My life is poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart is like wax, melting within me. My strength has dried up like sunbaked clay. My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. You have laid me in the dust and left me for dead. My enemies surround me like a pack of dogs; an evil gang closes in on me. They have pierced my hands and feet. I can count all my bones. My enemies stare at me and gloat. They divide my garments among themselves and throw dice for my clothing. (Psalm 22:14-18)
Have you ever visited a place you’ve only ever heard about?
Sometimes a place’s reputation precedes it. If you’re traveling to England, you expect fog and tea time. If you’re traveling to Mexico, you expect beaches and hot weather and needing to drink bottled water.
People can describe places or events, and even if they don’t get all the details exactly right, you know what they’re talking about. An eclipse. A meteor shower. A sunrise or a sunset. A tornado. A fireworks display. When you try to describe events that evoke an emotional response in people, you can’t always communicate completely what it was like, but you can give people an idea. So that when they see it for themselves, they will understand.
When I read the Psalms, sometimes I wonder if David really knew what he was writing. He penned most of the Psalms (not all of them, of course), and while the vast majority of them are songs of lament or praise or history or remembrance, there are a few that are different. Unusual. Provocative isn’t the right word necessarily, but some of these Psalms do make you stop and wonder what exactly David was communicating.
At least—that’s what you would wonder if you don’t know the rest of Scripture. The Psalms are truly one of the best places to encounter prophecy about the End Times, the Tribulation, the coming Millennial Reign of Christ, and so many other future events. But when David wrote these songs, he had no context for anything in the future. All of it was the future to him.
So how strange to find a brutally, horrifically accurate description of a crucifixion in Psalm 22!
Now, the earliest record of a crucifixion was in 519 BC, when King Darius I of Persia crucified 3,000 of his enemies in Babylon. Do you remember from previous devos this week when Israel fell to Babylon? It was 587 BC. That’s about 70 years difference, right?
Nope.
The date we need to find is when David wrote Psalm 22, because David ruled over Israel LONG before it fell into captivity. I did some searching, and according to BlueLetterBible.org (a really reputable online source), Psalm 22 was likely composed in 1,044 BC.
That’s 525 years. David wrote a gruesome depiction of crucifixion 525 years before it was even invented.
And, again, this isn’t just wishful thinking. There’s nothing vague here. Look—look!—at the graphic detail in Psalm 22 and compare it to what we know happened to Jesus in the Gospels.
We could get really granular about the details, but it might be more effective if you were to look up those passages yourself and find the similarities to Psalm 22. It’s wild.
The thirst. The piercing of hands and feet. Casting lots for his clothing. Not breaking any of his bones (which is highly unusual, since crucifixion usually required breaking legs). There are even statements that are the same (“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” and “He saved others, but he can’t save himself.”).
But why?
Out of everything David could have written, out of any future David could have seen, why did God show Him this? Why would God reveal something so horrific?
Obviously, I don’t know God’s plans or His motives, but I can put some pieces together. More than 1,000 years before Jesus was born, God revealed how He would die. And by the end of the Psalm, He also revealed what would happen as a result:
The whole earth will acknowledge the Lord and return to him. All the families of the nations will bow down before him. For royal power belongs to the Lord. He rules all the nations. Let the rich of the earth feast and worship. Bow before him, all who are mortal, all whose lives will end as dust. Our children will also serve him. Future generations will hear about the wonders of the Lord. His righteous acts will be told to those not yet born. They will hear about everything he has done. (Psalm 22:27-31)
As David often did, his Psalms started dark and down-hearted and discouraged and ended up an expression of praise and gratitude. Psalm 22 begins with the cruel execution of an innocent, and it ends with God being glorified, worshiped, and the whole world hearing about His wonders.
All prophecy exists to exalt Jesus (Revelation 19:10). That’s the point of prophecy, to demonstrate He is who He says He is, that He knows what He says He knows, and that He will do what He says He will do.
Psalm 22 couldn’t have been written without God’s special revelation to David. It’s too clear. It’s too specific. It’s too gruesome. God revealed that His Son, David’s own descendant, would die a brutal death to save the world.
And here we are, now 3,000 years (or more) since David penned this Psalm, and what’s happening? We’re talking about the wonders of the Lord. We’re sharing about all of His righteous acts. We’re learning about all that He has done.
So it wasn’t just the crucifixion that happened. The rest of it is happening today. And what’s left—that bit about Him ruling the nations?—that day is coming soon. It might even be today.
Three thousand years ago, God showed the future to a lonely shepherd king so that you and I could understand that God means business.
Are you ready? Because God has made promises. So many of them. And most of them have come to pass. Far more promises have come true than remain unfulfilled, and the clock is ticking. He’s come through in the impossible moments throughout history, and He isn’t going to stop. In fact, all the signs, the guideposts, the mile markers we’ve been waiting on to signal His return are done.
We’re just waiting on Him.
So whatever you’ve been putting off, let me suggest that you get on with it. It’s a new year. Why not start fresh? Why not take a stab at that calling in your life that you’ve been too afraid to pursue?
All that’s left is for God to reach the end of His patience. He has a lot of patience, but it won’t last forever. He doesn’t want anyone to perish, but the day is coming when He will return.
I don’t know about you, but when He comes back, I want Him to find me focused on doing what He’s called me to do—not wasting the time I have left.
Questions for Reflection
How do you think David must have felt after God revealed Jesus’ crucifixion to him?
What does Psalm 22 have to do with Revelation 19:10?
How does understanding Psalm 22 affect your perspective on the future?
NEW: Bible Study
Take some time and look up the four passages below and compare them to Psalm 22. What similarities do you see? What differences do you see? What is the most shocking element that they have in common? What surprised you most?
Weekly Memory Verse
Wow. Yes and amen, Amy! Well said! 😊😊😊