1 Psalm 22 Rough and somewhat literal translation by Richard M Wright Superscription For the director. According to the Doe of the Dawn. A psalm of(?) David. Lament Ia My G-d 1 my G-d why did you abandon me? (Why so) far from saving me (and from) (the) words of my roaring? My God, I cry by day and you do not answer. And (by) night and (there is) no rest 2 for me. Confidence I And you (are) holy / inhabiting the praises of Israel (or dwelling in the praises of ). My fathers (or ancestors) trusted in you. They trusted and you delivered 3 them. 4 To you they cried out and they escaped. They trusted in you and they were not ashamed. Lament IIa And I am a worm and no(t a) man / (the) reproach of humanity 5 and despised by (the) people. All seeing me mock me. They open (their) lip(s) 6 / they shake (their) head(s). Confidence II Trust(?) 7 (in) Yhwh and he will rescue you. He will save you because (he) delights in you. Because you burst me forth(?) 8 from (the) womb / leaning 9 me against the breasts 10 of my mother. On you I was cast from (the) womb. From the womb of my 1 Hebrew ʾel rather than the more common ʾelohi(y)m. I use G-d to help indicate the distinction. 2 Hebrew du(w)miyyah(h) which yeah we are not entirely sure how to translate or interpret this. 3 One of the difficulties in translating Hebrew into English is the various terms that can be translated save, deliver, rescue. How to reflect the distinctions in English? 4 This is interesting. We see the unusual alternative 3mp suffix mo(w) which also appears several times in Psalm 2. Gesenius says this is an archaic(?) pronominal suffix that might represent later texts trying to sound archaic. 5 Hebrew ʾadam which is difficult to translate. Not so much a man but more like Man or humankind. 6 Literally. One could translate they whisper, they open their mouths? Something to do with mockery. 7 This is a minor mess. Hebrew g-l-l that normally means roll (away) and here clearly imperative. So we are to understand this is what the mockers say. Some translations and versions present this not as direct quote but as he trusted in Yhwh Perhaps direct quotation but not said directly to the psalmist in his suffering. 8 Literally. So God pushes the psalmist out from the womb? Remarkable image. 9 Literally causes me to trust perhaps in the sense of causes me to lean > places me against. 10 Some versions render from the breasts of my mother which seems to tone down the remarkable feminine/maternal imagery. Could also be intimate father imagery.
2 Petition I Lament Ib Lament IIb Petition II mother my G-d (are) you. May you not be far from me. Because distress (is) near. Because there is no one helping (or there is no helper). Many bulls (or cows) surround 11 me. Strong ones of Bashan await(ing) me. They open their mouth(s) against me / (like?) a lion tears and roars. Like water I am poured out. And all my bones are separated. My heart is like wax / it melts within my chest (or organs). My strength dries up like a potsherd. And my tongue is sticking to my jaw. And I am placed in the dust of death. Because dogs surround me / an assembly 12 of those doing evil have struck me (or surrounded me) / like a lion (or they pierced???) 13 my hands and my feet. I count all my bones. They watch and they look at me. They divide my clothes for them(selves). And for my garment they cast lot(s) (or make lots fall). And you O Yhwh may you not be far (away). Hasten to (be) my help and my succor (or my succor and my help). Rescue my soul (or rescue me) from (the) sword / my precious life 14 from the 11 I confess that Hebrew syntax is not my strongest area. Sometimes in the same sentence there is a past and future verb form. So do we translate the past form as present? past? the future form as present? Strictly speaking there is no past or present or future tenses in Hebrew. That is not entirely true and scholars debate this. The point is (1) grammatical rules are less strict in poetry and (2) I am not versed in Hebrew syntax well enough to know exactly how to translate or interpret these different verb forms especially in poetry. In this case it is a past (affix or perfect ) form so perhaps surrounded me. Is the psalmist describing something that is happening right now or very recently? 12 Once again there are a few different terms that mean something like assembly, gathering, congregation. It is difficult to capture the different nuances in English. 13 This clause has generated debate and controversy. Years ago a fragment from Qumran that purportedly supports the reading been pierced. I am not enough of a Qumran scholar to form a strong opinion but when this was in the news wondered this is not the Masoretic Text with vowel points and such how do we know this is a passive not active verb? Anyways the Masoretic Text here is very clear = like a lion. Some manuscripts and editions along with Septuagint and Syriac read they bored/pierced(?) (the spelling is a little odd, not impossible, and even then, BDB 468b says meaning dubious for Hebrew k-w-r). Which came first? And if they bored was changed to like a lion (change the vowels a little) then who and when and why? The animal imagery would be consistent. 14 Hebrew yḥi(y)da(h) which is something like something (with which one is) united > precious?. We see something similar in Genesis 22 where God refers to Isaac as your yḥi(y)d. The one with whom you are united = the one who is precious to you?
3 Praise I? hand of (the) dog. Save me from the mouth of (the) lion / and answer me (or my lowly one // afflicted one) 15 from the horns of (the) wild oxen. I shall recount your name to my brothers (or brethren). In the midst (or in the middle of) (the) congregation (or gathering) I shall praise you. / (Those) fearing Yhwh praise him! All the seed of Jacob glorify him! And (be in) dread (of) him all the seed of Israel! 16 / Because he did not despise and did not detest the affliction of (the) afflicted. And he did not hide his face from him. 17 And hearing his cry for help (which came) to him. From you (comes) (or is) my praise in the great gathering (or congregation). I will fulfill my vows before those fearing him. The afflicted will eat and will be satisfied. Those seeking him will praise Yhwh. May your heart(s) live forever! 18 Praise II? (reason for praise) All (the) ends of (the) earth will remember and return to Yhwh. And all (the) families of (the) nations will bow down (in worship) before you. Because dominion (or kingship?) 19 (belongs) to Yhwh / and (he) rules over 20 the nations. / All the fat (ones) (or strong ones) 21 of (the) earth ate and bowed down (in worship) / all those going down (to the) dust kneeled before him. And his soul (will) not(???) (or to him) live(s). 22 Posterity will serve him / will tell of 15 James Mays discusses 22:21b. I do not entirely follow him here. 16 One version reads all the seed of Israel dreaded him rather than imperative. This seems to be a pattern in the Septuagint. Indicative(?) (or jussive) instead of imperative. Instead of do it! you sometimes see did it or may (someone) do it. Less direct and in your face. 17 Samuel Balentine wrote his doctoral thesis at Oxford on this phrase in the Hebrew Bible. You can buy it from Amazon for about $150. 18 Interesting expression. Shows up in an ancient Egyptian tale Tale of the Shipwrecked Mariner. Stock phrase? 19 There are a few different words for reign, rule and it is difficult to capture the different nuances in English. This is the more common mlu(w)ka(h) based on m-l-k which has to do with kingship. 20 Less common Hebrew m-š-l that also means rule but more in the sense of exercise power over, the power to sell or dispose of something. It does not indicate late Hebrew. See Richard Wright, Linguistic Evidence Yahwistic Source, 108-110. Regarding m-š-l see Choon-Leong Seow, Ecclesiastes, Anchor Bible Commentary. 21 Fat in the sense of healthy so larger and stronger than most. 22 This clause is a bit of a mess. Looks something like and his soul (life) not life(?). There are some text critical notes here that suggest something like and his (or my) soul (life) to him lives.
4 my Lord to the (coming?) generation. 23 They will come 24 and they will report his righteousness to a people not yet born (or being born) 25 that he acted (or did (this)). (1) Psalm 22 is long and rather challenging to read in Biblical Hebrew. Partly because of the vocabulary. That is normal in poetry. Lots of rare and unusual words. And partly because of some of the textual issues. Especially from about 27 to the end. And especially especially the last few verses. Many scholars try to interpret them and say hunh? what? what is going on here? this can t be right. And sure enough there are some text critical issues. Different translations and versions either (a) preserve a more original reading and/or (b) struggle to make sense of the original Hebrew text. Hold that thought for a moment. (2) Genre. Clearly Psalm 22 is an individual psalm of lament. Until you get to about verse 25(?) where there seems to be a rather abrupt shift from lament to praise or more precisely to thanksgiving. (3) The last scene is difficult to read in Hebrew and seems to stump some commentators. The text itself is a little difficult. And if we take the text at face value it seems to describe what? Some sort of great banquet? If that is the case I think the last section actually makes sense and we do not have to emend (edit or change) the text much. So after all the suffering and anguish of verses 1 through 24 we have some sort of celebration? victory meal? at the temple? with a great gathering of friends and fellow members of the community? I will fulfill my vows before those who fear God. We see statements like that in psalms of lament and of thanksgiving. I will praise you Thank you for saving me and now I will do what I promised. A vital theme in the psalter is not only cry out to God but make sure you thank him after you have been saved. (4) Linguistically am not sure how to evaluate Psalm 22. It has a few odd features such as a few examples of ʾel for God + unusual pronominal suffix in verse 5b + maybe that weird like a lion / they have bored or pierced in verse 17. I do not see anything (or at least not enough examples of anything) to suggest this is a northern or post-exilic text. 23 The words seem clear but the syntax is not. 24 Text critical note here. Goes with the previous clause? 25 The words are clear but the sense of the clause is not.
5 (4b) Does the last section describe some sort of victory meal at the temple? That might narrow down the dates a little. Before 600 BC or after 500. Stop laughing. Does seed of Jacob help? (5) I will not attempt a verse by verse commentary. This is a powerful psalm that begins with a clear note of protest. I am suffering pretty badly. I have cried or am crying out for help. My ancestors cried out for help and you rescued them. So why have you abandoned me? Why are you so far away? Note there is trouble with (a) God (b) others (c) self. (6) What is the psalmist experiencing? This is some of the most violent(?) imagery in the psalter. Almost like someone is surrounded by wild animals who are tearing him to shreds he is physically(?) coming apart and people clearly are watching and making fun of him. Also note the brief reference to death. In the psalter if you are heading toward death then in a way you are already dead. Death is not simply a state of being. It is a movement in the direction of existence. The psalter occasionally refers to those going down to the pit / dust alongside those who are dead and in the pit / grave / Sheol. Addendum = I suggest that chaos is a zone on the way toward death (= non-existence). Compare to the discussion of what motivates Melkor (Morgoth) in J R R Tolkien, Morgoth s Ring. Melkor causes chaos. That is clear enough. His ultimate goal however is to reduce everything to non-existence. By contrast Sauron is more of a control freak who seems more concerned with miserable order than destruction for its own sake. (6b) So getting back to the question what is the psalmist experiencing? Physical attack? Death by stress? Sickness that causes the body to collapse? Almost sounds like Job. Who was surrounded by friends who oh. (7) I encourage us to focus on the last section. Which contains some surprises. Assuming we even read it correctly. God does not despise the affliction of the afflicted?!? We seem to have references to the afflicted eating and being satisfied. With those who are dead or dying? praising God? That is shocking. The psalter is usually pretty consistent arguing that the dead do not praise God. This might be the only(?!?) reference in the Old Testament to the dead (or dying) praising God and even then it is not clear. Note the opposite parallelism however. The fat ones (= healthy and strong) // those going down to the dust (= dead and/or dying). (8) Take a moment (ahem) to feast upon the scope of the imagery in the last section. All the families ends of the earth the healthy and the dying rich and poor (?) posterity generation yet unborn. So not just some guy who got
6 chewed up by disease or violence or social rejection shows up at the temple and says thanks, God, that was bad but some sort of victory feast at the temple(?) before the community that includes the poor and afflicted along with the healthy and the dying and somehow the ripples of this celebration reach through space and time!?! (8b) And the kingdom er kingship belongs to Yhwh. Because his is the kingdom and the power and the glory or something. (9) Psalm 22 plays a big role in the Passion narratives of the Synoptic gospels (especially Mark) which refer to the Psalms most particularly Psalm 22. (Several references or allusions in Mark 15. Compare also Psalm 69.) I am not saying Psalm 22 somehow predicts the Passion. More that the Gospel writers (especially Mark) connect the Passion story to Psalm 22 and invite us to interpret the Passion of Jesus in light of Psalm 22. Or even invite us to interpret Psalm 22 in light of the Passion. I believe strongly that the influence (or direction of interpretation) goes both ways. (9b) When Jesus quotes(?) Psalm 22:1 on the cross is he quoting it? echoing it? אלי אלי למא (= sabachthani sounding like it? identifying with it? Eli eli lama ʾeliשׁבקתני ʾeli lmaʾ shvaqtaní(y)) is a bit different from the usual (official) Aramaic translation of Psalm 22:1. (10) So how about that Last Supper deal. Is that part of the literary-theological matrix? If the last section of Psalm 22 is some sort of victory meal does that help us understand the symbolism of the Last Supper? Is the Last Supper a kind of victory (or pre-victory) meal such as we encounter in Psalm 22? (11) Really going out on a limb here I wonder how much Psalm 22 plays a role in the kingdom of God theme that seems to be a central thesis in the Gospel narratives. That God sees and cares about and does not reject the poor and their suffering blessed are the poor those who mourn (12) Remember a general rule is that each psalm is connected to the psalm that comes before and the psalm that comes after. So Psalm X goes with Psalm X-1 and Psalm X+1. Which means Psalm 22 is somehow connected to Psalm 23. Is it? How so? And why? I discussed this with my students at LSU.