AN EXPOSITION OF PSALM 22 (3)
Psalm 22

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

II. Christ declares the holiness of God in answering those who call upon Him (vv.3-5).

"But You are holy, ..." (v.3a).

1. God is holy in Himself in two ways:

i. The majestic holiness of God is His absolute distinction from all creation, in which He is exalted above it in infinite majesty and glory (Exodus 15:11): "Who is like You, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like You, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?" (cp. 1 Samuel 2:2; Psalm 111:9).

ii. The ethical holiness of God develops out of His majestic holiness, and is manifested in two ways:

1) God abhors wickedness (Job 34:10-12): "... Far be it from God to do wickedness, and from the Almighty to commit iniquity. ... Surely God will never do wickedly, nor will the Almighty pervert justice" (cp. Habakkuk 1:13).

2) God requires purity (1 Peter 1:15f): "but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, 'Be holy, for I am holy'" (cp. Leviticus 20:7).

2. Christ here acknowledges God's ethical holiness in two ways:

i. Because God is holy, Christ acknowledges that God is just in forsaking Him and in inflicting upon Him the wrath His people deserve. Christ therefore "committed Himself to Him who judges righteously" (1 Peter 2:23).

ii. Because God is holy, Christ is confident God will answer His prayer (Psalm 145:17-19): "The LORD is righteous in all His ways, gracious [or "holy", as in KJV] in all His works. ... He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him; He also will hear their cry and save them."

"... Enthroned in the praises of Israel" (v.3b).

1. The God who is holy is "enthroned in ... Israel". This is true because God is enthroned in whatever sanctuary He inhabits (see "inhabitest" in KJV), and will not inhabit any place in which His sovereignty is denied. God is of course enthroned in the heavenly sanctuary, sitting on the "throne of the Majesty in the heavens, ... of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man" (Hebrews 8:1f). God is also enthroned in His earthly sanctuary, the congregation of His people Israel, because "Judah became His sanctuary, and Israel His dominion" (Psalm 114:2). In this gospel age, God's earthly sanctuary is the church of Christ, "the Israel of God" (as His congregation is called in Galatians 6:14-16; cp. Ezekiel 37:26-28).

2. The God who is holy is "enthroned in the praises of Israel". The psalmist here perhaps employs metonymy, a figure of speech that consists of using the name of one thing for that of something else with which it is associated (as "captivity" is put for "captives" in Psalm 68:18). Here "praises" are put for the sanctuary in which they are offered. The praises of the church of God is of the God enthroned within her, as in "Your God reigns!" (Isaiah 52:7). The church of God therefore delights in hearing the message of the absolute sovereignty of God over all things, and in hearing the glorious gospel of His free and sovereign grace.

"Our fathers trusted in You; ..." (v.4a). Christ would identify "our fathers" as the Israelite patriarchs and their seed through whom Christ Himself descended (Romans 9:4f). The fact that "our fathers trusted in You" is amply evidenced in Hebrews chapter 11.

"... They trusted, and You delivered them" (v.4b). The phrase "they trusted" repeats what was just said. This perhaps emphasizes the fact that the fathers trusted God time and time again. And every time they did, "You delivered them." For example, the first time Abraham trusted God, he was delivered from the guilt of his sin (Galatians 3:6-8; Romans 4:3; Genesis 12:1-4)! When Abraham again trusted God in sacrificing his son Isaac on Mount Moriah, Isaac was delivered through the provision of a lamb (Genesis 22:1-14). But no man will ever be delivered by trusting in a false god (Jeremiah 11:12), or in himself and his own works (Luke 18:9-14). Christ is here expressing His own trust in the God of His fathers, and His expectation of being delivered by Him just as they were.

"They cried to You, and were delivered; ..." (v.5a). "Our fathers trusted in You" even in the ordinary events of their lives; but "they cried to You" in times of distress. And every time they did, "They ... were delivered." Israel cried to God because of their bondage in Egypt (Exodus 2:3), and was delivered therefrom. Israel again cried to God when Pharaoh's army was about to overtake her (Exodus 14:10), and again was delivered. Christ is here crying incessantly to the God of His fathers (v.2), and fully expects to be delivered by Him just as they were.

"... They trusted in You, and were not ashamed" (v.5b). The primary meaning of the Hebrew word here translated "ashamed" ("confounded" in KJV) is "to fall into disgrace, normally through failure, either of self or of an object of trust". Shame will be the final end of all who trust in false gods (Isaiah 42:17), and of all who trust in man and in man-made religions (Isaiah 30:1). But no one who trusted in the God of Israel ever fell into disgrace through their God failing them. Christ is here confessing His own trust in the God of His fathers, and His confidence of never being ashamed for doing so. His prayer has been answered. Although He "endured the cross, despising the shame", He now "has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:2).

III. Christ describes the ridicule He suffers from the wicked (vv.6-8).

"But I am a worm, and no man; ..." (v.6a).

1. Christ was "a worm" in the sense of being what the worm symbolizes: a weak, helpless, and loathsome thing. Man in his native spiritual depravity is such a "worm" - even a "maggot"! (Job 25:6). When Christ viewed the glory of His divine nature enshrouded in the worm of our human nature, especially with the sins of His people imputed to Him, He also confessed to being a "worm". But the primary sense here is probably that of Christ viewed by fellowmen. They scorned Him as they would a weak, helpless, and loathsome worm or maggot. They would say of Him, "He has no form or comeliness; and when we see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him. He is despised and rejected by men .... And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him" (Isaiah 53:2f).

2. Christ therefore was "no man" in the eyes of His countrymen. This is no denial of His humanity. Rather, it is an acknowledgment that His countrymen denied that He had ever distinguished Himself among them as a man worthy of honor, and was treated by them in a manner in which no man should be treated.

"... A reproach of men, ..." (v.6b). What men would reproach Christ? Those who reproach God! Christ therefore confessed to His Father, "And the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me" (Psalm 69:9 / Romans 15:3). Rebels against God cannot touch Him. They therefore make Christ to be object of all their scorn against God. As surely as men honor the Father by honoring His Son (John 5:23), so surely do they reproach God by reproaching His Christ.

"... and despised by the people" (v.6c). In the eyes of men who considered Christ a worm and no man, "He is despised and rejected by men. ... And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him" (Isaiah 53:3). But as for His God, "He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; nor has He hidden His face from Him" (Psalm 22:24).

"All those who see Me ridicule Me; ..." (v.7a). Christ was ridiculed by Roman soldiers in Pilate's judgment hall (Matthew 27:27-31), by His own countrymen when they beheld Him on His cross (Matthew 27:39f), and even by His nation's governing officials (Matthew 27:41f).

"... They shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, ..." (v.7b). These are gestures of contempt. Men who will not praise Christ with their lips (as in Psalm 63:3, 5) will stick out their lips and tongues in contempt of Him. Men who will not bow their heads in reverence to Christ (as in Nehemiah 8:6) will wag their heads in contempt of Him. (What we read here and in the next verse of Christ was literally fulfilled in Matthew 27:39, 43.)

"He trusted in the LORD, let Him rescue Him; let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!" (v.8). Men spoke these words in contempt of Christ; God fulfills their words in contempt of them. "He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; the LORD shall hold them in derision. Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, and distress them in His deep displeasure: 'Yet I have set My King on My holy hill of Zion.'" (Psalm 2:4-6).

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~