We are continuing our journey through the book of Psalms, picking out several of which God used to reveal who the Messiah was for future generations…for you and me. In the last post I used Psalm 2 so we are skipping quite a few. We will have to do that as we move through the book. There are some great prophecies in Psalm 8, 9, 16, and 18 if you’d like to grab a cup of coffee, your Bible, and have a read. But for today, let’s dive into Psalm 22.
This psalm is unique in the sense that it highlights, in a lot of depth, one specific event in the life of the Messiah…the crucifixion. There are actually 17 specific verses that point to 13 connections to the crucifixion. For simplicity sake, I created a table below that show the side by side comparison between the verses of Psalm 22 and verses in the New Testament, along with a brief explanation of what connects them.
| Connection | Psalm 22 | New Testament |
| The Messiah was forsaken for our sins | Verse 1 | Matthew 27:46
2 Corinthians 5:21 |
| The Messiah cried out in darkness, just as He did when darkness fell upon the earth for 3 hours. | Verse 2 | Matthew 27:45 |
| Those who looked upon the Messiah ridiculed Him. | Verse 7 | Matthew 27:39-44 |
| They mocked Him by saying let God save Him. | Verse 8 | Matthew 27:43 |
| The Messiah is born the Savior, connected with God from birth. | Verses 9-10 | Luke 2:7-12 |
| They sought His death from birth and throughout His ministry. | Verses 12-13 | Matthew 2:13, 21:46, 26:3-4, 27:23 |
| The blood from His side was accompanied by water when He was stabbed with the spear. | Verse 14 | John 19:34 |
| The Messiah suffered on the cross. | Verses 14-15 | Mark 15:34-37 |
| Jesus thirsted while on the cross. | Verse 15 | John 19:34 |
| They pierced His hands and feet. | Verse 16 | John 19:34-37, 20:27 |
| They stripped Him before everyone who looked on Him. | Verses 17-18 | Luke 23:34-35 |
| They cast lots over Him. | Verse 18 | John 19:23-24 |
| Jesus declared His Father, once He was resurrected, to His disciples while they were assembled. | Verse 22 | John 20:17 |
It’s absolutely astounding how much this Psalm overlaps with the New Testament accounts of Jesus. For many who had the Old Testament memorized, it must have been a very eye-opening experience after Jesus was crucified. What was maybe even more incredible is that so many people struggled to see that the Messiah would have to suffer and die. I guess it’s evidence that we only see what we want to see, no matter how convincing the evidence is. I’m sure that Jesus would have had the words of Psalm 22 running through His mind as He reminded His followers of what was ahead of Him. I can’t imagine choosing to endure something like this, especially when you didn’t have to. But thankfully Jesus did. For all of us.
Peace in Christ brothers and sisters! It came at such a great price.
For Common Ground 