Shocked and Amazed

"My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, and from the words of My groaning? O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear; and in the night season, and am not silent.

"But You are holy, enthroned in the praises of Israel. Our fathers trusted in You; They trusted, and You delivered them. They cried to You, and were delivered; They trusted in You, and were not ashamed.

"But I am a worm, and no man; A reproach of men, and despised by the people. All those who see me ridicule Me; They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, 'He trusted in the Lord, let Him rescue Him; Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!'

"But You are He who took me out of the womb; You made Me trust while on My mother's breasts. I was cast upon You from birth. From My mother's womb You have been My God. Be not far from Me, For trouble is near; For there is none to help.

"Many bulls have surrounded Me; Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled Me. They gape at Me with their mouths, like a raging and roaring lion. I am poured out like water, and all My bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It has melted within Me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and My tongue clings to My jaws; You have brought Me to the dust of death.

"For dogs have surrounded Me; The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me. They pierced My hands and My feet; I can count all My bones; They look and stare at Me. They divided My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots.

"But You, O Lord, do not be far from Me; O My Strength, hasten to help Me! Deliver Me from the sword, My precious life from the power of the dog. Save Me from the lion's mouth and from the horns of the wild oxen!

"You have answered Me.

"I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will praise You. You who fear the Lord, praise Him! All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him. And fear Him, all you offspring of Israel! For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; Nor has He hidden His face from Him; But when He cried to Him, He heard.

"My praise shall be of You in the great assembly; I will pay My vows before those who fear Him. The poor shall eat and be satisfied; Those who seek Him will praise the Lord. Let your heart live forever!

"All the ends of the world shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before You. For the kingdom is the Lord's, and He rules over the nations.

"All the prosperous of the earth shall eat and worship; All those who go down to the death shall bow before Him, even he who cannot keep himself alive.

"A posterity shall serve Him. It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation, they will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born, that He has done this."
(Psalm 22)

The subtitle for this psalm is, "The Suffering, Praise, and Posterity of the Messiah". It was a psalm of David written for the chief musician who set the words to the tune of "A Deer of the Dawn."

That is interesting in itself, but there is more.

In the mid 70s I was a brand new Christian. I was blessed to hear a young man, a Messianic Jew, speak to our college bible study. He spoke on Psalm 22.

I don't recall his name.
I definitely recall his message.
In fact, I have never forgotten it.

He went verse by verse through Psalm 22 and showed us its fulfillment in the Gospels' account of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I was dumbfounded. I had been raised in church, but no one had ever told me about how the Old Testament laid the foundation for what I believe in the New Testament.

I was shocked and amazed.

Are you up for some shock and amazement? I want to challenge you to search the scriptures on this long holiday weekend and discover the parallels and intersections of Psalm 22 with the Gospels. You will find everything from the obvious, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken me?" to overlooked insights like "My bones are out of joint" and "I can count all My bones." (None of Jesus' bones were broken because then He would not be perfect. He died before the soldier came around to break His legs to speed up death.)

See what I mean?
Shocked and amazed.

Happy hunting.

Father, Your Word thrills my soul. It is so intricate and thorough. Open our eyes to see and understand Your Truths. Help us connect the dots to see how Your plan of salvation was in place throughout the generations and miraculously fulfilled in Jesus. Thank You for loving us so completely. You are awesome, Lord.