On the Cross, the '7 last sayings' of Jesus are well known. One of the most troubling, though, is the saying
"34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying , Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is , being interpreted , My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? "For many years, theologians attended to this as a sort of despair on the Cross, and some liberal theologians even posited that even Jesus wondered at God's existence or faithfulness on the Cross, an astounding observation in the face of the incarnation. Others have tried to 'explain away' the difficult cry on the Cross in which an uninformed reader might conclude that Jesus believed that God had forsaken him to that horrible death. The Psalms though are replete with Messianic foreshadowing and prophecies, and the words, "My God, My God Why has thou forsaken me", are not the cry of despair surmized by some, but the first lines of Psalm 22.
Why would Jesus, Yshua Ha Meschiach, the King of the Jews, speak a Psalm of David on the Cross? If he was the incarnate God, why would he think that his father, God, with whom he was one, would leave him to that horrible death? The purpose of Messiah on the Cross, with the words, Eloi, Eloi, Lama Sabachthani, is to direct those of Israel, standing before the unthinkable crucifixion of the Messiah, back to the prophecy of his death by crucifixion, and several other occurrences on Golgotha. The Jewish mind of the time, and even now (as well as many Gentile minds) cannot conceive of a divine King and Shepherd suffering such a brutal death on the cross at the hands of Roman Soldiers, hardly known for mercy. Additionally, crucifixion was never a form of capital punishment to the Jews, who were more likely to use stonings. King David though, in his prophetic expression of Psalm 22, describes a crucified servant of God and more. Jesus was praying the Psalm, and at the same time, directing Israel to "find me there', addressing the faith-severing thoughts which he knew that both the faithful and unbelievers at the foot of the Cross must have.
The entirety of Psalm 22 is as follows:
1 My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? 2 O my God, I cry in the daytime, but thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent. 3 But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel. 4 Our fathers trusted in thee: they trusted , and thou didst deliver them. 5 They cried unto thee, and were delivered : they trusted in thee, and were not confounded . 6 But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people. 7 All they that see me laugh me to scorn : they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, 8 He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him. 9 But thou art he that took me out of the womb: thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother's breasts. 10 I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou art my God from my mother's belly. 11 Be not far from me; for trouble is near; for there is none to help . 12 Many bulls have compassed me: strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round . 13 They gaped upon me with their mouths, as a ravening and a roaring lion. 14 I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint : my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels. 15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd; and my tongue cleaveth to my jaws; and thou hast brought me into the dust of death. 16 For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet. 17 I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me. 18 They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture. 19 But be not thou far from me, O LORD: O my strength, haste thee to help me. 20 Deliver my soul from the sword; my darling from the power of the dog. 21 Save me from the lion's mouth: for thou hast heard me from the horns of the unicorns. 22 I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee. 23 Ye that fear the LORD, praise him; all ye the seed of Jacob, glorify him; and fear him, all ye the seed of Israel. 24 For 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 . 25 My praise shall be of thee in the great congregation: I will pay my vows before them that fear him. 26 The meek shall eat and be satisfied : they shall praise the LORD that seek him: your heart shall live for ever. 27 All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the LORD: and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee. 28 For the kingdom is the LORD'S: and he is the governor among the nations. 29 All they that be fat upon earth shall eat and worship : all they that go down to the dust shall bow before him: and none can keep alive his own soul. 30 A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation. 31 They shall come , and shall declare his righteousness unto a people that shall be born , that he hath done thisFor years I have studied both passages, noting the few verses which refer to the forthcoming passion of the Lord and Savior, and his death on the Cross, but recently, I undertook the outlining of every passage of Psalm 22 which has a prophetic parallel or fulfillment: it is often the case that a passage of Scripture has depths we never attend to, and it is a marvelous work of God in the Word of God, to reveal his Son and work on many levels. Below is a table of the verses of Psalm 22 which bear a prophetic fulfillment or parallel elsewhere in Scripture:
| Psalm 22:1 | Matt 27:46-"Eloi, Eloi, Lama Sabacthani" |
| Psalm 22:6 | Isaiah 52:14, 53:7, Matt 27:40-42 |
| Psalm 22:7-8 | Matt 27:40-42 |
| Psalm 22:9 | John 19:25-26; Psalm 139 |
| Psalm 22:11 | Matt 27:32 (cyrene compelled to help) |
| Psalm 22:12 | Matt 27:27; Mk 15:16;John 19:2 |
| Psalm 22:13 | Matt 27:27; Mk 15:16;John 19:2 |
| Psalm 22:14 | Isaiah 13; John 19:34 |
| Psalm 22:15 | John 19:28; Matt 27:48;Mk 15:36; (refusal of vinegar); Luke 23:36; John 19:29-38 |
| Psalm 22:16 | Zc 12:10; Matt 27:35; John 20:25; John 19:35 |
| Psalm 22:18 | Mt 27:35; Luke 21:22 |
| Psalm 22:22 | Matt 27:37; Mk 15:26; Luke 23:38; John 19:19; |
| Psalm 22:26 | Luke 23:43;;19:9; John 3:16; Luke 3:6, 2:30;1:77 |
| Psalm 22:27 | Zc 9:16; Matt 24:14; Num 22:2, Isaiah 5:26; 11:10-12; 18:3, 30:17 |
| Psalm 22:28 | Matt 27:37; Isaiah 9:6 |
| Psalm 22:30 | Genesis 15; Romans 9:27;11:5 |
| Psalm 22:31 | Rev 14:6 The Everlasting Gospel |
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