Psalm 22 — The Suffering Messiah

What it means

This psalm of David opens with a cry of God-forsakenness and moves through vivid scenes of suffering: enemies who mock and wag their heads, a body poured out and out of joint, a tongue cleaving to the jaw, hands and feet pierced, and garments divided by the casting of lots. Though David wrote out of his own anguish, the language reaches far beyond anything in his life and reads as a detailed portrait of crucifixion written centuries before that form of execution was practiced. The psalm does not end in despair but turns to vindication and praise, with the sufferer declaring God's name to his brothers and the ends of the earth turning to the LORD, the afflicted satisfied and a coming generation told of His righteousness. It holds together the deepest suffering of the righteous one and the worldwide worship that his suffering secures.