This is the final post on this short series on Psalm 22. The other three can be found here:
Now look at v24 . “For He has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted, and He has not hidden His face from Him, but has heard when He cried to Him”. The cry of dereliction in v1 is how it felt in v1, but it was not the end of the story. We may go through times when it seems that God has hidden His face from us, is unaware of what we are going through, when He seems far off. But He is never far off, and He has never forgotten us.
The end result is salvation, and salvation for all who seek the Lord. We then see in v27 an expansion of the scope of salvation. It is not just for Israel, but for the whole world. The nations will turn to the Lord and receive from Him. Rich and poor alike will bow down before the Lord. The salvation of God, the righteousness of God, will be declared to many future generations. And we know that all this has happened.
This Psalm is not really a psalm of suffering, it is certainly not a Psalm of lamentation. It is a Psalm of God’s victory achieved through suffering. It has also been noted that in this psalm there is no confession of psalm, and no imprecations (calling down judgement on His enemies).
This is a psalm of salvation!
So what do we see in this psalm? We see the very real suffering experienced, and all the associated feelings that go with it. We see an amazing outcome to all this. We also see something of how to deal with the experiences and feelings of going through the suffering. The great and final victory does not mean that there isn't suffering along the way. Equally, the times of suffering do not mean that the final outcome is in doubt. Indeed, we know that it was through the suffering of the cross that the victory was won.
No comments:
Post a Comment