Psalm 22
New Living Translation
Psalm 22
For the choir director: A psalm of David, to be sung to the tune “Doe of the Dawn.”
1 My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?
Why are you so far away when I groan for help?
2 Every day I call to you, my God, but you do not answer.
Every night I lift my voice, but I find no relief.
3 Yet you are holy,
enthroned on the praises of Israel.
4 Our ancestors trusted in you,
and you rescued them.
5 They cried out to you and were saved.
They trusted in you and were never disgraced.
6 But I am a worm and not a man.
I am scorned and despised by all!
7 Everyone who sees me mocks me.
They sneer and shake their heads, saying,
8 “Is this the one who relies on the Lord?
Then let the Lord save him!
If the Lord loves him so much,
let the Lord rescue him!”
9 Yet you brought me safely from my mother’s womb
and led me to trust you at my mother’s breast.
10 I was thrust into your arms at my birth.
You have been my God from the moment I was born.
11 Do not stay so far from me,
for trouble is near,
and no one else can help me.
12 My enemies surround me like a herd of bulls;
fierce bulls of Bashan have hemmed me in!
13 Like lions they open their jaws against me,
roaring and tearing into their prey.
14 My life is poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint.
My heart is like wax,
melting within me.
15 My strength has dried up like sunbaked clay.
My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth.
You have laid me in the dust and left me for dead.
16 My enemies surround me like a pack of dogs;
an evil gang closes in on me.
They have pierced[a] my hands and feet.
17 I can count all my bones.
My enemies stare at me and gloat.
18 They divide my garments among themselves
and throw dice[b] for my clothing.
19 O Lord, do not stay far away!
You are my strength; come quickly to my aid!
20 Save me from the sword;
spare my precious life from these dogs.
21 Snatch me from the lion’s jaws
and from the horns of these wild oxen.
22 I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters.[c]
I will praise you among your assembled people.
23 Praise the Lord, all you who fear him!
Honor him, all you descendants of Jacob!
Show him reverence, all you descendants of Israel!
24 For he has not ignored or belittled the suffering of the needy.
He has not turned his back on them,
but has listened to their cries for help.
25 I will praise you in the great assembly.
I will fulfill my vows in the presence of those who worship you.
26 The poor will eat and be satisfied.
All who seek the Lord will praise him.
Their hearts will rejoice with everlasting joy.
27 The whole earth will acknowledge the Lord and return to him.
All the families of the nations will bow down before him.
28 For royal power belongs to the Lord.
He rules all the nations.
29 Let the rich of the earth feast and worship.
Bow before him, all who are mortal,
all whose lives will end as dust.
30 Our children will also serve him.
Future generations will hear about the wonders of the Lord.
31 His righteous acts will be told to those not yet born.
They will hear about everything he has done.
Psalm 22
International Standard Version
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?
2 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]
3 You are holy,
enthroned on the praises of Israel.
4 Our ancestors trusted in you;
they trusted and you delivered them.
5 They cried out to you and escaped;
they trusted in you and were not put to shame.
6 But as for me,
I am only a worm and not a man,
scorned by mankind and despised by people.
7 Everyone who sees me mocks me;
they gape at me with open mouths
and shake their heads at me.
8 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.”
9 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
- Psalm 22:1 Lit. According to
- Psalm 22:2 Lit. but there is no silence for me
- Psalm 22:8 The Heb. lacks They say
- Psalm 22:8 Lit. he
- Psalm 22:15 Lit. to my jaws
- Psalm 22:16 So LXX Syr DSS 5/6 HevPS XHev/Se4; MT reads Like a lion
- Psalm 22:16 So MT; LXX lacks my
- Psalm 22:22 The Heb. lacks saying
- Psalm 22:25 Lit. him
- Psalm 22:26 Lit. your heart
- Psalm 22:29 Lit. dust
- Psalm 22:30 The Heb. lacks our
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