> [[psalm-21|← Previous]] | [[psalm-00|TOC]] | [[psalm-23|Next →]] --- # Psalm 22 ## The Prayer of an Innocent Person 1 For the leader; according to “The deer of the dawn.” A psalm of David. ^psalm-22-1 ### I 2 My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? ^psalm-22-2 Why so far from my call for help, from my cries of anguish? 3 My God, I call by day, but you do not answer; ^psalm-22-3 by night, but I have no relief. 4 Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One; ^psalm-22-4 you are the glory of Israel. 5 In you our fathers trusted; ^psalm-22-5 they trusted and you rescued them. 6 To you they cried out and they escaped; ^psalm-22-6 in you they trusted and were not disappointed. 7 But I am a worm, not a man, ^psalm-22-7 scorned by men, despised by the people. 8 All who see me mock me; ^psalm-22-8 they curl their lips and jeer; they shake their heads at me: 9 “He relied on the LORD —let him deliver him; ^psalm-22-9 if he loves him, let him rescue him.” 10 For you drew me forth from the womb, ^psalm-22-10 made me safe at my mother’s breasts. 11 Upon you I was thrust from the womb; ^psalm-22-11 since my mother bore me you are my God. 12 Do not stay far from me, ^psalm-22-12 for trouble is near, and there is no one to help. ### II 13 Many bulls surround me; ^psalm-22-13 fierce bulls of Bashan encircle me. 14 They open their mouths against me, ^psalm-22-14 lions that rend and roar. 15 Like water my life drains away; ^psalm-22-15 all my bones are disjointed. My heart has become like wax, it melts away within me. 16 As dry as a potsherd is my throat; ^psalm-22-16 my tongue cleaves to my palate; you lay me in the dust of death. 17 Dogs surround me; ^psalm-22-17 a pack of evildoers closes in on me. They have pierced my hands and my feet 18 I can count all my bones. ^psalm-22-18 They stare at me and gloat; 19 they divide my garments among them; ^psalm-22-19 for my clothing they cast lots. 20 But you, LORD, do not stay far off; ^psalm-22-20 my strength, come quickly to help me. 21 Deliver my soul from the sword, ^psalm-22-21 my life from the grip of the dog. 22 Save me from the lion’s mouth, ^psalm-22-22 my poor life from the horns of wild bulls. ### III 23 Then I will proclaim your name to my brethren; ^psalm-22-23 in the assembly I will praise you: 24 “You who fear the LORD, give praise! ^psalm-22-24 All descendants of Jacob, give honor; show reverence, all descendants of Israel! 25 For he has not spurned or disdained ^psalm-22-25 the misery of this poor wretch, Did not turn away from me, but heard me when I cried out. 26 I will offer praise in the great assembly; ^psalm-22-26 my vows I will fulfill before those who fear him. 27 The poor will eat their fill; ^psalm-22-27 those who seek the LORD will offer praise. May your hearts enjoy life forever!” ### IV 28 All the ends of the earth ^psalm-22-28 will remember and turn to the LORD; All the families of nations will bow low before him. 29 For kingship belongs to the LORD, ^psalm-22-29 the ruler over the nations. 30 All who sleep in the earth ^psalm-22-30 will bow low before God; All who have gone down into the dust will kneel in homage. 31 And I will live for the LORD; ^psalm-22-31 my descendants will serve you. 32 The generation to come will be told of the Lord, ^psalm-22-32 that they may proclaim to a people yet unborn the deliverance you have brought. \* (Psalm 22) A lament unusual in structure and in intensity of feeling. The psalmist’s present distress is contrasted with God’s past mercy in ([[psalm-22|Ps 22]]:2] – [12]. In ([[psalm-22|Ps 22]]:13] – [22] enemies surround the psalmist. The last third is an invitation to praise God (([[psalm-22|Ps 22]]:23] – [27]), becoming a universal chorus of praise (([[psalm-22|Ps 22]]:28] – [31]). The Psalm is important in the New Testament. Its opening words occur on the lips of the crucified Jesus (([[mark-15|Mk 15]]:34]; ([[matthew-27|Mt 27]]:46]), and several other verses are quoted, or at least alluded to, in the accounts of Jesus’ passion (([[matthew-27|Mt 27]]:35], [43]; [Jn 19:24]). \* (22:1) The deer of the dawn: apparently the title of the melody. \* (22:7) I am a worm, not a man: the psalmist’s sense of isolation and dehumanization, an important motif of [Ps 22], is vividly portrayed here. \* (22:13] – [14) Bulls: the enemies of the psalmist are also portrayed in less-than-human form, as wild animals (cf. ([[psalm-22|Ps 22]]:17], [21] – [22]). Bashan: a grazing land northeast of the Sea of Galilee, famed for its cattle, cf. [Dt 32:14]; [Ez 39:18]; [Am 4:1]. \* (22:16) The dust of death: the netherworld, the domain of the dead. \* (22:23) In the assembly I will praise you: the person who offered a thanksgiving sacrifice in the Temple recounted to the other worshipers the favor received from God and invited them to share in the sacrificial banquet. The final section (([[psalm-22|Ps 22]]:24] – [32]) may be a summary or a citation of the psalmist’s poem of praise. \* (22:25) Turn away: lit., “hides his face from me,” an important metaphor for God withdrawing from someone, e.g., [Mi 3:4]; [Is 8:17]; ([[psalm-27|Ps 27]]:9]; [69:18]; [88:15]. \* (22:27) The poor: originally the poor, who were dependent on God; the term (*‘anawim*) came to include the religious sense of “humble, pious, devout.” \* (22:30) Hebrew unclear. The translation assumes that all on earth (([[psalm-22|Ps 22]]:27] – [28]) and under the earth (([[psalm-22|Ps 22]]:29]) will worship God. a. (22:2) [Is 49:14]; [54:7]; ([[matthew-27|Mt 27]]:46]; ([[mark-15|Mk 15]]:34]. b. (22:3) [Sir 2:10]. c. (22:4) [Is 6:3]. d. (22:6) ([[psalm-25|Ps 25]]:3]; [Is 49:23]; [Dn 3:40]. e. (22:7) [Is 53:3]. f. (22:8) [Ps 109:25]; ([[matthew-27|Mt 27]]:39]; ([[mark-15|Mk 15]]:29]; ([[luke-23|Lk 23]]:35]. g. (22:9) [Ps 71:11]; ([[wisdom-02|Wis 2]]:18] – [20]; ([[matthew-27|Mt 27]]:43]. h. (22:11) [Ps 71:6]; [Is 44:2]; [46:3]. i. (22:12) [Ps 35:22]; [38:22]; [71:12]. j. (22:14) ([[psalm-17|Ps 17]]:12]; [Jb 4:10]; [1 Pt 5:8]. k. (22:18) [Ps 109:24]. l. (22:19) ([[matthew-27|Mt 27]]:35]; ([[mark-15|Mk 15]]:24]; ([[luke-23|Lk 23]]:34]; [Jn 19:24]. m. (22:22) ([[psalm-07|Ps 7]]:2] – [3]; [17:12]; [35:17]; [57:5]; [58:7]; [2 Tm 4:17]. n. (22:23) ([[psalm-26|Ps 26]]:12]; [35:18]; [40:10]; [109:30]; [149:1]; [2 Sm 22:50]; [Heb 2:12]. o. (22:27) ([[psalm-23|Ps 23]]:5]; [69:33]. p. (22:28) [Ps 86:9]; [Tb 13:11]; [Is 45:22]; [52:10]; [Zec 14:16]. q. (22:29) [Ps 103:19]; [Ob 21]; [Zec 14:9]. r. (22:32) [Ps 48:14] – [15]; [71:18]; [78:6]; [102:19]; [Is 53:10]. --- _New American Bible, revised edition_ (2010, 1991, 1986, 1970) Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. > [[psalm-21|← Previous]] | [[psalm-00|TOC]] | [[psalm-23|Next →]]