Beloved, I have the joy of sharing with you the above topic from Ps 22:26-28. Indeed, more than any other portion of Scripture, this one must be approached with “shoes off.” For it contains the most unfathomable of subjects: the feelings and prayers of Christ during the hours of the cross. First exposed to the wickedness of men, suffering for justice, He then knows, during three hours of impenetrable darkness, the abandonment of his strong God. Entirely alone, the perfect Man goes through this unparalleled trial with the unique inner support of his incomparable love. And He does not cease for a moment to entrust Himself to the One who for a moment cannot give Him an answer. For he publicly proclaims his shame and weakness, but without anything that resembles impatience, despair or a defensive reaction.
That is why on the cross man gave his whole measure; he showed how far he was able to go in his humility (verses 7-9, 13,14,17-19). But at the same time God has also given the full measure of what He is: In perfect righteousness against sin, in perfect love for the sinner, and the cross has magnified everything. Ah! may this contemplation of Christ Jesus dying for us, produce in each of our souls, humiliation and gratitude, love and adoration.
Indeed, this psalm does express what the Lord’s feelings were on the cross (Mt 27:46). Even though he expressed only the first words of this psalm, his spirit felt it in its entirety. For he begins as if his cries to the One who could save him from death (Heb 5:7) had not been heard, since God having hidden his face from him, he was then in darkness. So that was the death of a victim, not the death of a martyr; but it was above all death under the judgment of sin, and nothing could ever come close to that. For see what difference there is between the death of the martyr Stephen and the death of the Lamb of God (Acts 7). And yet the perfect victim fully justifies God, the faithful God of the fathers, his God from the womb.
This is why his cry still rises before God to whom he exposes one by one all the outrages he suffers at the hands of men (see vs. 8, 9, 13, 17, 18, 19). And is it not strange to note that, in that moment, his enemies were fulfilling against themselves the word of God even in his letter? (Mt 27:43). But in the end the holy victim seems to be aware that his prayer was heard, heard from among the horns of the buffaloes, thus heard by the One who could save him from death (Heb. 5:7). We can notice that Jesus’ cry on the cross: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” was later followed by another cry: “Father, in your hands I surrender my spirit”. It was obviously in the consciousness that his first cry had been heard that the second was expressed.
Then, in this awareness of having been heard by the one who delivers him from death, he vows, first to proclaim the name of God to his brethren, and then to praise him in the assembly (that of Israel), and in the great assembly (that of all nations). He began to fulfill the first of these vows as soon as he was delivered from death (John 20:17), and he continued to fulfill them in all the saints (Rom 8:15); he will perform the second in the kingdom on the day when Israel and the nations are reunited, when the seed of Jacob will glorify him, and when the families of the nations will bow down before him. Then, as Jesus declares here, the kingdom and all its offerings will be to Jehovah.
Let us also note that during His life and ministry, the Lord Jesus was on earth to save and not to judge; for he lowered himself and wrote on earth as if he did not hear, rather than throwing a stone against a sinner (Jn 8), yet he presented to the attention and judicial gaze of the Lord God the world in his wickedness. This is what he does in John 17 by saying, “Just Father, the world has not known you.” It seems that he does the same in this psalm of such a special and touching character.
For the answer reaches the One who is “between the horns of the buffaloes”. It is the resurrection and at the same time the joy of rediscovered communion. But in his love, Christ is eager for this joy to be shared. So his first thought is to make known to “his brethren” the new relationship in which his work has placed them, by telling them of his Father who becomes their Father, of his God who becomes their God (Jn 20:11-18).
The following verses have been compiled for your edification and grouped together for your better understanding.
- Wishes, examples:
Gen 28:20 Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God is with me and keeps me during this journey I am making, if He gives me bread to eat and clothes to clothe me; Nb 21:2 Then Israel made a vow to the Lord, and said, “If you hand over this people into my hands, I will dedicate its cities by prohibition. Jg 11:30 Jephthaeus made a vow to the Lord, and said, “If you hand over into my hands the sons of Ammon;1 S 1:11 She made a vow, saying, Lord of hosts! if you deign to look at the affliction of your servant, if you remember me and do not forget your servant, and if you give your servant a male child, I will consecrate him to the Lord for all the days of his life, and the razor will not pass over his head. Jon 1:16 These men were seized with a great fear of the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord, and made vows. Acts 18:18 Paul stayed in Corinth long enough. Then he took leave of the brothers, and sailed for Syria, with Priscilla and Aquilas, after having his head shaved at Cenchrées, for he had made a wish. Acts 21:23 That is why do what we are going to tell you. There are four men among us who have made a wish;
- The Sacred Covenants must be respected:
Nb 30:3 When a man makes a vow to the Lord, or an oath to bind himself by a commitment, he will not violate his word, he will act according to all that has come out of his mouth. Dt 23:20 You may draw an interest from the stranger, but thou shat not draw from your brother, that the Lord your God may bless you in all that thou shat undertakes in the land of which thou shady coming into possession. Jb 22:27 You will pray to Him, and He will answer you, and you will fulfill your vows. Ps 50:14 Offer for sacrifice to God thanksgiving, and fulfill your vows to the Most High. Ps 76:12 Make vows to Jehovah your God and fulfill them! May all those around him bring gifts to the terrible God! Ec 5:3 When you have made a wish to God, do not delay in fulfilling it, for He does not love fools: fulfill the vow you have made. Mt 5:33 You have again learned that the elders have been told: Thou sha not perjure thyself, but thou shady shall perform unto the Lord what thou hast declared by oath.
- Divine Promises to Those Who Seek
Dt 4:29 It is also from this that you will seek Jehovah your God and find Him, if you seek Him with all your heart and soul. 2 Ch 7:14 if my people, on whom my name is invoked, humble themselves, pray, and seek my face, and turn away from their evil ways, I will answer them from heaven, forgive them for their sin, and heal their country. Pr 8:17 I love those who love me, and those who seek me find me. Jer 29:13 You will seek me, and you will find me, if you seek me with all your heart. Lk 11:9 And I say to you: Ask, and they will give you; seek, and you will find; knock, and they will open you. Lk 18:7 And will God not do justice to His chosen ones, who cry out to Him day and night, and delay them? Jn 14:14 If you ask for something on my behalf, I will do it.
- Seeking God, Examples
2 Ch 11:16 Those of all the tribes of Israel who were committed to seeking Jehovah, the God of Israel, followed the Levites to Jerusalem to sacrifice to Jehovah, the God of their fathers. 2 Ch 14:6 He said to Judah: Let us build these cities, and surround them with walls, towers, gates, and bars; the land is still before us, for we have sought the Lord, our God, we have sought Him, and He has given us rest on all sides. So they built, and succeeded. 2 Ch 17:4 for he had recourse to his father’s God, and he followed his commandments, without imitating what Israel was doing. 2 Ch 26:5 He applied himself to seeking God during the life of Zechariah, who had the understanding of God’s visions; and in the time he sought Jehovah, God made him prosper. Isd 8:21 There, near the river of Ahava, I issued a fast of humiliation before our God, to implore from Him a happy journey for us, for our children, and for all that belonged to us. Ps 24:6This is the sharing of the generation that invokes it, of those who seek your face, of Jacob! -Pause. Ps 27:8 My heart says of you: Seek my face! I seek your face, O Lord! Ps 119:10 I seek you with all my heart: Do not let me lead me astray away from your commandments! Dn 9:3 I turned my face to the Lord God, to resort to prayer and supplication, fasting and taking the sack and ashes. Jn 12:21 turned to Philip of Bethsaida in Galilee and said to him with instance: Lord, we would like to see Jesus.
- Conditions for Receiving Eternal Life
-Renouncing the world Lk 18:28-30 Peter then said: Behold, we have left everything, and we have followed you. And Jesus said to them: I tell you in truth, there is no one who, having left, because of the kingdom of God, his house, or his wife, or his brothers, or his parents, or his children, does not receive much more in this century, and, in the century to come, eternal life.
Faith in Christ Jn 3:14-15, 36 And as Moses raised the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of man be lifted up, so that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. 36 He who believes in the Son has eternal life; he who does not believe in the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God dwells upon him.
-Spiritual work Jn 4:35-36 Don’t you say that there are still four months until the harvest? Behold, I tell you, look up, and look at the fields that are already whitening for the harvest. He who reaps receives a salary, and gathers fruit for eternal life, so that the one who sows and the one who reaps may rejoice together. Jn 5:24 Truly, truly, I tell you, he who listens to my word, and believes in him who sent me, has eternal life and does not come to judgment, but has passed from death to life. Jn 6:40 My Father’s will is that whoever sees the Son and believes in Him should have eternal life; and I will raise Him up on the last day.
-Self-denial Jn 12:25 He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
Knowledge of God Jn 17:3 Now, eternal life is that they know you, the only true God, and the one you have sent, Jesus Christ.
-Sow for the spirit Gal 6:8 He who sows for his flesh will reap corruption from the flesh; but he who sows for the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit.
- Conversion of Non-Jews Predicted
Gen 22:18 All the nations of the earth will be blessed in your seed, because you have obeyed my voice. Ps 86:9 All the nations you have made will come to bow down before your face, Lord, and give glory to your name. Isa 9:1 The people who walked in darkness see a great light; On those who inhabited the land of the shadow of death A light shines. Isa 42:1 This is my servant, whom I will sustain, My chosen one, in whom my soul takes pleasure. I put my mind on him; He will announce justice to the nations. Is 49:6 He says: It is little that you are my servant To raise up the tribes of Jacob And to bring back the remnants of Israel: I establish you to be the light of the nations, to bring my salvation to the ends of the earth. Is 55:5 Behold, thou shat of nations which thou shat not know, and the nations which do not know you shall come unthinding to you, for the sake of jehovah, thy God, of the Holy One of Israel, who glorifies you. Isa 60:3 Nations walk in your light, and kings in the clarity of your rays. Dn 7:14 He was given dominion, glory, and reign; and all peoples, nations, and men of all tongues served Him. His dominion is an eternal dominion that will not pass, and his reign will never be destroyed. Os 2:25 I will plant Lo Ruchama for myself in the land, and I will have mercy on him; I will say to Lo Ammi: You are my people! and he will answer: My God! Eph 3:6 This mystery is that the Gentiles are co-heirs, form the same body, and participate in the same promise in Jesus Christ through the gospel;
From all of the above, we note that there is no mention of judgment in this psalm. For the Lord Jesus bears sins there, and therefore all is only grace and blessing. Blessings first for the assembly composed in its early days of Jewish disciples (Heb 2:10-13); then for restored Israel, “the great assembly”; for “all families of nations” under the reign of 1,000 years; and finally for all those who will be born during this glorious reign. And as the waves widen around the center where they were provoked, so extend to all creation the wonderful consequences of the work of the cross. For, first exposed to the wickedness of men, suffering for justice, He then knows, during three hours of impenetrable darkness, the abandonment of his strong God. Entirely alone, the perfect Man goes through this unparalleled trial with the unique inner support of his incomparable love. And He does not cease for a moment to entrust Himself to the One who for a moment cannot give Him an answer. And we kind of understand why Jesus Christ is a little abandoned. Our prayers sustain you in your efforts to live in the perfect love of our Savior.
PRAYER OF ACCEPTANCE OF JESUS CHRIST AS LORD AND PERSONAL SAVIOR
I now invite every person who wants to become a new creation by walking in the truth, to pray with me the following prayer:
Lord Jesus, I have long walked in the lusts of the world ignoring your love for humans. I admit to having sinned against you and ask your forgiveness for all my sins, because today I have decided to give you my life by taking you as Lord and personal Savior. I recognize that you died on the cross of Calvary and rose from the dead for me.
I am now saved and born again by the power of the Holy Spirit. Lead me every day to the eternal life that you give to all who obey your Word. Reveal yourself to me and strengthen my heart and faith, so that your light may be shining in my life right now.
Thank you Lord Jesus for accepting me into your divine family, so that I may also contemplate the wonders of your kingdom.
I will now choose a nearby watering point to baptize myself by immersion, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
All adoration, power and glory are yours, now and forever and ever. Amen!
I would be happy to respond to any questions and comments you may have before sharing with you tomorrow on “despite the difficulties in Corinth, Apostle Paul is holding on. “
May the Lord Jesus Christ bless you abundantly.
David Feze, Servant of the Almighty God.