The psalms of David cover a wide variety of subjects, but few are Messianic. Speaking of Psalm 22 Gill's Commentary says, "This passage is sometimes applied by the Jews themselves to their Messiah."

Many of the Jews observing the crucifixion of Christ may have remembered the words of the psalmist which Jesus spoke, and they would have seen that many of the prophecies of this particular psalm were then being fulfilled before their eyes. Several of the psalms were sung in their places of worship and they would have been quite familiar with the words of these verses.

No doubt David wrote of his own experiences in poetic verse and song. Perhaps there is a situation in David's lifetime which prompted him to write this psalm, though no details are recorded in the Old Testament.

While the words of this psalm may have had a literal fulfillment in this literal king of Israel, the real fulfillment is in the prophetic king of Israel, Jesus Christ the Messiah. Because this psalm contains direct prophecies of our Lord's crucifixion, death, and resurrection, its prophetic fulfillment cannot be denied.

King David, the beloved of Jehovah, a man after God's own heart (1 Samuel 13:14), fulfilled the will of the Lord (Acts 13:22). It is this same Lord who guided David's expressions and made his words represent Messiah prophetically years before their fulfillment (Acts 13:33-36).

"Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me"—Verses 1 and 2

 "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? O my God, I cry in the daytime, but thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent."

The opening words are the exact words uttered by Jesus when he was on the cross (Matthew 27:46). The person in this psalm cries out three times for help in hopelessness and despair, yet there was apparently no help. There are three different Hebrew words to express the appeal in this psalm: a crying out in distress (verse 1); a calling out for help (verse 2); and a crying out in need (verse 5).

David must have felt a deep agony when writing this psalm, and perhaps similarly when he wrote Psalm 142 while hiding in a cave: "I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul" (Psalm 142:4).

Perhaps the psalmist's cry in the night refers to Jesus' Gethsemane prayer the night before the crucifixion. Jesus uses the term "My God" only on the cross and before his ascension (Matthew 27:46; John 20:17).

What does "forsake" mean? Either Jesus was actually forsaken on the cross because he needed to feel exactly what it was like so he could be our merciful high priest, or he was calling attention to the psalm so those around him would see him as the suffering servant, the Messiah, who was prophesied about in this psalm.

This is a prophetic psalm which foretells the events which surrounded our Lord's life and contains a description of his feelings. He apparently felt forsaken by the heavenly Father as also did David who wrote this psalm. There simply is not enough information in either the psalm or the gospels to determine whether Jesus actually felt forsaken by God, as David did, or whether he was truly forsaken by the Father so he could understand mankind's plight and relationship with God.

Implicit Trust—Verses 3-5

 "But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel. Our fathers trusted in thee: they trusted, and thou didst deliver them. They cried unto thee, and were delivered: they trusted in thee, and were not confounded."

This language is reminiscent of the praises in the tabernacle of the wilderness after the deliverance from Egypt. The presence of God dwelt there. He was surrounded by all those who praised him.

Even though the psalmist asks why God has forsaken him, he still trusts in his God: "He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him" (verse 8).

David felt that even though he was suffering and could not unite in the lofty praises of God, yet God was worthy of all the praises which should be addressed to him, no matter what circumstance one may be in. Even though he asked God why he was forsaken, he remembered that while Israel was in the wilderness, they cried out for deliverance, and deliverance was given. He expected a similar deliverance.

"A Worm and No Man"—Verses 6-11

 "But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people. All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him. But thou art he that took me out of the womb: thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother's breasts. I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou art my God from my mother's belly. Be not far from me; for trouble is near; for there is none to help."

The Chaldee paraphrase renders the word "worm" in verse 6 as "weak worm." A humble man has lower thoughts of himself than others may have of him. Even though David was king of Israel, he described himself as a lowly "worm."

The Hebrew word describes the worm from which scarlet dye was obtained. This also is prophetic of Christ in the way he was mocked with a scarlet robe and in which his body was covered in blood when he hung upon the cross and cried out the first words of this psalm. Alternatively it may refer to the blood he shed for all (Colossians 1:20).

The language of this section of the psalm is very much like that of Isaiah 53, which has been viewed by both Jews and Christians as a Messianic prophecy. This reinforces the thought that such an interpretation is not "forced."

Although they shook their heads at him (Psalm 22:7; Matthew 27:39), scorned, and ridiculed him, he trusted that the LORD would deliver him (Psalm 22:8). The true sense of the Hebrew phrase, "He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him," contains the idea of being under the pressure of a heavy burden and rolling it off, or casting it off, onto another. This should encourage us to "Commit [our] way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass" (Psalm 37:5; see also Proverbs 16:3).

The psalmist reminds himself that God had not abandoned him while he had been in the womb. He owed his life to God. Jesus was with his Father from the beginning of the world; from the time he was a youth he had always been faithful to his heavenly Father. Perhaps Jesus thought of these words as he saw his mother standing near while he was on the cross (John 19:26).

In verse eleven he once again requests help, although he realized that no human could help him. No one could understand what loneliness he felt, or what burden he bore. God had helped him in the past, and again he asked God to be near him in his most desperate hour.

The Bulls of Bashan—Verses 12, 13

 "Many bulls have compassed me: strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round. They gaped upon me with their mouths, as a ravening and a roaring lion."

The bulls surrounded him—Chief Priests, Elders, Scribes, Pharisees, the crowds, Herod, Pontius Pilate—in his arrest, arraignment, trial, and condemnation. They were like bulls in their rage and accusations against Christ. The bulls of Bashan (a territory on the east of Jordan, north of Gilead) were known for their size, fierceness, and strength. The suggestion of verse 12 is that Jesus' persecutors were full of fury comparable to these bulls of Bashan.

This description is of roaring lions surrounding him with teeth bared, mouths open, preparing to attack. This scene is quite reminiscent of the crowd as they cried, "Crucify him! Crucify him!"

"All My Bones are Out of Joint"—Verses 14-18

 "I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint: my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels. My strength is dried up like a potsherd; and my tongue cleaveth to my jaws; and thou hast brought me into the dust of death. For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet. I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me. They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture."

Now we move from a description of those around him to what he feels. David describes his utter weakness, like being poured out like water. His bones are described as being "out of joint," words also literally true of crucifixion. This was one of the most severe pains of crucifixion, the weight of a victim pulling bones out of their sockets. Vitality leaving him is depicted as a heart that melts like wax within his bowels, or in other words, within him.

His tongue can no longer do its work. The dogs continue to circle waiting for his death. They pierce his hands and feet. They look and stare at him and they part his garments and cast lots for it (Mark 15:24). At this point in the psalm he feels his lowest and closest to death, yet he continues to trust in the Lord even though he feels forsaken and alone.

Saved from the Unicorns—Verses 19-21

 "But be not thou far from me, O LORD: O my strength, haste thee to help me. Deliver my soul from the sword; my darling from the power of the dog. Save me from the lion's mouth: for thou hast heard me from the horns of the unicorns."

Again the Lord is appealed to for help with a request for deliverance. It is remarkable that through all the things the servant in this psalm suffers, he still describes the Lord as his strength. This should also be true of us for we should rely on the Scriptural promise that we should "take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake" (2 Corinthians 12:10) for when we are weak, then we are strong.

He asks to be saved from the lions who earlier were ready to attack him. This could be a reference to the devil, who as a roaring lion seeks "those whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8), or it might refer to the civil magistrates (2 Timothy 4:17) such as the chief priests and elders who were mainly responsible for Jesus' crucifixion.

Regarding the words in verse 20, Martin Luther writes:

   "`My darling' had better be rendered `my lonely, or solitary one.' For he wishes to say that his soul was lonely and forsaken by all, and that there was no one who sought after him as a friend, or cared for him, or comforted him: as we have it, Psalm 142:4, Refuge failed me; no one cared for my soul; I looked on my right hand, but there was no one who would know me; that is, solitude is of itself a certain cross, and especially so in such great torments, in which it is most grievous to be immersed without an example and without a companion. And yet, in such a state, everyone of us must be, in some suffering or other, and especially in that of death; and we must be brought to cry out with Psalm 25:16, Turn thee unto me, and have mercy upon me, for I am desolate and afflicted."

He desired to be delivered from what he called "the horns of the unicorns." He felt surrounded by enemies from all sides and as the wild beasts, dogs, and unicorns, were seeking his life he cried out for his Lord.

The meaning of the Hebrew word translated "unicorn" is undetermined. Gesenius and Dewette's lexicons render the word as "buffalo" rather than the mythical creature. However, the horns of buffalo are curved, and are not known for their strength. Whatever this animal was, it was distinguished for its power (Numbers 23:22) although it was not used to till the soil (Job 39:9,10). Since buffalo can be trained to till the soil, we do not know which animal this was. We do know it was a wild, untrained animal with strength in its horns (Deuteronomy 33:17), horns which attracted attention as some sort of majesty or dignity (Psalm 92:10).

Praise for Deliverance—Verses 22-26

 "I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee. Ye that fear the LORD, praise him; all ye the seed of Jacob, glorify him; and fear him, all ye the seed of Israel. For he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither hath he hid his face from him; but when he cried unto him, he heard. My praise shall be of thee in the great congregation: I will pay my vows before them that fear him. The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the LORD that seek him: your heart shall live for ever."

The writer of Hebrews applies verse 22 to Jesus (Hebrews 2:12). In his plight, he attempts to encourage his brethren and even while in his distress his thoughts were for his church. God had heard his prayer and his immediate concern was not for himself, but for his brethren. As the prophetic suffering servant of this psalm, he dedicates himself anew to fulfill his vows to the Lord. He declares to his brethren that God's purpose was not to hide his face or to despise the afflicted and that they were to trust in him, and praise him in the entire congregation. He encourages the meek to likewise fulfill their vows to the Lord. This encouragement was not only for his brethren, but for all worshippers of Yahweh. The term "seed of Israel" is synonymous with "seed of Jacob."

The Lord has spread a table for the meek to eat and only the meek will eat and be satisfied for they are the ones who seek, trust, and praise the Lord. The word "meek" in this passage refers to those who are afflicted. The suffering servant of this psalm now relies on the promise that those who will praise the Lord will live forever. We too should remember this when we go through our own difficult experiences. "Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution" (2 Timothy 3:12).

A Lesson for Future Generations—Verses 27-31

 "All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the LORD: and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee. For the kingdom is the LORD's: and he is the governor among the nations. All they that be fat upon earth shall eat and worship: all they that go down to the dust shall bow before him: and none can keep alive his own soul. A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation. They shall come, and shall declare his righteousness unto a people that shall be born, that he hath done this."

In these verses we have a prophetic prediction of the conversion of the Gentiles, for all those who have gone to the dust will return and bow before him. In all parts of the earth, and all the ends of the world, all those resurrected, all the kindreds of the nations, all the nations of the earth that were to be blessed through the seed of Abraham, will remember and return to the Lord. Those nations who have forgotten the Lord will remember him and they will worship him as their king. For when God's judgments are in the earth, "the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness" (Isaiah 26:9). "For this is right and acceptable before God our Savior, who doth will all men to be saved, and to come to the full knowledge of the truth" (1 Timothy 2:3,4, Young's Literal Translation).

Again we find a similar thought in the Messianic prophecy of Isaiah. "Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand" (Isaiah 53:10).

This psalm applies entirely to Jesus Christ without stretching or forcing any interpretation or application. The events of the crucifixion were told in explicit detail more than a thousand years before they happened. These things included not only the actions which surrounded Messiah on the cross, but also his feelings, his fears, and his hopes, as well as encouragement for his followers. May we be faithful to the vision and continue running this race: "Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us" (Hebrews 12:1).

 "That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us" (Hebrews 6:18).

In his Treasury of David Spurgeon makes this comment about the ending words "that he hath done this":