Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Adult Sunday School Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/bb/bb19960407.htm

PSALMS: DIARIES OF GODLY OLD TESTAMENT SAINTS
Psalm Twenty-Two: The Prophetic Description Of The Cross Of Christ
(Psalm 22:1-31)
  1. Introduction
    1. When Jesus appeared to the disciples Easter Sunday evening, He reminded them that Messiah had to suffer, die and rise from the dead to fulfill Scriptures in the law, prophets and psalms, Lk. 24:44! Thus, according to Jesus, the psalms record Christ's passion and resurrection!
    2. Can this be substantiated by our own study of the psalms? A close look at Psalm 22 confirms this to be so!
  2. The Prophetic Description Of The Cross Of Christ, Psalm 22:1-31.
    1. When on the Cross, two of the seven recorded last words of Jesus either opened or closed Psalm 22:
      1. Matthew 27:46 records Jesus cry of Psalm 22:1: "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"
      2. Equally, John 19:30 reports that, just before death, Jesus said, "It is finished!" Ron Allen, professor at Western Baptist Theological Seminary, Portland, Oregon wrote in a Moody Monthly article that these last words of Jesus mimic the thought of the last phrase of Psalm 22:31 NIV: "...he has done it." The thought expressed by Jesus was his application of the idea of God's accomplishment of redemption in Psalm 22:31 s o that, upon dying, He would triumphantly announce it had just been accomplished!
    2. Thus, we examine the details of Psalm 22 to see how the details of the psalm match Christ's sufferings!
      1. In agony, Messiah calls out to God, lamenting his being forsaken in suffering, Ps. 22:1-2.
      2. Contrary to the fathers of Israel's past, the current suffering Messiah is not rescued by the Holy One of Israel, 22:3-5. Rather he is horribly mistreated by being crucified (something unknown in David's era!):
        1. Instead of being rescued by God, Messiah is mocked by physical gestures and the words, "He trusts in the Lord; let the Lord rescue him." (Psalm 22:6-8 in light of Mk. 25:29-32 and Mtt. 27:43.
        2. Messiah recalls that he was at the Lord's mercy from birth; accordingly he asks for help, Ps. 22:9-11.
        3. Messiah's enemies surround him as animals closing in for the kill; he describes his physical dehydration, dislocation of bones, great thirst and the fact that his hands and his feet are pierced. His enemies both divide his garments and cast lots for clothi ng that cannot be cut up, pictures that exactly represent only one other event in Scripture, Christ's crucifixion, Ps. 22:12-17,18. Keep in mind also that death by crucifixion was unknown in the days of this psalm's author, cf. Ryrie Study Bible, KJV ftn. to Ps. 22:11-18.
      3. As Messiah gives a final cry for divine deliverance, he cuts off his lament with the sudden, interruptive expression "You have heard me from the horns of the wild oxen," Ps. 22:19-21a,21b. The verb tense suddenly shifts to the historical perfect in "You ha ve answered me," Leupold, Psalms, p. 203. In other words, Messiah gains sudden insight that He had been heard from beyond the heavens' constellations!
      4. The answer of the Father is a complete reversal of the current situation during Messiah's future days:
        1. Instead of being isolated from the disciples, Messiah would yet declare the Father's name in the midst of their gatherings as a congregation, Ps. 22:22. See Lk. 24:36,49 for fulfillment.
        2. This fact causes Messiah to anticipate the coming praise of God for this deliverance, Ps. 22:22-26.
        3. The coming Messianic Kingdom in which all the ends of the earth will magnify the Lord for this deliverance is described in Psalm 22:27-28.
        4. In fact, those future believers who die will die in hope of resurrection in Christ and post-resurrection worship of the Father because of Messiah's coming resurrection, Ps. 22:29.
        5. Messiah even anticipated the day when generations of nations yet to be born would hear the Gospel of the death and resurrection of Messiah and His righteousness--that the Father had accomplished this feat of Messiah's deliverance from the cross by way of re surrection, Ps. 22:30-31! This is being fulfilled this very moment, on Easter Sunday, as we relish in the resurrection of our Savior!
Lesson: Without a doubt, the 22nd Psalm predicts in detailed fashion the very sufferings, death, resurrection and glorification of Jesus of Nazareth! It tells us that He anticipated the blessed results of His deliverance from the cross whe n He was on it, a deliverance that would be told to our generation! Thus, when we recount once again the resurrection of Christ, we are entering into the PROPHETIC FULFILLMENT of what He saw WHILE suffering on the cross of Calvary! This is another piece of evidence, evidence from prophecy, for the validity of the claims of Jesus of Nazareth to be God's Son!