I love the depth of scripture. To me it is like a huge gemstone that, as it is turned you see the different facets in all of their beauty. This Psalm is one of those selections of scripture that has prophecy built into it. I love the connection to the gospel accounts of Jesus life. Enough from me...just read. I have added in brown the connetions to the gospels. I am sure there are more, but this will just give you a taste. Remember the Psalms were written hundreds of years before Christ.
Psalm 22
For the director of music. To the tune of "The Doe of the Morning." A psalm of David.
1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from saving me,
so far from the words of my groaning?
2 O my God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer,
by night, and am not silent.
MT 27:45 From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land. 46 About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?"--which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
3 Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One;
you are the praise of Israel. [a]
4 In you our fathers put their trust;
they trusted and you delivered them.
5 They cried to you and were saved;
in you they trusted and were not disappointed.
6 But I am a worm and not a man,
scorned by men and despised by the people.
7 All who see me mock me;
they hurl insults, shaking their heads:
8 "He trusts in the LORD;
let the LORD rescue him.
Let him deliver him,
since he delights in him."
MT 27:41 In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him. 42 "He saved others," they said, "but he can't save himself! He's the King of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, `I am the Son of God.' " 44 In the same way the robbers who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him.
9 Yet you brought me out of the womb;
you made me trust in you
even at my mother's breast.
10 From birth I was cast upon you;
from my mother's womb you have been my God.
48 When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, "Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you."
LK 2:49 "Why were you searching for me?" he asked. "Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?"
11 Do not be far from me,
for trouble is near
and there is no one to help.
MT 26:45 Then he returned to the disciples and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour is near, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. 46 Rise, let us go! Here comes my betrayer!"
12 Many bulls surround me;
strong bulls of Bashan encircle me.
13 Roaring lions tearing their prey
open their mouths wide against me.
14 I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint.
My heart has turned to wax;
it has melted away within me.
Undoubtedly crucifixion caused bones to become disjointed.
15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth;
you lay me [b] in the dust of death.
16 Dogs have surrounded me;
a band of evil men has encircled me,
they have pierced [c] my hands and my feet.
Mt 15:24 And they crucified him...
17 I can count all my bones;
people stare and gloat over me.
18 They divide my garments among them
and cast lots for my clothing.
Mt 15:24...they cast lots to see what each would get.
In todays bible reading, I was struck by the use of 2 goats for the Day of Atonement (at-one-ment). One was used as the sacrificial goat (i.e. slaughtered by the priest) and the other was the scapegoat. Both were used as a means of cleansing the Jewish people from their sin. One dies the other lives.
This fascinates me. I have really been camping out in Hebrews for the past several years; trying to figure out some of the deep mysteries within this great letter. Hebrews talks about Jesus being our High Priest and about how the earthly tabernacle is a copy of the heavenly tabernacle. So my fascination is: How the two goats play into the Heavenly tabernacle, and this issue of atonement.
So here is my two cents: Both goats represent Christ. One goat's blood was shed (without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness). The other goat had the sins of the people placed upon its head and was lead out into the wilderness, this was the scapegoat. It is easy to see that the first goat ties in closely to the crucifixion. But the other goat takes a little to understand. My thought ties into the REAL penalty of our sin is that we will be separated from God because of our sin. We will all die right? So Christ simply dying was not paying for our penalty, but shedding his blood did satisfy the Law. The scapegoat was separated from the tabernacle (where Gods presence resided) and led out into the wilderness taking the sins with it. Christ fulfilled the Law for us completely 1) by shedding his blood; 2) by separating himself from God.
We know that Christ was separated form God because 1) on the cross he said "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?" 2) he descended into hell and hell could not hold him (no sin=no guilt).
So you can know that your sin, no matter how great, has been completely wiped out. Today is the day of atonement for you. Accept Christ's forgiveness and sacrifice.
On the Move
It looks like I may be moving my blog over to Vox given the ease of use and some added features. Stayed tuned.
Hey that's 10% of the people that went!
