Psalm 22:11 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Be not far from me, for trouble is near, and there is none to help.

NIV: Do not be far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help.

NASB: Do not be far from me, for trouble is near; For there is no one to help.

CSB: Don't be far from me, because distress is near and there's no one to help.

NLT: Do not stay so far from me, for trouble is near, and no one else can help me.

KJV: Be not far from me; for trouble is near; for there is none to help.

NKJV: Be not far from Me, For trouble is near; For there is none to help.

In this verse David calls upon the Lord to be near him. His enemies surrounded him and death seemed imminent. He sees the Lord as the only one who can help him. The Messiah, the Lord Jesus, faced death all alone. No one could help Him. The Roman officials, the Jewish leaders, and the frenzied crowd that called for His crucifixion certainly wouldn't help Him. His disciples offered no help; they had fled when the soldiers arrested Jesus (Matthew 26:56). Nailed to a cross, there was nothing his loved ones could do but watch Him die (John 19:25–27). He alone experienced death as the one mediator between God and man (1 Timothy 2:5). He alone was sinless and therefore could bear the punishment every sinner deserved.

The apostle John wrote: "He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world" (1 John 2:2). Peter wrote: "For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit" (1 Peter 3:18).

Psalm 22:1–21 depicts David's questioning of God's silence and estrangement from him in his desperate situation. The structure of this prayer, and the images it evokes, are prophecies of Messiah's sufferings. Isaiah 53:3–8 likewise predicts these experiences and explains that Messiah endured them for us sinners. Matthew 27:46 reports that Jesus quoted Psalm 22:1 when he was suffering on the cross. First Peter 2:24 –25 refers to the sufferings of Jesus the Messiah and calls Jesus ''the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.''

This psalm may be divided into two parts. The first part, verses 1–21, contains an urgent prayer, in which the suppliant questions a holy God's distance from him in his time of suffering. It also contains a graphic description of the Messiah's suffering. Messiah's suffering included humiliation, the taunts of unbelievers, a distressful sense of loneliness, and intense physical pain. The second part of the psalm continues a prayer to be delivered, and includes a glimpse of resurrection and exaltation. The psalm praises God and announces a future time when God will receive worldwide acclaim and worship.

This psalm of David should be understood in association with Psalms 23 and 24. Psalm 22 describes the sufferings of the Good Shepherd, Jesus, for His sheep. Psalm 23 describes His care for His sheep. Psalm 24 describes His return in glory to reward His sheep. Psalm 22 includes prophetic sayings which Jesus uttered from the cross. It also predicts the afflictions he endured there (Matthew 27:27–56; Luke 22:63–65; 23:18–49). Isaiah 53 also prophesies the sufferings that Jesus suffered on the cross.

The book of Psalms is composed of individual songs, hymns, or poems, each of which is a ''Psalm'' in and of itself. These works contain a wide variety of themes. Some Psalms focus on praising and worshipping God. Others cry out in anguish over the pain of life. Still other Psalms look forward to the coming of the Messiah. While some Psalms are related, each has its own historical and biblical context.

Accessed 5/8/2024 10:19:33 AM