Psalm 22:16 Jesus Pierced Prophecy

Psalm 22:17 (in Hebrew it is Psalm 22:16) is a fascinating passage that I think, with all pun intended “nailed” the argument that Jesus is the predicted suffering Messiah with a prophecy that the Messiah would be pierced:

For dogs have surrounded me; A band of evildoers has encompassed me; They pierced my hands and my feet.

The prophecy “They pierced my hands and my feet” is translated by non-Messianic Jews as “Like a lion, my hands and my feet” and there are questions of Textual Criticism.

So which reading should one take?

This video that Alex Kruse shared was so fascinating and takes on this issue from a fresh way by considering not just Textual Criticism but the structure of Psalm 22 itself.

You got to watch it:

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Psalm 24: The Messiah as Coming King

 

The Messiah as Coming King

Psalm 24

Establishing the Need: Do we only think of Jesus as a friend and a Savior and have forgotten that He is the King of Kings?

 

Purpose: In this study we shall see three characteristics of the Messiah as a King so that we would honor Him as Lord of our life.

1. The Messiah reign over the world (v.1-2)
2. The Messiah is Holy (v.3-6)
3. The Messiah is glorious (v.7-10)

 

Introductory matters

This is written by David as the subscript states: “A Psalm of David.”

Psalm 24 is part of a trio of Psalm on the Messiah beginning in Psalm 22.[1]

We can chart these three Messianic Psalm in the following manner[2]:

Psalm 22               Psalm 23               Psalm 24

Person            Servant                  Shepherd               Sovereign

Ministry         Suffering               Providing               Reigning

Time               Past                        Present                   Future

Symbol          Cross                      Crook                     Crown

 

Here for Psalm 24 we see that the Messiah is a coming King.

There is an interchange of the Messiah/God throughout the Psalm which we shouldn’t be surprised as New Testament Christian since the Messiah would be God.

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Psalm 23: The Lord is My Shepherd

 

The Lord is My Shepherd

Psalm 23

Purpose: Today we shall see the three seasons in our lives in which Christ is our shepherd so that we would trust in Him and have Him as our Shepherd today.

1. The Lord is my shepherd during ordinary times (v.1-3)
2. The Lord is my shepherd during difficult times (v.4-5)
3. The Lord is my shepherd for eternity (v.6)

Some words about Shepherd: The verse opens up right away with the declaration that “The Lord is my shepherd” (v.1)

• “Lord” here literally is “Yahweh.” It is the subject and appears twice in this Psalm, with it appearing here in the beginning of the Psalm and also in the last verse in the end of the Psalm.
• Why is the person that says “my” here? This is a Psalm by David according to the subscript above verse 1: “A Psalm of David”
• Remember David was once a Shepherd and he would have written about something he knew about.
• The imagery of a shepherd is also one in which the people of Israel would have been familiar with as well.
• The first person singular suffix here indicates this is David speaking possessively of the Shepherd. That is, God isn’t just “a Shepherd” but “my Shepherd.”  We need to see God as “my shepherd” too.
• More about Shepherd in the Bible
  • King Saul was told by God to shepherd God’s people and Scripture in 2 Samuel 5:2 and Ezekiel 37:24 he failed in this task; this point shouldn’t be missed since David authored Psalm 23 and he recognized that God was His Shepherd.
  • There are also other Psalms that talk about God as Shepherd in Psalms 28:9; 80:1. But more importantly Jesus also saw Himself as the Shepherd in John 10:11-15.
• Ultimately I see Psalm 23 to be talking about Jesus because Psalm 23 is part of a three part Psalm about the Messiah.
  • Psalm 22 is about Jesus in the past: He is the one suffering on the Cross.
  • Psalm 23 is about Jesus in the present: He is our Shepherd.
  • Psalm 24 is about Jesus in the future: He is the coming King.
• I think we can use interchangeably God and Christ for shepherd in this Psalm.

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Psalm 22: Four Prophetic Proofs to Persuade you that Jesus is the Promised Messiah

 

Four Prophetic Proofs to Persuade you that Jesus is the Promised Messiah

Psalm 22

Purpose: Here are four prophetic proofs  to persuade you that Jesus is the promised Messiah, so you will praise Him.

Psalms 22 points to Jesus:

1. According to the New Testament.
2. And it is not about David or Esther.
3. And fits with Jesus perfectly. 
4. Promised Praise.

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This Palm Sunday Determine to Study Messianic Psalms

It’s Palm Sunday today.  This is observed by some Christians to recall Jesus’ final week before His crucifixion and resurrection.  The final week of Jesus’ life is indeed amazing.  It changed history.

For this Palm Sunday why won’t you consider immersing yourself in knowing the Messianic prophecies in the Bible?  Check out our “Messianic Psalms: 4 Messages” and listen to them with your Bibles handy.  It’s a worthwhile endeavor for this week.

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Review: The Messiah and the Psalms by Richard Belcher

Richard P. Belcher Jr.  The Messiah And The Psalms.  Ross-shire, Scotland: Mentor Imprint, September 20^th, 2014. 288 pp.

4 out of 5

Purchase: Westminster | Amazon

This book is on the topic of a Christ and the Psalms by an Old Testament professor at Reformed Theological Seminary.  The author Richard Belcher takes a Christocentric approach towards the Psalms.  If you are interested in the Psalms, Messianic prophecies, hermeneutics and preaching Christ this book might be for you even if you don’t necessarily agree with everything the author has to say.

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Messianic Psalms: 4 Messages

One of the amazing truths about the Bible and Christianity is the fact that Scripture prophesied about the Messiah hundreds of years before it happened.

Here’s a 4 part series on Messianic Prophecies as found in the Psalm.

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