Psalm 22:25 - Printer Friendly

ESV: From you comes my praise in the great congregation; my vows I will perform before those who fear him.

NIV: From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly; before those who fear you I will fulfill my vows.

NASB: From You comes my praise in the great assembly; I shall pay my vows before those who fear Him.

CSB: I will give praise in the great assembly because of you; I will fulfill my vows before those who fear you.

NLT: I will praise you in the great assembly. I will fulfill my vows in the presence of those who worship you.

KJV: My praise shall be of thee in the great congregation: I will pay my vows before them that fear him.

NKJV: My praise shall be of You in the great assembly; I will pay My vows before those who fear Him.

The Lord is the ultimate source of praise, since He is the giver of all good things (1 Timothy 4:4; James 1:16–17). God has given David good reason to praise. He promises to fulfill the vows he made to the Lord. Apparently, when he was surrounded by his enemies and death loomed large, David made some vows to the Lord. He likely promised the Lord what service he would perform if the Lord delivered him. Now that he is delivered, he plans to perform those vows in the sight of those who reverence God.

In doing so, David would honor the exhortation of Numbers 30:2: "If a man vows a vow to the LORD, or swears an oath to bind himself by a pledge, he shall not break his word. He shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth." In times of trouble a person may vow to serve God or to turn over a new leaf if the Lord rescues him or her. Unfortunately, the person may forget to honor the vow. Of course, we are in no position to bargain with God; we cannot make deals with Him as if to buy His blessings. However, we must be careful about making vows, so if we make them, we ought to keep them.

Psalm 22:22–31 focuses on David's praise to God, whereas the earlier passage focused on his prayer to God. We read there that trouble took a heavy toll on David. Here we find David thanking the Lord for the triumph he gave David over his foes. We find a similar contrast in chapters 27 and 28 of Matthew. One records the awful death of Jesus, the other His amazing deliverance out of the grave.

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.