Psalm 22 delineates some of David's sufferings. What he went through and wrote about foreshadowed not only what Jesus would have to endure on the cross but what he would say about his sufferings. First, there's the dynamic opening statement (Psalm 22:1), which Christ quoted on the cross in Aramaic when he said: "'ELI ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI' that is, 'My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?'"
People ridiculed David, just as they would the Christ: "But I am a worm, and no man, a reproach of men, and despised by the people. All who see me ridicule me . . ." (Psalm 22:6-7)
The description of suffering in verses 14-17 is medically accurate for someone undergoing the gruesome execution by crucifixion: "I am poured out like water, and all My bones are out of joint. My heart is like wax, it has melted within Me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and My tongue clings to My jaws . . . They pierced My hands and My feet. I can count all My bones . . . " (Psalm 22:14-17)
Crucifixion, as a form of execution, was unknown in Judea at the time David wrote these verses (roughly around 1000 B.C.). Stoning was the traditional method of execution among the Jews, with crucifixion or impalement being the preferred method of capital punishment among the Assyrians, Persians, Greeks (especially by Alexander the Great), and Romans, who all rose to power in later centuries. Only by supernatural inspiration could David have described the agonies of dying in a way totally UNKNOWN in his culture. Finally, like Christ, David describes his clothes being gambled for by his persecutors: "They divide My garments among them, and for My clothing they cast lots." (Psalm 22:18)
Part of Psalm 22:16 has long been controversial because Jews use a different reading which avoids its obvious application to the sufferings of Christ: " . . . They pierced my hands and my feet." (Psalm 22:16)
The Hebrew (Masoretic) text has "like a lion" in place of "they pierced," which produces this unlikely reading: "like a lion my hands and feet." Since these two readings are based upon changing one similarly shaped final consonant for another in the Hebrew word in question, evidently some long ago scribe mistakenly took one for another. Importantly, the ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament, the Septuagint, made some time before Jesus was born (c. 250 - 100 B.C.), DOES contain the reading "they pierced." Along with the witness of the Syriac and Latin translations of the Old Testament, this shows "they pierced" was the original text, not "like a lion." Did Isaiah foretell the suffering of a NATION or a PERSON? Undeniably, the most specific prophecy of Jesus' first coming is Isaiah 52:13 to 53:12. This passage, the fourth of Isaiah's "servant songs," describes the "mournful Messiah" who died for the sins of others in a vicarious, substitutionary atonement. Notice this important section of Isaiah: "Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. Yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for OUR transgressions, he was bruised for OUR iniquities. The chastisement for OUR peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. "Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him. He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand. He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, for He shall bear their iniquities." (Isaiah 53:4-5, 10-11)
Notice that the Servant does not just suffer because of others directly attacking or injuring Him. Rather, he willingly takes on the sins of OTHERS and bears them in their place. Just as an animal sacrificed in a guilt offering bore symbolically the sin of the individual human in question, although it (the animal) had done nothing wrong, so does the Suffering Servant, who: " . . . Because He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth." (Isaiah 53:9)
yet He died for others. Nowadays Jews normally maintain that this section of Scripture speaks of Israel. But this view didn't become widespread among them until the thirteenth century A.D., primarily due to the influence of the eleventh-century rabbi called RASHI. Anciently, as attested by Jewish writings such as the Targum (paraphrases of the Old Testament), the Talmud (the encyclopedic collection of Jewish law and tradition completed by the fifth century A.D.), and the Midrashim (commentaries on the Old Testament), this part of Isaiah was seen as Messianic. The ancient Jewish viewpoint was correct, since the language of Isaiah 52:13 to 53:12 is very personal and singular in its references to the Servant by its use of "he," "him," etc. And, most importantly, the servant is distinguished from Israel when Isaiah writes that: "And the Lord has laid on HIM the iniquity of US (Isaiah's nation or Israel) all." (Isaiah 53:6) Also notice: "For HE was cut off from the land of the living, for the transgressions of MY PEOPLE He was stricken." (Isaiah 53:8)
When carefully examined, calling this section of Isaiah a parabolic description of Israel simply isn't persuasive. WHEN does Daniel's seventy weeks prophecy state the Messiah should appear? Finally, let's notice the Seventy Weeks prophecy of Daniel 9:24-27. While it is difficult to interpret with full certainty, the fact remains that it proves the Messiah had to appear by the first century A.D. By using the day-for-a-year principle (Numbers 14:33-34; Ezekiel 4:4-6), we know that the 7 weeks and the 62 weeks amount to 483 years: "Seventy weeks are determined for your people and for your holy city, to finish the transgression, to make an end of sins, to make reconciliation for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to ANOINT THE MOST HOLY. "Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the command to restore and build Jerusalem until MESSIAH the Prince, there shall be SEVEN WEEKS and SIXTY-TWO WEEKS . . . "And after the SIXTY-TWO WEEKS Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself . . . Then he shall confirm a covenant with many for one week. But in the middle of the week He shall bring an end to sacrifice and offering. . . ." (Daniel 9:24-27)
Counting 483 years from the time king Artaxerxes of Persia issued a decree (458 B.C.), while skipping the year "0" since there was no such thing, comes out to 26 A.D. This was the very first year of Jesus' public ministry. He was crucified 3 1/2 years later (as Daniel 9:27 prophecies) on Wednesday, April 5th in 30 A.D. While one can argue and dispute about the EXACT year of Jesus' birth or death, or which decree by which Persian king to start counting from, the fact remains that Daniel has the Messiah appearing by the first century A.D. To maintain the Messiah is still only in the future, centuries and centuries after the 69 weeks have expired is simply absurd, especially when using one part of the Bible to interpret another part by the day-for-a-year principle. The Old Testament clearly prophesies of a "mournful messiah" -- predictions fulfilled by Jesus of Nazareth in the first century A.D. We must not let the Old Testament images of the "conquering Messiah" who ushers in utopia blind us to how the Messiah also came to die for humanity's sins. The Messianic prophecies simply were not going to be fulfilled all at once, since this would involve manifest contradictions. Scripture portrays the Messiah in two very different ways, as both exalted and humble. In the Talmud (Sanhedrin 98a), one rabbi attempted to explain how the Messiah would appear in the clouds of heaven (Daniel 7:13) yet also be "lowly and riding on a donkey, a colt, the foal of a donkey." (Zechariah 9:9). He said if Israel was worthy, it would be the former, but if unworthy, the latter! Hence, early in Jesus' ministry, He quoted from Isaiah 61:1-2 (in Luke 4:18-19), but suddenly stopped quoting Isaiah where it would not be fulfilled until the second coming (verse 2): "the day of vengeance of our God." May we not emphasize the "conquering Messiah" so much that we forget the "mournful Messiah" who died for our sins! | 