 Psalm 22, Part III
But thou art he that took me out of the womb: thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother’s breasts. (Psalm 22:9)
The Divine Son now reflects on His birth. We remember the Divine conception when the angel declared to Mary, “the Holy Ghost will come upon you.” And the Holy child that was conceived was the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob from the conception. This beginning of life, as man, would walk amongst men. He would be the light of men. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. (John 1:4) The one who was the wanted hope of Israel now reminds His Father in Divine love, thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother’s breasts. Oh, what wonder, oh my soul, think of the Omnipotent God in complete dependence on His mother’s breast. He was not only the hope of Israel, but the hope of all His redeemed. The Holy Spirit is telling us of these wonders as the Word of God unfolds these mysteries to us. Let us never forget that these words were given by divine inspiration and the continual revelation of God. Have you ever read a passage of Scripture many times and God speaks to you in different ways, or gives you new light on that particular scripture. This is the work of the Holy Spirit as He gives you nourishment for your soul. The Lord Jesus was hope — all this hope was upon His mother’s breast. She was chosen of God to bear His Son, yet she had to watch with John and His disciples all the horror of her Son’s sufferings, as the son of man and as the Son of God. For to make in himself of twain one new man, [so] making peace;. (Ephesians 2:15b) This would be the man to sit at the right hand of God. His incarnation made Him a stranger among men; yet, He was beloved of the Father. I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. (Psalm 2:7) This verse is a reminder to every child of God of the counsels of God before the foundation of the earth; Father, Son, and Holy Ghost deriving the plan of redemption.
I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou art my God from my mother’s belly. (Psalm 22:10)
I was cast upon thee from the womb. Man would think, from his evil heart, that he alone has the power of life; to choose who lives and who dies, whether it be a matter of hate, or a matter of convenience. God will hold men accountable for every life that he ends. We go back to the days of Zechariah, the priest when the evil king had given an order to stone Zechariah, but before his death Zechariah said The LORD look upon it, and require it. (2 Chronicles 24:22) Jehovah remembers, whether unborn or at any stage of life, whenever you touch a hair of one of His children, He will pay in judgment ten-fold; whether an individual or a nation, whether in this life, or in eternal punishment — Jehovah remembers and will require it.
In the days of Daniel, there was a king named Belshazzar. He was weighed in the balance and found wanting. His kingdom disappeared in one night and in one hour. At the beginning of that day, I am sure that Belshazzar did not see the hand of God’s judgment hanging over Babylon, but he received it that very night. In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain. (Daniel 5:30)
We go now to Revelation 18:8 Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her. This great city of Babylon that contained the riches of the world, falls and is destroyed. God takes away her riches, and burns her with fire, she suffers plagues, death, mourning, and famine. This is a judgment for all her wickedness.
And saying, Alas, alas, that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls! (Revelation 18:16)
For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off, (Revelation 18:17)
And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city! (Revelation 18:18)
This great city is taken in one day, and in 1 hour — totally destroyed for her wickedness. This is yet in the future, but God deals with nations every day. How many nations have risen up and have been destroyed since the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ? They were all weighed in the balance and found wanting.
Let us turn to the Book of Jeremiah. Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, (Jeremiah 1:4) Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations. (Jeremiah 1:5) These two verses have a weight in the balance of life. God tells Jeremiah directly of the eternal existence of Jeremiah’s soul, before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee. Before Jeremiah was conceived, Jehovah knew him, and all his members were written in the book of life. There is a resemblance in Hebrews, chapter 7, verses 9 and 10. And as I may so say, Levi also, who receiveth tithes, payed tithes in Abraham.
For he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchisedec met him. Levi was Jacob’s son, but the Holy Spirit tells us that he was in the loins of Abraham. What a divine mystery. Going back to Jeremiah, Jehovah tells him— before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, what a wonder — set apart for God before birth. Nations beware when you tamper with the womb. It is life’s temple that God has given for the birth of His children. Take heed of your laws, whether it is a scalpel or a cross on the Roman road — Jehovah remembers. Then to add a more convincing line of divine inspiration, that before Jeremiah’s birth he was ordained to be a prophet unto the nations. Israel might not receive him, nor the nations, but this is a divine decree of God, and it will stand forever. Paul writing to the Galatians stressed that his apostleship was not of men, or by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead. Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;) (Galatians 1:1) No one, nor any group voted for Paul. He was chosen by divine decree on the Damascus road. No man laid hands on him, it was God who appointed him. The rumor was that Paul had received his authority from Jerusalem, men of reprobate minds were declaring that Paul had been chosen of men, and not of God. They were trying to overthrow the faith of the Galatians, and put them back under the Jewish law. So Paul gave his credentials in the very first verse of Galatians to establish his authority, that this authority was not of man, nor of the will of men, but of God. This issue of authority has been the battle or war between religious men and sanctified men since the days of Abel. A man can do nothing except it be given of God, there is no organization, no group, no committee, nor any single authority that takes the place of God’s direct calling of any given man. Both Jeremiah and Paul are witnesses of God’s divine plan.
I was cast upon thee from the womb: thou art my God from my mother’s belly. (Psalm 22:10) So now by divine authority we are brought to the birth of the Lord Jesus, and his relationship to God the Father. In His sufferings, He reminds God the Father that He was cast upon Him from the belly of His mother. In the chamber of God’s care, He was conscious of His Father’s love, He knew life before birth. So too with every child that is conceived has a conscious awareness of life. The untold sufferings that have been placed upon them — do we not hear their cries as they shout out as they are being ripped from their mother’s womb. These ungodly people who perpetrate this ungodly doctrine will one day face the God of all living — face to face in judgment for their evil acts. Jehovah not only has a book of life, but He has a book of judgment as well. The pages will be opened, and their names read out, and for all eternity they will hear the cries of the unborn and what they have committed against them. Any participant in this ungodly act is under divine judgment — no matter what the circumstances or cause, they are God’s children, and He will require it.
Be not far from me; for trouble is near; for there is none to help. (Psalm 22:11)
Be not far from me — a Son speaks to God the Father, as darkness now falls all around Him. Out of His heart He cries out, Be not far from me. The Spirit of God hovers over Him and watches His sufferings, trouble is all around Him on every hand. He is in a state between life and death, and He needs the closeness of God the Father. We too need the closeness of God, this is not just “he will never leave me nor forsake me,” but closeness of soul and spirit, communion with your Creator and God. One must make his vessel ready for this communion. We will never be in the circumstance that the Son of God was in, yet God has poured out His love on us, and nothing can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus. He is crying out to the Father, and yet, both know the peril that He is in. The Father’s heart aches for the Son, and the Son’s heart reaches out for the love of His Father, but everything remains silent in the darkness around Him. The Lord looks around and declares there is none to help. He had come for them; for their kingdom, for their glory, yet they refused Him and in that refusal of their kingdom all had fled, and there was none to help. Their kingdom is now in limbo, when it was at hand they would not receive it, but one day their King, the Lord Jesus, will return and draw them unto Himself in divine love.
Many bulls have compassed me: strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round. (Psalm 22:12)
The strength of evil is described in many ways, but here evil is described as the mighty bulls of Bashan. Bashan was a large territory East of the Jordan which was given to the half tribe of Manasseh by Moses. The people were fierce warriors, and the land was taken at a great price through battle. The land was conquered from Sihon, king of the Amorites, and Og, king of Bashan.
And Moses gave unto them, even to the children of Gad, and to the children of Reuben, and unto half the tribe of Manasseh the son of Joseph, the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, the land, with the cities thereof in the coasts, even the cities of the country round about. (Numbers 32:33)
And they turned and went up by the way of Bashan: and Og the king of Bashan went out against them, he, and all his people, to the battle at Edrei. (Numbers 21:33)
And the LORD said unto Moses, Fear him not: for I have delivered him into thy hand, and all his people, and his land; and thou shalt do to him as thou didst unto Sihon king of the Amorites, which dwelt at Heshbon. (Numbers 21:34)
So they smote him, and his sons, and all his people, until there was none left him alive: and they possessed his land. (Numbers 21:35)
These battles were immense in proportion, although the Israelites were fewer in number, Og was delivered to them. Israel enjoyed great victories, but they did pay a price, and whenever someone used the term ‘bulls of Bashan’ it reminded Israel of those great battles. The god of Bashan was Chemosh (fire god), and Israel put their cities to the flame of God’s judgment. Strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round, this was ‘proud Bashan’ once again surrounding the cross of Christ. The Lord refers to the Gentile world, and the Jews as these strong bulls of Bashan round about Him. He was there to give Israel their kingdom, yet they knew Him not; both these Jews and the Gentile powers of the world are described as these ‘bulls of Bashan.’ I would think prophetically that though the cross was the place of His death, it was also a place of judgment for the sin of the whole world. Prophetically, with these ‘bulls of Bashan’ are we not looking at the future judgment that will come on all Gentile powers of the world? As I said previously, Israel is waiting for her King to come, and one day He will come, and in His coming He will smite the nations, He will put down the proud ‘bulls of Bashan,’ and Israel will bask in the light of His glory.
They gaped upon me with their mouths, as a ravening and a roaring lion. (Psalm 22:13)
The mouth has a member that we call the tongue. It is a fire that cannot be contained, and as He was dying on the cross, they could not hold themselves from mocking and making gestures at God’s Son. James tells us in Chapter 3:3-8 that the tongue cannot be tamed.
Behold, we put bits in the horses’ mouths, that they may obey us; and we turn about their whole body. (James 3:3)
Behold also the ships, which though they be so great, and are driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned about with a very small helm, whithersoever the governor listeth. (James 3:4)
Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! (James 3:5)
And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell. (James 3:6)
For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind: (James 3:7)
But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. (James 3:8)
So as the Jews and their religious leaders stood by and mocked Him with tongues of fire that could not be tamed. We feel that they are tamed now in judgment, I suppose that they gnaw on their tongues in pain, they thirst for just one drop of water on their tongues. The words “crucify him, crucify him’ echo in their conscience, and for them there is no help. But if you are reading this, there is help for you. This help is found in God’s beloved Son. The love that He showed on the cross could not be compared to the love of this world. It is a divine love and all the grace of God goes with it. If you have never examined your heart before God, and cast yourself before Him and love His Christ, then this could be your final call.
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. (Psalm 22:14)
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.(Psalm 22:15)
These two verses go together as one complaint from a suffering Savior. Even His flesh was rebelling against Him. The pain was great, His flesh and bones were all crying out for the mercy of God, and there was none. No help from the Father. No help from His disciples. No help from Roman rule. No help from the Israel of God. He was there alone, His heart is like wax, we get the sense of it melting into His bowels (His inner being). He has no strength, the world was framed by the Word of His power, and now the Son can barely hold His head up. He was crucified in weakness, yet thanks be to God, He was risen by the power and might of the Almighty God. But now on the cross, He has no strength. Listen to these words from the psalmist, oh my soul, muse on them, place them on the threshold of my heart. Write them on my conscience, that I may wonder and embrace such a great love of my God. Tongue cannot describe this love, only the Spirit of God can take us to this place in the bosom of the Father. These two verses took place when the Savior said, “I thirst.” The fountain of living water is now in thirst, all that He is as man, is now coming to an end. He, Jesus, must die for the sin of the world. What He came to give was refused, and that refusal, the crucifixion of Christ, brought Him down into the darkness of death.
For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet. (Psalm 22:16)
The Jews refer to the Gentiles as ‘dogs.’ I would think that this term used here in this verse refers to the Gentile power, or world of Rome. At this point in time Rome had power over all nations. These nations had crumbled beneath the iron heel of Rome; therefore, it was the Roman hammer that drove the nails into the Savior’s hands and feet. The Roman’s set the day and the stage of their own judgment; as the cries of a latter date are heard —‘Rome is burning, Rome is burning.’ Be not deceived, God is not mocked, whatsoever a man or nation soweth, that shall they also reap. Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. (Galatians 6:7)
Has the Gentile world changed? Have they repented of this ungodly crime? No. And so all the Gentile powers will be judged; in the future the cry will be ‘Babylon is burning, Babylon is burning.’
How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow. (Revelation 18:7)
Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her. (Revelation 18:8)
I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me. (Psalm 22:17)
Our Savior’s pain goes right to the very marrow of His bones. They stare at Him for relieve, yet there is none. When one has a bone pain or ache, it goes to the very center of one’s being. It consumes all one’s thoughts. It will not be put away, and any type of pain medicine will only mask the pain; deep within, the pain still remains under the surface. And now we see that the very inner part of His being and the suffering He endured for us. Think of your bones staring back at you. I am reminded of the images from the holocaust, at times they made you feel like vomiting. It was so horrible that one had to turn away from the images. Think of the One who holds the winds in His fists, and all His bones look and stare at Him— can this love be measured? It would be like trying to measure eternity. Thus, we can only say, ‘thanks be unto God for His unspeakable gift.’
They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.(Psalm 22:18)
Now prophecy is literally fulfilled. The Roman soldiers gather around and divide His garments and cast lots for His vesture. This is for the non-sayers and the deniers of God’s Word, over 1,050 years before the crucifixion, God through the Holy Spirit recorded these words in Psalm 22. The exact thing happened at the Lord’s crucifixion.
They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink. (Matthew 27:34)
And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots. (Matthew 27:35)
And sitting down they watched him there; (Matthew 27:36)
They had taken all from Him now, they would divide the spoils, they would cast lots for His vesture; what a disgrace for man. Not only to touch His garments, but to divide them as spoils of war as from a battle that they had won. These were soldiers of Rome, the mighty imperial army of Rome had spoken, and carried out the judgment of Pilate. I believe, Pilate is still washing his hands only not in water, but in the fires of God’s judgment over the blood of a righteous man. What can wash away my sin? nothing by the blood of Jesus. Amen. This is the end of Part III, Part IV to follow.
© Copyright 2015, Michael Haigh
This article may be used, but not for gain. “Freely ye have received, freely give.”
All Scripture references are from the Authorized King James Bible. (KJV)