Dig Deeper: March 2026

"Psalm 22:

This is THE PSALM OF THE CROSS.

*This Psalm contains those deep, sublime, and heavy sufferings of Christ, when agonizing in the midst of the terrors and pangs of divine wrath and death, which surpass all human thought and

comprehension.
*Wherefore this Psalm ought to be most highly prized by all who have any acquaintance with these temptations of faith, and these spiritual conflicts
A Christian cannot read this psalm without reflecting on the use of the first verse by Christ on the Cross (Matt. 27:46; Mark 15:34).
In addition to this verse, verse 18 is quoted in the New Testament (Matt. 27:35; Mark 15:24; Luke 23:34; John 19:24), as well as verse 22; (Heb. 2:12).

His cry to God, the condemnation of the crowd, His thirst, His crucifixion, and even the gambling for His robe, are all clearly predicted.
David’s own experience gives way to a prophetic glimpse of his descendant Jesus Christ.

The psalm naturally falls into two parts.
David first describes the awful predicament in which he finds himself (verses 1-21): he feels forsaken by God in the midst of his enemies, who are compared to ravenous beasts.
The second part of the psalm consists of praise to God for His faithfulness (verse 22-31), by both the worshiping community (verses 22-26), and the world as a whole (verses 27-31).
Lament characterizes the first of the 21 verses, while both praise and thanksgiving describe the final ten verses.
Prayer accounts for this dramatic shift from lament to praise.

The New Testament contains 15 messianic quotations of or allusions to this psalm, leading some in the early church to label it “the fifth gospel”.
1. The Psalmist’s Hopelessness (22:1-10).
2. His Hopelessness and National History (22:1-5);
3. His Hopelessness and Natal History (22:6-10).
4. The Psalmist’s Prayer (22:11-21).
5. A No-Help Outlook (22:11-18);
6. A Divine-Help Outlook (22:19-21).
The Psalmist’s Testimonies and Worship (22:22-31).
1. An Individual Precipitation of Praise (22:22-25);
2. A Corporate Perpetuation of Praise (22:26-31).

“Aijeleth Shahar”:
You will find in the title there is a unique phrase in the superscription and is probably best taken as a tune designation.

Psalm 22:1 My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? [why art thou so] far from helping me, [and from] the words of my roaring?
My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? This was the startling cry of Golgotha: Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani.

We must lay the emphasis on every word of this saddest of all utterances. "Why?" what is the great cause of such a strange fact as for God to leave His own Son at such a time and in such a plight? There was no cause in Him, why then was He deserted?

"Hast:" it is done, and the Savior is feeling its dread effect as He asks the question; it is surely true, but how mysterious! It was no threatening of forsaking which made the great Surety cry aloud, he endured that forsaking in very deed.

"Thou:" I can understand why traitorous Judas and timid Peter should be gone, but thou, my God, my faithful friend, how canst Thou leave Me? This is worst of all, yea, worse than all put together.

"Forsaken:" if Thou hadst chastened I might bear it, for Thy face would shine; but to forsake me utterly, ah! why is this?

"Me:" Thine innocent, obedient, suffering Son, why leavest thou Me to perish? A sight of self seen by penitence, and of Jesus on the cross seen by faith will best expound this question. Jesus is forsaken because our sins had separated between us and our God.

Psalm 22:2 O my God, I cry in the daytime, but thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent.
In the time of his suffering on the cross, which was in the daytime.
Though he was not saved from dying, yet he was quickly delivered from the power of death, and so was heard in that he feared (Heb. 5:7).
"And in the night season":
In the night in which He was in the garden, sorrowing and praying.
The night in which He was betrayed and was apprehended.
"And am not silent":
But continue to pray, though as yet seemingly not heard and answered.
Jesus prayed to the Father while He was in the garden of Gethsemane.

Psalm 22:4 Our fathers trusted in thee: they trusted, and thou didst deliver them.
It sustains the Sufferer to think how many before him have cried to God, and trusted in him, and for a while been seemingly not heard,

and yet at length manifestly heard and saved.

Psalm 22:6 But I [am] a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people.
"A reproach of men":
Reproached by men (compare Isa. 53:3).

"Despised of the people":
That is, of the people who witnessed his sufferings.

Psalm 22:7 All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, [saying],
"They shake the head, saying": In a way of scorn and derision as in (Lam. 2:15).

Psalm 22:13 They gaped upon me [with] their mouths, [as] a ravening and a roaring lion.
Either by way of derision and contempt (Job 16:10).
Or belching out blasphemy against him, or rather, with the greatest vehemence, crying out "Crucify Him, crucify Him" (Luke 23:21).

Psalm 22:14 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 heart faileth, my spirits are spent and gone like water, which once spilt can never be recovered.

Psalm 22:15 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.
All strength dies out under the action of the many acute pains which rack the whole frame.

Psalm 22:16 For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have enclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.
“They pierced my hands and my feet”: Our sins nailed Jesus to the cross.

Psalm 22:17 I may tell all my bones: they look [and] stare upon me.
Our Lord's active life and simple habits would give him a spare frame, while the strain of crucifixion would accentuate and bring into relief every point of his anatomy.
He might thus, if so minded, "tell all his bones."

Psalm 22:18 They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.
Apparently, His enemies were so sure that Jesus would perish, they

were already dividing his “clothing” among themselves.
All 4 gospel writers appeal to this imagery in describing Christ’s crucifixion (Matt. 27:35; Mark 15:24; Luke 23:34; John 19:24).

Psalm 22:22 I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.
The psalmist cannot contain himself; he must testify loudly in the this great assembly of Gods great mercies." BooksOfTheBible/Charles Spurgeon/Martin Luther

With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication. Revelation 17:2

"On February 16, 2026, Vijesti News reported that the Montenegrin Parliament had reinstated Sunday as a day of rest by law, presenting the decision as a measure to give workers time off for their health and well-being. The report also noted that both the left and the right found common ground regarding the legislated Sunday rest. At the same time, the measure requires shops to remain open on Saturday.
This is what Sunday laws ultimately lead to—not only state-imposed religious observance but also the desecration of the true Lord’s Day by shifting commerce and labor onto the Biblical Sabbath.

Vijesti News reported the following:
• “Parliament has adopted amendments to the Internal Trade Act, allowing the return of Sunday holidays for wholesale and retail
stores. The decision was supported by 62 MPs and was supported by both the government and the opposition.”
• “The amendments to Article 35a of this Law submitted by the deputies of the Europe Now Movement (PES), require a non-working Sunday to protect the health of workers in wholesale and retail stores and their right to a weekly rest on public and other holidays.”
• “The law also stipulates that the opening hours of the facility from Monday to Saturday will be determined by the retailer.”

For those closely watching the global Sunday-rest movement, the pattern is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore." AdventMessenger