PROPHETIC WORDS
Play Audio
If you prefer listening to today’s Bible guide reading, play this audio file.
If the audio bar is not appearing, click here to play the audio.
Opening Prayer
Help me, Lord, to feel the pain in this psalm as I read its description of desperate separation from God.
Read PSALM 22
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
Psalm
Psalm 22
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.
3 Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One; you are the praise of Israel.
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.”
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.
11 Do not be far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help.
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.
15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth; you lay me in the dust of death.
16 Dogs have surrounded me; a band of evil men has encircled me, they have pierced my hands and my feet.
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.
19 But you, O LORD, be not far off; O my Strength, come quickly to help me.
20 Deliver my life from the sword, my precious life from the power of the dogs.
21 Rescue me from the mouth of the lions; save me from the horns of the wild oxen.
22 I will declare your name to my brothers; in the congregation I will praise you.
23 You who fear the LORD, praise him! All you descendants of Jacob, honor him! Revere him, all you descendants of Israel!
24 For he has not despised or disdained the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help.
25 From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly; before those who fear you will I fulfill my vows.
26 The poor will eat and be satisfied; they who seek the LORD will praise him- may your hearts live forever!
27 All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him,
28 for dominion belongs to the LORD and he rules over the nations.
29 All the rich of the earth will feast and worship; all who go down to the dust will kneel before him- those who cannot keep themselves alive.
30 Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about the Lord.
31 They will proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn- for he has done it.
Reflect
This psalm covers a range of emotions. Thank God for times of joy, but also be thankful for his presence with you during dark moments and times of suffering (Isaiah 43:2).Verses 1 to 21 are prophetic words from David, which would be fulfilled through Jesus’ extreme anguish on the cross hundreds of years later. Clearly, David himself is suffering, but like his descendant, the promised Messiah, he ultimately gains victory. Despite feeling desolate and rejected (v. 1), David holds on to the hope he has in God (vv. 3—5, 9, 10), and the low points in this psalm are followed by an affirmation of God’s faithfulness. In his despair, David isn’t afraid to be completely honest with God and doesn’t spare his words. Don’t be afraid to do the same when you are struggling. God can take it! He knows how we feel and cares deeply.
The turning point in this psalm is verse 22, when David acknowledges God’s power and authority. He praises God because he is sovereign in all circumstances—an example to follow during suffering. Returning to verse 1, what an impact Jesus’ words from the cross must have had on his loving Father! At what great cost was the sacrifice of his only Son for our salvation!
Apply
Reflect on these words and be thankful for all that Jesus suffered for your sake: ‘Oh, the love that drew salvation’s plan! / Oh, the grace that brought it down to man! / Oh, the mighty gulf that God did span/ At Calvary!’*
Closing prayer
Thank you, Heavenly Father, that your plan of salvation included me. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for enduring the cross for me. Holy Spirit, thank you for making the truth of the gospel mine.
*‘At Calvary’, William R. Newell 1895.
Book and Author Intros
Extras
Click here to sign up to receive the EXTRAs via email each quarter.
© 2026 Scripture Union U.S.A. All rights reserved. Reproduction of the whole or any part of the contents without written permission is prohibited.
Discovery is published in the USA under license from Scripture Union England and Wales, Trinity House, Opal Court, Opal Drive, Fox Milne, Milton Keynes, MK15 0DF.