Psalms of Lament (Psalm 22)

Psalm 22 - Psalms of Lament (Psalm 22)

• Summary: Laments are prayers that express anger, frustration, grief and disappointment with God. They are some of the most common prayers in the Book of Psalms. Of the laments, Psalm 22 is one of the most intense, expressing the psalmist’s feelings of abandonment by God during one of the most trying times of his life. The psalm takes on greater significance because it was prayed by Jesus from the cross.

• Notes:

  • ELEMENTS OF LAMENT

    • Address: the names that the psalmist uses to address God (YHWH, Elohim, El, etc.)
    • Complaint: the heart of the lament, “If God is good and powerful, explain this”
    • Request: a prayer for God to act
    • Motivation: a rationale for God to act
    • Confidence: trust the God has heard the prayer and will act, future-oriented

  • DAVID PRAYS PSALM 22

    • Alone (1-11)

      • Abandoned by God, David cries out three times for God’s attention (1-2)
      • He reflects on his community (3-5), his humanity (6), his history (7-10)

    • Surrounded (12-21)

      • Animal-like enemies: bulls, lions, dogs (12,13,16,20,21)
      • Physical suffering: poured out, bones out of joint, heart melted, thirsty, pierced (14-16)
      • Human enemies: piercing, gloating, dividing up his property (16-18)

    • Seen (22-31)

      • “I will praise you” (22), his futility turns to faith
      • “Let Israel praise you” (23-25), invites others to trust YHWH as well
      • “All will praise you” (26-31), envisions universal worship, poor and rich, old and unborn

  • JESUS PRAYS PSALM 22 - Common language and circumstances (“My God, My God...mocking crowd, poured out, bones

out of joint, heart melting like wax, thirst, evildoers, pierced hands and feet, cast lots for clothing) - Hebrews 2:12 quotes Jesus speaking vs. 22, and vs. 31 sounds very much like “It is finished.” - Jesus demonstrates that God is present in our suffering. He hasn’t abandoned us, rather He is experiencing our pain with us. The fact that God is an infinitely higher order of being suggests that he has the capacity to experience the totality of human suffering at an ultimate level. - Jesus wept (John 11:35) and was “a man of suffering, and familiar with pain” (Isaiah 53:3).

Discussion:

1. Have you ever prayed a lament that included all five elements as found in the psalms? What was the occasion? What was the result?
2. How do you feel about the accusation of abandonment that David levels at God? Is he out of line in speaking to God in this way?
3. David’s memory of God’s past faithfulness only seems to make his present suffering that much more confusing. How can recalling the past give us confidence in God's help in the present?
4. Is it enough to know that even though God doesn’t always remove suffering, He is still suffering with you?
5. In what ways has God made his presence known to you during times of suffering?
6. How does the psalmist’s vision of the universal worship of God help you press on through seasons of lament?