A Prophetic Psalm
Psalm 22:6-11 NKJV
6 But I am a worm, and no man;
A reproach of men, and despised by the people.
7 All those who see Me ridicule Me;
They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,
8 "He trusted in the Lord, let Him rescue Him;
Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!"
9 But You are He who took Me out of the womb;
You made Me trust while on My mother's breasts.
10 I was cast upon You from birth.
From My mother's womb
You have been My God.
11 Be not far from Me,
For trouble is near;
For there is none to help.
Happy Father's Day to all the fathers out there. Those who are natural fathers and all the spiritual fathers who look after God's children.
This psalm is amazingly prophetic. It starts with the very words that Jesus quoted on the cross. "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" We think of the physical pain and trauma of the cross, but the spiritual impact had to be so much more difficult for Jesus. To be separated for the very first time from His Heavenly Father and to take on the sin of the world. I stand in awe of the Savior.
In our verses for today, we see the very thing that happened to Jesus on the cross, and we see His early days. This psalm tells what the mockers and scorners of the religious leaders would say to Jesus, pretty much verbatim.
An important thing to always remember is that Jesus discovered Himself in the scriptures. On the road to Emmaus, when the resurrected Jesus encountered two followers, He pointed them to who He was from the scriptures in the law, the prophets. David was a prophet who spoke, particularly in this psalm, about what would take place in the life of Jesus. Imagine Jesus reading this psalm and realizing that the prophet David was talking about Him. That had to be a startling revelation.
Jesus is mocked by the leaders as they said, "He trusted in the Lord, let Him rescue Him." Jesus knew this was coming His way. But because of the joy set before Him, the salvation of mankind, He endured the cross and regarded the shame lightly.
Jesus came to know that it was God who took Him out of the womb, from Mary's womb, God was His God. I can't say I understand all of that, but I recognize His birth as divine.
Jesus asks for help as He feels all alone on the cross, and there is none who will help Him. That had to be an incredibly difficult time for Him. But this psalm changes its tone in verse twenty-one when it declares, "You have answered Me." And as the tone changes from despair to victory, we see that this prophetic psalm did not leave Jesus in a desolate place. In verses twenty-seven and twenty-eight, we find that all the ends of the world will turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will worship before Him. That is another amazing revelation that the salvation of Israel was not limited to the Jews, but all the families of the nations will have salvation provided to them. And for that, we are all grateful.
Prayer
Thank You, Lord, for the reminder of how strategic and prophetic Your words were, hundreds of years before coming to pass. Thank You that Jesus did not shrink back from the prophetic words about the cross.