Psalms 22:1-15

the Cry of the Forsaken

Psalms 22:1

The Hebrew inscription of this exquisite ode is, “The hind of the morning.” The hind is the emblem of loveliness; see Song of Solomon 2:7; Song of Solomon 2:9. The cruel persecutors are designated as bulls, lions, and dogs. Perhaps the allusion to the morning refers to the daybreak of resurrection-hope.

Of course our blessed Lord is in every syllable. Indeed, the psalm reads more as history than as prophecy. The divine Sufferer seems to have recited it to Himself when on the Cross; for it begins with “My God, my God,” etc., and ends, according to some, with a word in the Hebrew, meaning “It is finished.” The psalm is indeed a photograph of Calvary, a memorial of the heartbreak of Jesus.

Sometimes to the soul in agony God seems not to hear; but through those hours of darkness the Easter day is hastening to break in resplendent glory. He will not suffer His holy one to see corruption, Psalms 16:10.