Psalms Chapter 22

Old Testament Poetry/Hymns 31 Verses

What is Psalms 22 about?

One hundred fifty inspired poems and hymns — Israel's prayer book, spanning lament and praise, confession and trust. The complete chapter text below provides the immediate literary context for study.

Text — American Standard Version (1901)

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. For original Hebrew/Greek interlinear text, open in BibleWord.ai.
1My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? [Why art thou so] far from helping me, [and from] the words of my groaning?
2O my God, I cry in the daytime, but thou answerest not; And in the night season, and am not silent.
3But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.
4Our fathers trusted in thee: They trusted, and thou didst deliver them.
5They cried unto thee, and were delivered: They trusted in thee, and were not put to shame.
6But I am a worm, and no man; A reproach of men, and despised of the people.
7All they that see me laugh me to scorn: They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, [saying],
8Commit [thyself] unto Jehovah; Let him deliver him: Let him rescue him, seeing he delighteth in him.
9But thou art he that took me out of the womb; Thou didst make me trust [when I was] upon my mother`s breasts.
10I was cast upon thee from the womb; Thou art my God since my mother bare me.
11Be not far from me; for trouble is near; For there is none to help.
12Many bulls have compassed me; Strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round.
13They gape upon me with their mouth, [As] a ravening and a roaring lion.
14I am poured out like water, And all my bones are out of joint: My heart is like wax; It is melted within me.
15My strength is dried up like a potsherd; And my tongue cleaveth to my jaws; And thou hast brought me into the dust of death.
16For dogs have compassed me: A company of evil-doers have inclosed me; They pierced my hands and my feet.
17I may count all my bones; They look and stare upon me.
18They part my garments among them, And upon my vesture do they cast lots.
19But be not thou far off, O Jehovah: O thou my succor, haste thee to help me.
20Deliver my soul from the sword, My darling from the power of the dog.
21Save me from the lion`s mouth; Yea, from the horns of the wild-oxen thou hast answered me.
22I will declare thy name unto my brethren: In the midst of the assembly will I praise thee.
23Ye that fear Jehovah, praise him; All ye the seed of Jacob, glorify him; And stand in awe of him, all ye the seed of Israel.
24For 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.
25Of thee cometh my praise in the great assembly: I will pay my vows before them that fear him.
26The meek shall eat and be satisfied; They shall praise Jehovah that seek after him: Let your heart live for ever.
27All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn unto Jehovah; And all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee.
28For the kingdom is Jehovah`s; And he is the ruler over the nations.
29All the fat ones of the earth shall eat and worship: All they that go down to the dust shall bow before him, Even he that cannot keep his soul alive.
30A seed shall serve him; It shall be told of the Lord unto the [next] generation.
31They shall come and shall declare his righteousness Unto a people that shall be born, that he hath done it. Psalm 23 A Psalm of David.

What do historical commentaries say about this chapter?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · on verse 1
“My God, my God, etc.] God is the God of Christ as he is man; he prepared a body for him, an human nature; anointed it with the oil of gladness; supported it under all its sorrows and sufferings, and at last exalted it at his own right hand:, and Christ behaved towards him as his covenant God; prayed to him, believed in him, loved him, and was obedient to him as such; and here expresses his faith of interest in him, when he hid his face from him, on account of which he expostulates with him thus, “why hast thou forsaken me?” which is to be understood, not as if the hypostatical or personal union of the divine and…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · on verse 1
“The obscure words Aijeleth Shahar in this title have various explanations. Most interpreters agree in translating them by "hind of the morning." But great difference exists as to the meaning of these words. By some they are supposed (compare Psa 9:1) to be the name of the tune to which the words of the Psalm were set; by others, the name of a musical instrument. Perhaps the best view is to regard the phrase as enigmatically expressive of the subject--the sufferer being likened to a hind pursued by hunters in the early morning (literally, "the dawn of day")--or that, while hind suggests the idea of a meek,…”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · on verse 1
“My God - Who art my friend and father, though now thou frownest upon me. The repetition denotes, the depth of his distress, which made him cry so earnestly. Forsaken - Withdrawn the light of thy countenance, the supports and comforts of thy spirit, and filled me with the terrors of thy wrath: this was in part verified in David, but much more fully in Christ. Roaring - My out - cries forced from me, by my miseries. Psalms 22:3”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · on verse 1
“Ps 22 All previous laments pale in comparison with this outcry against the enemy and God’s abandonment. The psalm contains two main sections: the lament (22:1-21) and praise for redemption (22:22-31), which leads naturally to Ps 23. The apostles saw in this psalm an expression of the sufferings of Jesus Christ, who ultimately fulfilled the purpose of David’s humiliation, rejection by people, and divine abandonment (Matt 27:35, 39, 43, 46; Mark 15:34; John 19:23-24, 28; Heb 2:12). 22:1-21 The psalmist alternates between reflections on his present dire circumstances and memories of the Lord’s past faithfulness; he…”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · on verse 1
“my God: Psa 31:14-16, Psa 43:1-5; Mat 27:46; Mar 15:34; Luk 24:44 why hast: Psa 26:9, Psa 37:28, Psa 71:11; Sa1 12:22; Heb 13:5 far: Psa 22:11, Psa 16:1 helping: Heb. my salvation, Isa 46:13 words: Psa 32:3, Psa 32:4, Psa 38:8; Job 3:24; Isa 59:11; Luk 22:44; Heb 5:7 Psalms 22:2”
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Keil & Delitzsch
C. F. Keil & F. Delitzsch · Commentary on the Old Testament · on verse 1
“(Heb.: 22:2-3) In the first division, Psa 22:2, the disconsolate cry of anguish, beginning here in Psa 22:2 with the lamentation over prolonged desertion by God, struggles through to an incipient, trustfully inclined prayer. The question beginning with למּה (instead of למּה before the guttural, and perhaps to make the exclamation more piercing, vid., on Psa 6:5; Psa 10:1) is not an expression of impatience and despair, but of alienation and yearning. The sufferer feels himself rejected of God; the feeling of divine wrath has completely enshrouded him; and still he knows himself to be joined to God in fear and…”
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