Read: PSALM 22, Matthew 27:33-50

As we round out our Summer Psalm series, I am left with the overwhelming desire to remain in the Psalms until they are fully exhausted. There is so much here that it pains me to move on to a new series. But if I don’t, I would never get to other areas of Scripture that are equally important and exciting in discovering the full counsel of God. 

Therefore, the best I can do is to pass on a few tools that would assist you in making it a daily practice to read and pray through the Psalms in your own devotional life. The teacher in me wants to offer a lecture on how to read and study them, but the pastor in me wants to preserve the meditative qualities of the Psalms as a devotional guide. 

It might seem impossible, but I will endeavor to combine these two sides of my nature into one short article that may help you to get more out of your reading of the Psalms. 

JESUS USES THE PSALMS TO DESCRIBE HIMSELF AND HIS MINISTRY

Psalm 22 is one of the clearest examples of how the Old Testament points to Jesus. If you are at all familiar with the Gospels, you would know that Jesus cried out these opening words as He hung on the cross, “My God, My God, Why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46).

All of the statements of Jesus as He hung on the cross were brief. The nature of the crucifixion would have required that He pull Himself up by the nails in His hands in order to get enough breath to communicate. Every word expressed by Jesus would have caused Him excruciating pain. Thus, scholars agree that by quoting the first line of Psalm 22, Jesus was evoking the whole Psalm in reference to His suffering. 

Some scholars go as far as to suggest that Jesus could have started with Psalm 1, meditating on the Psalms in order all the way to Psalm 31 where Jesus uttered His final words at the precise moment of His death, “Into your hand I commit my spirit” (Psalm 31:5, Luke 23:46). The length of Jesus’ suffering aligns well with the time it would take to recite these Psalms and therefore lends to the possibility. And the content of these Psalms adds a unique perspective on what might have been going through Jesus' mind during the crucifixion. 

Regardless of whether or not this theory is true, it is undeniable that Jesus was drawing on Psalm 22 in the midst of His suffering. Therefore, this Psalm gives us direct insight into what Jesus was thinking as He was dying for our sins. 

JESUS FULFILLS THE PROPHECIES AND ALLUSIONS OF THE PSALMS

As we read through the first half of Psalm 22, we will see some clear allusions of Jesus’ suffering jumping off of the page. Although they are not direct prophecies, David was not writing this in anticipation of Christ’s suffering, they clearly depict the work of Jesus on the cross.

The scorners described in this line, “He trusts in the Lord; let him deliver him; let him rescue him, for he delights in him!” (Psalm 22:8), correlates with Matthew's account of the mockery Jesus endured from the religious leaders, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, ‘I am the Son of God’” (Matthew 27:42-43). 

Likewise, the lines, “They have pierced my hands and feet” (Psalm 22:16), and, “They divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots” (Psalm 22:18), describe specific details in the Gospel accounts. Furthermore, the general examples of suffering are so vivid in depicting Jesus’ death that it is hard to believe David had any hand in writing them almost a thousand years beforehand, “I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within my breast; my strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to my jaws; you lay me in the dust of death” (Psalm 22:14-15). 

Reading Psalm 22 alongside Matthew 27:33-50 is like watching two different authors describe the same event. 

JESUS IDENTIFIES WITH THE WEAKNESS OF THE PSALMIST AND WITH THE HOLINESS OF GOD

We cannot diminish the fact that this Psalm was written by King David from his own experience. David did not envision how the Son of God would be crucified on a Roman cross. Nor is it fair to suggest that He was writing Psalm 22 in a disembodied trance without any reference to its meaning. Therefore, we must conclude that David felt the agony he was describing in this heart-wrenching prayer to God. 

In a sermon on Psalm 22, the late Dr. Timothy Keller described the connection between David and Jesus in these words, “Jesus Christ was truly deserted by God so that you are only ever apparently deserted by God. He got the abandonment we deserve and therefore God will never truly abandon you at all.” 

You and I can relate to the sentiment of David in this Psalm. There are times when we feel that God is angry with us, but we will never experience God’s wrath. We can resonate with David’s anguish, but we can rest assured that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 

Jesus identifies with David’s pain and goes beyond it to fully endure the suffering described. Yet, He also identifies with the holiness of God by taking our place on the cross. David fell short in measuring up to the standard that God requires. We all fall short of the glory of God. The gruesomeness of Jesus’ death depicts the lengths required for our redemption. Without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sins. Jesus had to suffer and die because that is what we deserve. But God put forth His own Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins so that He would remain righteous and make us righteous so that we can have fellowship with Him. 

JESUS IS THE ANSWER TO THE PRAYERS OF THE PSALMS

It is important to remember that behind David’s song is a prayer for salvation, “But you, O Lord, do not be far off! O you my help, come quickly to my aid! Deliver my soul from the sword, my precious life from the power of the dog! Save me from the mouth of the lion!” (Psalm 22:19-21). 

David is experiencing real world troubles. He is face-to-face with violence and death. He is asking to be rescued and for God to bring about swift justice. He recounts how God has been faithful in the past, “Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel. In you our fathers trusted; they trusted, and you delivered them. To you they cried and were rescued; in you they trusted and were not put to shame” (Psalm 22:3-5). 

While God would prove Himself to be faithful in answering David’s prayers throughout his life, he would consistently find himself in circumstances where he needed to cry out to God again and again for rescue. David’s primary problem was not his enemies, it was and continues to be the sinful state of this fallen world. God’s answer to David’s prayer for salvation was to send His Son to reclaim His Kingdom. 

We can continue to pray Psalm 22 as we face the reality of a world in rebellion against God, we can acknowledge how Jesus’ death on the cross has secured His victory, and we can look forward with hope for the promise that Christ will return and make all things new. 

JESUS IS THE RIGHTEOUS ONE REFERENCED IN THE PSALMS AND THE MODEL FOR HOW WE OUGHT TO LIVE

There is a major tonal shift in the second half of Psalm 22. Where the first half is an anguishing prayer, it turns into a song of praise, thanksgiving, and vows of obedience. David was simultaneously praying for salvation and giving testimony as though God had already answered his prayer. This second half of Psalm 22 describes how Jesus fulfills the promise of God and is therefore highly exalted to receive the worship and rule over all creation, “All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you. For kingship belongs to the LORD, and he rules over the nations” (Psalm 22:27-28). 

Throughout the Psalms we have an image of the righteous man who is blessed. These examples often describe the character of David as God’s anointed one, but they far exceed his potential. David often looks longingly in the Psalms for a saviour who would fully encapsulate everything God requires. Jesus is the fulfillment of that promise. 

The Psalms do not simply point to Jesus as the long awaited Messiah, but as the example on how every believer ought to model their life. As the Psalms describe the blessings of the righteous man, we should consider the work of Jesus on our behalf and the rewards received solely through His grace. However, we must also consider the imperatives of the Psalms as a call on our own lives to be conformed to the image of Christ. We ought to look to the descriptions of the righteous man as a model of how we ought to walk in a manner worthy of the Gospel. 

I hope that you will take these five references that point to Jesus in the Psalms as a guide to reading them on your own. Not every Psalm will have all five examples, but they will have at least one. Challenge yourself to see Jesus in the Psalms and let your heart delight in Christ’s atoning work, and His example in life and godliness.