen apart.
        My heart is like wax;
        it melts inside me.
15 My strength is dried up
    like a piece of broken pottery.
My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth;
    you’ve set me down in the dirt of death.
16 Dogs surround me;
    a pack of evil people circle me like a lion—
    oh, my poor hands and feet!
17 I can count all my bones!
    Meanwhile, they just stare at me, watching me.
18 They divvy up my garments among themselves;
    they cast lots for my clothes.

19 But you, Lord! Don’t be far away!
    You are my strength!
    Come quick and help me!
20 Deliver me[a] from the sword.
    Deliver my life from the power of the dog.
21     Save me from the mouth of the lion.
    From the horns of the wild oxen
    you have answered me!

22 I will declare your name to my brothers and sisters;
    I will praise you in the very center of the congregation!
23 All of you who revere the Lord—praise him!
    All of you who are Jacob’s descendants—honor him!
    All of you who are all Israel’s offspring—
        stand in awe of him!
24 Because he didn’t despise or detest
    the suffering of the one who suffered—
    he didn’t hide his face from me.
    No, he listened when I cried out to him for help.

25 I offer praise in the great congregation
    because of you;
    I will fulfill my promises
    in the presence of those who honor God.
26 Let all those who are suffering eat and be full!
    Let all who seek the Lord praise him!
        I pray your hearts live forever!
27 Every part of the earth
    will remember and come back to the Lord;
    every family among all the nations will worship you.
28 Because the right to rule belongs to the Lord,
    he rules all nations.
29 Indeed, all the earth’s powerful
    will worship him;[b]
    all who are descending to the dust
    will kneel before him;
    my being also lives for him.[c]
30 Future descendants will serve him;
    generations to come will be told about my Lord.
31 They will proclaim God’s righteousness
        to those not yet born,
        telling them what God has done.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 22:20 Or my soul; also in 22:29
  2. Psalm 22:29 Correction; MT All the earth’s powerful have eaten and will worship.
  3. Psalm 22:29 Correction with LXX; Heb uncertain