January 30, 2009
CAST AWAY
Psalm 22
Elizabeth Johnson
Central Truth
Our cries are heard by a God who does not forsake us.
Key Verse | Psalm 22:1
My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? I groan in prayer, but help seems far away. (Psalm 22:1)
Psalm 22
Why Have You Forsaken Me?
To the choirmaster: according to The Doe of the Dawn. A Psalm of David.
1
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?
2
O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer,
and by night, but I find no rest.
3
Yet you are holy,
enthroned on the praises
1
22:3
Or dwelling in the praises
of Israel.
4
In you our fathers trusted;
they trusted, and you delivered them.
5
To you they cried and were rescued;
in you they trusted and were not put to shame.
6
But I am a worm and not a man,
scorned by mankind and despised by the people.
7
All who see me mock me;
they make mouths at me; they wag their heads;
8
“He trusts in the LORD; let him deliver him;
let him rescue him, for he delights in him!”
9
Yet you are he who took me from the womb;
you made me trust you at my mother's breasts.
10
On you was I cast from my birth,
and from my mother's womb you have been my God.
11
Be not far from me,
for trouble is near,
and there is none to help.
12
Many bulls encompass me;
strong bulls of Bashan surround me;
13
they open wide their mouths at me,
like a ravening and roaring lion.
14
I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint;
my heart is like wax;
it is melted within my breast;
15
my strength is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue sticks to my jaws;
you lay me in the dust of death.
16
For dogs encompass me;
a company of evildoers encircles me;
they have pierced my hands and feet
2
22:16
Some Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint, Vulgate, Syriac; most Hebrew manuscripts like a lion [they are at] my hands and feet
—
17
I can count all my bones—
they stare and gloat over me;
18
they divide my garments among them,
and for my clothing they cast lots.
19
But you, O LORD, do not be far off!
O you my help, come quickly to my aid!
20
Deliver my soul from the sword,
my precious life from the power of the dog!
21
Save me from the mouth of the lion!
You have rescued
3
22:21
Hebrew answered
me from the horns of the wild oxen!
22
I will tell of your name to my brothers;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:
23
You who fear the LORD, praise him!
All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him,
and stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!
24
For he has not despised or abhorred
the affliction of the afflicted,
and he has not hidden his face from him,
but has heard, when he cried to him.
25
From you comes my praise in the great congregation;
my vows I will perform before those who fear him.
26
The afflicted
4
22:26
Or The meek
shall eat and be satisfied;
those who seek him shall praise the LORD!
May your hearts live forever!
27
All the ends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the LORD,
and all the families of the nations
shall worship before you.
28
For kingship belongs to the LORD,
and he rules over the nations.
29
All the prosperous of the earth eat and worship;
before him shall bow all who go down to the dust,
even the one who could not keep himself alive.
30
Posterity shall serve him;
it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation;
31
they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn,
that he has done it.
Dive Deeper | Psalm 22
Do you ever feel like you have been "cast away," abandoned on your own island, or alone in the world? Do you ever feel cast away when others make you feel like a failure? Do you ever feel like God isn't listening or isn't on your side? Or perhaps do you believe you are a failure?
I have certainly asked each of these questions and can relate to feeling cast away. Sometimes, events out of my control, like when I had a series of injuries that kept me from playing sports, left me questioning God. I asked God, "Why is this happening to me? This is not what I want! God, are you listening?" Other times, when I believed life was better under my control rather than God's, I couldn't have felt farther from Him. During those times I would fight for others' acceptance rather than accepting who God made me to be. I believed the lies that others said about me and that I said about myself: "My God, I am a failure in your eyes," "I am the black sheep," and "I will never be used by You for good."
David feels separated from God in his suffering and cries out for help. He believes God is there and trusts that God will not forsake him and that God listens! "For He has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted one; He has not hidden His face from him but has listened to his cry for help." (Psalm 22:24, NIV)
No matter how far I felt cast away from God, it was never about what I had done, but rather about God's truth that He has never abandoned me . . . He never will abandon me! So whether you are wrestling with sin, holding on to past sin, believing lies from others, or believing them for yourself, it's OK to cry out to Him for help. You are not a castaway in His eyes. "[F]or the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you." (Deuteronomy 31:6, NIV)
Discussion Questions
1. In what ways have you felt cast away, shipwrecked, rejected, or useless?
2. What lies do you currently believe that keep you from accepting God's promise that He will never forsake you?
3. Have you spoken all your doubts, fears, and hurts to Him? Have you spoken the same doubts to others close to you?
4. Psalm 22 is a foreshadowing of Jesus' suffering and crucifixion on the cross, as depicted in Matthew 27. How do Jesus' feelings of being forsaken provide you comfort?