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Why Have You Forsaken Me?

For the choir director. According to [a]Aijeleth Hashshahar. A Psalm of David.

22 (A)My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?
[b](B)Far from my salvation are the words of my [c](C)groaning.
O my God, I (D)call by day, but You do not answer;
And by night, but [d]I have no rest.
Yet (E)You are holy,
[e]Enthroned upon (F)the praises of Israel.
In You our fathers (G)trusted;
They trusted and You (H)rescued them.
To You they cried out and were granted escape;
(I)In You they trusted and were not [f]disappointed.

But I am a (J)worm and not a man,
A (K)reproach of men and (L)despised by the people.
All who see me (M)mock me;
They [g]smack their lip, they (N)wag their head, saying,
[h]Commit yourself to Yahweh; (O)let Him rescue him;
Let Him deliver him, because He delights in him.”

Yet You are He who (P)brought me out of the womb;
You made me trust when upon my mother’s breasts.
10 Upon You I was cast (Q)from [i]birth;
You have been my God from my mother’s womb.

11 (R)Be not far from me, for [j]distress is near;
For there is (S)none to help.
12 Many (T)bulls have surrounded me;
Strong bulls of (U)Bashan have encircled me.
13 They (V)open wide their mouth at me,
As a (W)lion that tears and roars.
14 I am (X)poured out like water,
And all my (Y)bones are out of joint;
My (Z)heart is like wax;
It is melted within [k]me.
15 My (AA)strength is dried up like a potsherd,
And (AB)my tongue cleaves to my jaws;
And You (AC)lay me [l]in the dust of death.
16 For (AD)dogs have surrounded me;
[m]A band of evildoers has encompassed me;
[n]They (AE)pierced my hands and my feet.
17 I count all my bones.
(AF)They look, they stare at me;
18 They (AG)divide my garments among them,
And for my clothing they cast lots.

19 But You, O Yahweh, (AH)be not far off;
O my Strength, (AI)hasten to my help.
20 Deliver my [o]soul from (AJ)the sword,
My (AK)only life from the [p]power of the dog.
21 Save me from the mouth of the (AL)lion;
From the horns of the (AM)wild oxen You (AN)have answered me.

22 I will surely (AO)recount Your name to my brothers;
In the midst of the assembly I will praise You.
23 (AP)You who fear Yahweh, praise Him;
All you seed of Jacob, (AQ)glorify Him,
And (AR)stand in awe of Him, all you seed of Israel.
24 For He has (AS)not despised and He has not abhorred the affliction of the afflicted;
And He has not (AT)hidden His face from him;
But (AU)when he cried to Him for help, He heard.

25 Of You is (AV)my praise in the great assembly;
I shall (AW)pay my vows before those who fear Him.
26 The [q]afflicted will eat and (AX)be satisfied;
Those who seek Him will (AY)praise Yahweh.
May your (AZ)heart live forever!
27 All the (BA)ends of the earth will remember and turn to Yahweh,
And all the (BB)families of the nations will worship before [r]You.
28 For the (BC)kingdom is Yahweh’s
And He (BD)rules over the nations.
29 All the [s](BE)prosperous of the earth will eat and worship,
All those who (BF)go down to the dust will bow before Him,
Even he who [t](BG)cannot keep his soul alive.
30 (BH)Their seed will serve Him;
It will be recounted about the Lord to (BI)the coming generation.
31 They will come and (BJ)will declare His righteousness
To a people (BK)who will be born, that He has done it.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 22 Title Lit The Doe of the Dawn; possibly a title for a tune
  2. Psalm 22:1 Or Why are You so far from helping me, and from the words of my groaning?
  3. Psalm 22:1 Lit roaring
  4. Psalm 22:2 Lit there is no silence for me
  5. Psalm 22:3 Or Inhabit the praises
  6. Psalm 22:5 Or ashamed
  7. Psalm 22:7 Make clicking sounds; lit separate the lip
  8. Psalm 22:8 Or He committed himself; lit Roll
  9. Psalm 22:10 Lit a womb
  10. Psalm 22:11 Or trouble
  11. Psalm 22:14 Lit my inward parts
  12. Psalm 22:15 Lit to
  13. Psalm 22:16 Or An assembly
  14. Psalm 22:16 Or Like a lion, my...
  15. Psalm 22:20 Or life
  16. Psalm 22:20 Lit paw
  17. Psalm 22:26 Or poor
  18. Psalm 22:27 Some versions Him
  19. Psalm 22:29 Lit fat ones
  20. Psalm 22:29 Or did not

To the Director: To the tune of[a] “Doe of the Dawn”.

A Davidic Psalm.

God Delivers His Suffering Servant

22 My God! My God!
    Why have you abandoned me?
Why are you so far from delivering me—
    from my groaning words?
My God, I cry out to you throughout the day,
    but you do not answer;
and throughout the night,
    but I have no rest.[b]

You are holy,
    enthroned on the praises of Israel.
Our ancestors trusted in you;
    they trusted and you delivered them.
They cried out to you and escaped;
    they trusted in you and were not put to shame.

But as for me,
    I am only a worm and not a man,
        scorned by mankind and despised by people.
Everyone who sees me mocks me;
    they gape at me with open mouths
        and shake their heads at me.
They say,[c] “Commit yourself to the Lord;
    perhaps the Lord[d] will deliver him,
perhaps he will cause him to escape,
    since he delights in him.”

Yet, you are the one who took me from the womb,
    and kept me safe on my mother’s breasts.
10 I was dependent on you from birth;
    from my mother’s womb you have been my God.
11 Do not be so distant from me,
    for trouble is at hand;
        indeed, there is no deliverer.

12 Many bulls have surrounded me;
    the vicious bulls of Bashan have encircled me.
13 Their mouths are opened wide toward me,
    like roaring and attacking lions.

14 I am poured out like water;
    all my bones are out of joint.
        My heart is like wax, melting within me.
15 My strength is dried up like broken pottery;
    my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth,[e]
        and you have brought me down to the dust of death.

16 For dogs have surrounded me;
    a gang of those who practice evil has encircled me.
        They gouged[f] my hands and my[g] feet.
17 I can count all my bones.
    They look at me;
        they stare at me.
18 They divide my clothing among themselves;
    they cast lots for my clothing!

19 But as for you, Lord, do not be far away from me;
    My Strength, come quickly to help me.
20 Deliver me from the sword;
    my precious life from the power of the dog.
21 Deliver 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;
    in the midst of the congregation, I will praise you, saying,[h]
23 “All who fear the Lord, praise him!
    All the seed of Jacob, glorify him!
All the seed of Israel, fear him!
24 For he does not despise nor detest the afflicted person;
he does not hide his face from him,
    but he hears him when he cries out to him.”

25 My praise in the great congregation is because of you;
    I will pay my vows before those who fear you.[i]
26 The afflicted will eat and be satisfied;
    those who seek the Lord will praise him,
        “May you[j] live forever!”

27 All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord;
    all the families of the nations will bow in submission to the Lord.
28 Indeed, the kingdom belongs to the Lord;
    he rules over the nations.
29 All the prosperous people will eat and bow down in submission.
    All those who are about to go down to the grave[k]
        will bow down in submission,
    along with the one who can no longer keep himself alive.
30 Our[l] descendants will serve him,
    and that generation will be told about the Lord.
31 They will come and declare his righteousness
    to a people yet to be born;
        indeed, he has accomplished it!

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 22:1 Lit. According to
  2. Psalm 22:2 Lit. but there is no silence for me
  3. Psalm 22:8 The Heb. lacks They say
  4. Psalm 22:8 Lit. he
  5. Psalm 22:15 Lit. to my jaws
  6. Psalm 22:16 So LXX Syr DSS 5/6 HevPS XHev/Se4; MT reads Like a lion
  7. Psalm 22:16 So MT; LXX lacks my
  8. Psalm 22:22 The Heb. lacks saying
  9. Psalm 22:25 Lit. him
  10. Psalm 22:26 Lit. your heart
  11. Psalm 22:29 Lit. dust
  12. Psalm 22:30 The Heb. lacks our