Psalm 22 and the Seven Last Statements of Jesus

Psalm 22 is one of the most amazing chapters in the Bible. Though we learn much in the New Testament about the life of Jesus, Psalm 22, written many years before, tells us the most about the death of our Lord. Psalms 22, 23 and 24 should be grouped together. The 22nd Psalm shows us the cross; the 23rd Psalm depicts Jesus as the Good Shepherd, and noted Bible scholar J. Vernon McGee described that chapter as "the crook," signifying the end of a shepherd's staff; thirdly, the 24th Psalm gives us the perspective of Jesus as King, so "the crown" is a way to remember that chapter.


I still have trouble believing that people struggle with belief in God. Other than the Bible, no other religious document predicts events. Neither Buddha, Mohammed, Confucius nor the rest could pull off what God did with prophecy (from the Greek "pro" meaning before and "phanei" meaning to speak). The 22nd Psalm gives us all of the final seven statements of Jesus on the cross. Remember, the number seven is significant in the Bible, as it stands for completeness. Let's look over those verses in Psalm 22 and see how they apply to the statements on the cross.
The first statement is identical as the Holy Spirit wanted to ensure that we could see that significance:

1 My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?
Why are You so far from helping Me,
And from the words of My groaning?
Psalms 22:1 (NKJV)

34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?" which is translated, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"
Mark 15:34 (NKJV)

This verse is one of the most powerful in all of the Bible! When Jesus was on the cross, for the only time in His existence, He felt separation from His Father. Why? Because the sins of the world had been cast upon His shoulders and sin separates us from Him. Jesus states the phrase twice..."My God, My God." Why? Because He is referring to God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. He didn't need to talk to Himself, or there would have been a third "My God." The other important issue to notice is that for the only time, Jesus does not refer to God as "My Father." As I mentioned before, because of our sins on His shoulders, the relationship was temporarily gone. That was anguish to Jesus, but He had to only endure it for a short period of time. The saddest part is that hell will be an eternity filled with the anguish of that separation. The Bible tells us in Philippians 2:9-11 that 'every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.' At the Judgment, every non-believer and every atheist will have to confront the Lord they chose to ignore. They will have to live eternally without Him and that separation will be horrible.
Here is the second statement:

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!"
Psalms 22:7-8 (NKJV)

34 Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do." And they divided His garments and cast lots.
Luke 23:34 (NKJV)

The Holy Spirit describes here in detail the scene at the cross. Jesus not only endures the physical pain of the cross, devised as the most painful death imaginable, but also the humiliation of ridicule from the same people He came to save. And still, in the Gospels it tells us that He asked the Father to forgive "them" for not knowing what they were doing. The reason I highlighted the word "them" is because we were in that mob. He died for our sins, too, and we would have been the same as the rest, who gave Him an illegal trial, crucified an innocent man, threw rocks at Him, spit at Him. Don't ever forget that we were there, too! I mentioned this in another blog entry, but He could have stopped the process at any moment. He chose to endure this for us. If you want an additional point of view, read the blog entry about the Avenger of Blood, and it will show you the importance of this statement in another way. It shows that we are only second-degree murderers, as we didn't know what we were doing. That makes us eligible from the Law of the Old Testament to flee to a City of Refuge. Next is the third statement our Lord made on the cross:

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.
Psalms 22:9-10 (NKJV)

26 When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, "Woman, behold your son!"
John 19:25-26 (NKJV)

There were people present at the cross who did not hate Him. One of those people was His mother, Mary. Don't forget, an angel of the Lord told her before she was pregnant that she was going to bear the Son of God. What a daunting task for a young girl, who could have been stoned to death by the Law for becoming pregnant out of marriage! At the wedding in Cana, she wanted Him to reveal Himself for who He was, but He told her, "Woman, my time is not yet come." Now, His time is come, and His mother looks on with a broken heart. We know the perspective of mothers, who would do anything to take away the pain of their children. The pain He is experiencing is worse that what anyone has endured. To me the most special part of this is that even when He is in agony, He is still thinking of others. The New Testament tells us that Jesus had brothers and sisters, but He assigned His disciple John to take care of His mother.
This verse in Psalm 22 encompasses the fourth statement:

15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd,
And My tongue clings to My jaws;
You have brought Me to the dust of death.
Psalms 22:15 (NKJV)

28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, "I thirst!"
John 19:28 (NKJV)

The verses following this in the Psalm tell us more of the agony of the cross. This reminds us that Jesus is fully God and fully man. The aspect of Him that is fully man was thirsty on the cross. Have you ever experienced severe pain? Your mouth dries up like at no other time. He knows our pain! In the Book of John, Jesus is described as the Living Water. Once we drink from that Water, we will never thirst again. It is hard to imagine the Living Water being thirsty. Once again, He died this death on the cross so that we don't have to. Those of us who have asked Him into our hearts will be judged for the perfect life He lived as He was judged for the sinful lives that we have lived.

21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
2 Corinthians 5:21 (NKJV)

Here is His fifth statement:

25 My praise shall be of You in the great assembly;
I will pay My vows before those who fear Him.
26 The poor shall eat and be satisfied;
Those who seek Him will praise the LORD.
Let your heart live forever!
Psalms 22:25-26 (NKJV)

43 And Jesus said to him, "Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise."
Luke 23:43 (NKJV)

It says here, "I will pay my vows." He made a vow to the thief on the cross that "Today, you will be with me in Paradise." That statement showed us a lot as crucifixion could take many days to complete. The criminal would not bleed to death, but would basically suffocate as they could not sustain their own weight. One of the most difficult documents to read is a medical description of the death in a crucifixion, for it lets us know in graphic terms the suffering of our Savior. But Jesus knew, as He was 100 % God that He would die that day. The other aspect of this statement that is the most comforting is that Jesus doesn't require that we live a godly life. It doesn't matter what your sin in. He has the ability and the heart to forgive that sin, even in your last dying breath. That doesn't mean that you should put that decision off, though, for there are no guarantees that we will have the same opportunity as the thief on the cross. A severe heart attack could take your chance away to ask for forgiveness. More importantly, He died so we could live more abundantly. If you have never walked with the Lord as a Christian, you are missing the most joy!
Here is His sixth statement:

19 But You, O LORD, do not be far from Me;
O My Strength, hasten to help Me!
20 Deliver Me from the sword,
My precious life from the power of the dog.
Psalms 22:19-20 (NKJV)

46 And when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice, He said, "Father, 'into Your hands I commit My spirit.' " Having said this, He breathed His last.
Luke 23:46 (NKJV)

Jesus felt the separation from His Father, but knew that was only temporary. He asks here in the Old Testament that the Father not be far from Him. We have been looking at this from the perspective of Jesus, but don't forget the perspective of the Father. If you are a father, you know the love you have for your children. Can you imagine how difficult it must have been for God the Father to allow Jesus to endure this event? Can you imagine how hard it was to look away. Isaiah 53, the other incredible description of the cross in the Old Testament tells us:

10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him;
He has put Him to grief.
When You 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 (NKJV)

Wow! It pleased God the Father to have His Son tortured in this manner. Why?! Because He knew what we would receive because of it! Without the spilling of innocent blood, there can be no forgiveness of sin. God created us so that we might know His love. Is there a better example of love for us than Jesus laying down His life for us? If you ever seem to be overwhelmed by the cares of this world, take them to the cross and remember what has been endured for you!
And finally, His last statement on the cross:

31 They will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born,
That He has done this.
Psalms 22:31 (NKJV)

30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished!" And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.
John 19:30 (NKJV)

This is summed up in the Gospels by Jesus' final statement, "It is finished!" He did what He came to do. He knew what He had to do. He knew the pain that He would feel, and the physical pain was nothing compared to the heartache of not feeling the presence of His Father. But his heart broke as the people He came to save would not receive Him or His love. Jesus said repetitively, "If there is any other way, let this cup pass from Me." There was no other way, but we can tell from those statements how heavy the burden was on Him. I love this word in the Greek..."Tetelesti!" It is finished. When a prisoner had served his sentence, he was given a piece of paper with this statement written on it to prove to people that he had paid his debt to society. Though we translate "tetelesti" to mean "it is finished," it specifically meant "paid in full." We have an enormous sin debt that has been paid by Jesus. For all of these people who think that it is about us and our good works, Jesus summed it up by telling us that we don't need to do anything because He has done it all for us. Which part of all do we not understand. Don't confuse this with a license to sin, as when He comes into our hearts, He cleans us up. But you have to catch the fish before you can clean it! As McGee said, His righteousness will satisfy a Holy God. Our little good works wouldn't even get us a step forward without what Jesus did for us. Receive the gift. It is truly the gift that keeps on giving.
I'll finish by posting the 22nd Psalm so you can put it all in perspective~

Psalm 22
The Suffering, Praise, and Posterity of the Messiah
To the Chief Musician. Set to ""The Deer of the Dawn.'' A Psalm of David.
1 My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?
Why are You so far from helping Me,
And from the words of My groaning?
2 O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear;
And in the night season, and am not silent.
3 But You are holy,
Enthroned in the praises of Israel.
4 Our fathers trusted in You;
They trusted, and You delivered them.
5 They cried to You, and were delivered;
They trusted in You, and were not ashamed.
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.
12 Many bulls have surrounded Me;
Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled Me.
13 They gape at Me with their mouths,
Like a raging and roaring lion.
14 I am poured out like water,
And all My bones are out of joint;
My heart is like wax;
It has melted within Me.
15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd,
And My tongue clings to My jaws;
You have brought Me to the dust of death.
16 For dogs have surrounded Me;
The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me.
They pierced My hands and My feet;
17 I can count all My bones.
They look and stare at Me.
18 They divide My garments among them,
And for My clothing they cast lots.
19 But You, O LORD, do not be far from Me;
O My Strength, hasten to help Me!
20 Deliver Me from the sword,
My precious life from the power of the dog.
21 Save Me from the lion's mouth
And from the horns of the wild oxen!
You have answered Me.
22 I will declare Your name to My brethren;
In the midst of the assembly I will praise You.
23 You who fear the LORD, praise Him!
All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him,
And fear Him, all you offspring of Israel!
24 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.
25 My praise shall be of You in the great assembly;
I will pay My vows before those who fear Him.
26 The poor shall eat and be satisfied;
Those who seek Him will praise the LORD.
Let your heart live forever!
27 All the ends of the world
Shall remember and turn to the LORD,
And all the families of the nations
Shall worship before You.
28 For the kingdom is the LORD s,
And He rules over the nations.
29 All the prosperous of the earth
Shall eat and worship;
All those who go down to the dust
Shall bow before Him,
Even he who cannot keep himself alive.
30 A posterity shall serve Him.
It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation,
31 They will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born,
That He has done this.
Psalms 22:1-31 (NKJV)