Psalm 22:1-31

¹   My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning?
²   O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer;
and by night, but find no rest.

³   Yet you are holy,
enthroned on the praises of Israel.
⁴   In you our ancestors trusted;
they trusted, and you delivered them.
⁵   To you they cried, and were saved;
in you they trusted, and were not put to shame.

⁶   But I am a worm, and not human;
scorned by others, and despised by the people.
⁷   All who see me mock at me;
they make mouths at me, they shake their heads;
⁸   “Commit your cause to the LORD; let him deliver —
let him rescue the one in whom he delights!”

⁹   Yet it was you who took me from the womb;
you kept me safe on my mother’s breast.
¹⁰  On you I was cast from my birth,
and since my mother bore me you have been my God.
¹¹  Do not be far from me,
for trouble is near
and there is no one to help.

¹²  Many bulls encircle me,
strong bulls of Bashan surround me;
¹³  they open wide their mouths at me,
like a ravening and roaring lion.
¹⁴  I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are out of joint;
my heart is like wax;
it is melted within my breast;
¹⁵  my mouth is dried up like a potsherd,
and my tongue sticks to my jaws;
you lay me in the dust of death.

¹⁶  For dogs are all around me;
a company of evildoers encircles me.
My hands and feet have shriveled;
¹⁷  I can count all my bones.
They stare and gloat over me;
¹⁸  they divide my clothes among themselves,
and for my clothing they cast lots.

¹⁹  But you, O LORD, do not be far away!
O my help, come quickly to my aid!
²⁰  Deliver my soul from the sword,
my life from the power of the dog!
²¹       Save me from the mouth of the lion!

From the horns of the wild oxen you have rescued me.
²²  I will tell of your name to my brothers and sisters;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:
²³  You who fear the LORD, praise him!
All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him;
stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!
²⁴  For he did not despise or abhor
the affliction of the afflicted;
he did not hide his face from me,
but heard when I cried to him.

²⁵  From you comes my praise in the great congregation;
my vows I will pay before those who fear him.
²⁶  The poor shall eat and be satisfied;
those who seek him shall praise the LORD.
May your hearts live forever!

²⁷  All the ends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the LORD;
and all the families of the nations
shall worship before him.
sup>28  For dominion belongs to the LORD,
and he rules over the nations.

²⁹  To him, indeed, shall all who sleep in the earth bow down;
before him shall bow all who go down to the dust,
and I shall live for him.
³⁰  Posterity will serve him;
future generations will be told about the Lord,
³¹  and proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn,
saying that he has done it.

• Light a candle to remember Christ’s presence with you.
• Sit five to fifteen minutes in silence bringing your attention to the Breath.
• As you walk the Via Dolorosa, the Way of Suffering, with Jesus, what is the cry that shouts out from the very depth of your being?
• Oh, Lord, do not be far away!
• As you walk the Via Dolorosa, the Way of Suffering, with Jesus, what part of you shouts, “Crucify”?
• Oh, Lord, do not be far away!
• As you walk the Via Dolorosa, the Way of Suffering, with Jesus, what part of you shouts, “But he is innocent!”
• Oh Lord, do not be far away!
• As you walk the Via Dolorosa, the Way of Suffering, with Jesus, what part of you is dying with Jesus on the cross?
• Oh, Lord, do not be far away!
• I need you.
• What is your message from God?
• Give thanks to God for this time in prayer and for any new insights you have received.
• Share as you feel led in the reply box below.