Psalms 22

1 TO THE OVERSEER. [SET] ON “DOE OF THE MORNING.” A PSALM OF DAVID. My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Far from My salvation, The words of My roaring?

My God, my God, why have you abandoned/deserted me? Why do you stay so far from me, and why do you not hear/help me [RHQ]? Why do you not hear me when I am groaning?

2 My God, I call by day, and You do not answer, And by night, and am not silent.

My God, every day I call to you during the daytime and during the night, but you do not answer me, so I am not able to sleep.

3 And You [are] holy, Sitting—the Praise of Israel.

But you are holy. You sit on your throne as king, and [we the people of] Israel praise you [PRS].

4 In You our fathers trusted; They trusted, and You deliver them.

Our ancestors trusted in you. [Because] they trusted in you, you rescued them.

5 To You they cried, and were delivered, In You they trusted, and were not disappointed.

When they cried out to you, you saved them. They trusted in you, and (they were not disappointed/you [saved them] as you said that you would).

6 And I [am] a worm, and no man, A reproach of man, and despised of the people.

But [you have not rescued me] [People despise me and consider that I am not a man]; [they think that] I am [as worthless as] a worm! Everyone [HYP] scorns me and despises me.

7 All beholding Me mock at Me, They make free with the lip—shake the head,

Everyone who sees me [HYP] makes fun of me. They sneer at me and [insult me by] shaking their heads [at me as though I were an evil man]. They say,

8 “Roll to YHWH, He delivers Him, He delivers Him, for He delighted in Him.”

“He trusts in Yahweh, so Yahweh should save him! [He says that] Yahweh is very pleased with him; if that is so, Yahweh should rescue him!”

9 For You [are] He bringing Me forth from the womb, Causing Me to trust, On the breasts of My mother.

[Why do] you [not] protect me [now as you did] when I was born? I was safe even when I was (nursing/drinking milk from my mother’s breasts).

10 On You I have been cast from the womb, From the belly of My mother You [are] My God.

[It was as though] you adopted me right when I was born. You have (been my God/taken care of me) ever since I was born.

11 Do not be far from Me, For adversity is near, for there is no helper.

So, (do not stay far from/stay close to) [LIT] me now because [enemies who will cause me much] trouble are near me, and there is no one [else] who can help me.

12 Many bulls have surrounded Me, Mighty ones of Bashan have surrounded Me,

[My enemies] surround me [like] a herd/group of wild bulls. [Fierce people, like those] strong bulls that graze [on the hills] in Bashan [area], encircle me.

13 They have opened their mouth against Me, A lion tearing and roaring.

[They are like] roaring lions that are attacking the animals that they want to kill [MET] [and eat]; they rush toward me [to kill] me; they [are like lions that] have their mouths open, [ready to tear their victims to pieces] [MET].

14 I have been poured out as waters, And all my bones have separated themselves, My heart has been like wax, It is melted in the midst of My bowels.

I am completely exhausted [MET], and all my bones are out of their joints/places. I [no longer expect that God will save me]; [that expectation is gone completely], like wax that has melted away.

15 My power is dried up as an earthen vessel, And My tongue is cleaving to My jaws.

My strength is [all dried up] [MET] like a broken piece of a clay jar that has dried [in the sun]. [I am so thirsty that] my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. O God, [I think that you are about to let] me die and become dirt!

16 And You appoint Me to the dust of death, For dogs have surrounded Me, A company of evildoers has surrounded Me, Piercing My hands and My feet.

My enemies [MET] surround me like a pack/group of wild dogs. A group of evil men has encircled me, [ready to attack me]. They have [already] smashed my hands and my feet.

17 I count all My bones—they look expectingly, They look on Me,

[I am so weak and thin that] my bones can be seen and counted. My enemies stare at me and (gloat/are happy) about [what has happened to] me.

18 They apportion My garments to themselves, And they cause a lot to fall for My clothing.

They looked at the clothes that I [was wearing] and gambled to determine which piece each of them would get.

19 And You, O YHWH, do not be far off, O My strength, hurry to help Me.

O Yahweh, do not stay far away from me! You who are my [source of] strength, come quickly and help me!

20 Deliver My soul from the sword, My only one from the paw of a dog.

Rescue me from [those who want to kill me with] their swords. Save me from those who are [like wild/fierce] dogs [MET].

21 Save Me from the mouth of a lion And You have answered Me from the horns of the high places!

Snatch me away from [my enemies who are] like lions whose jaws [are already open, ready to chew me up] Grab me away from [those men who are like] wild oxen [that attack other animals with] their horns [MET]!

22 I declare Your Name to My brothers, In the midst of the assembly I praise You.

[But you have saved me, so] I will declare to my fellow [Israelis] how great you [MTY] are. I will praise you among the group of your people gathered [to worship you].

23 You who fear YHWH, praise Him, All the seed of Jacob, honor Him, And be afraid of Him, all you seed of Israel.

You people who have an awesome respect for Yahweh, praise him! All you who are descended from Jacob, honor Yahweh! All you Israeli people, revere him!

24 For He has not despised, nor detested, The affliction of the afflicted, Nor has He hidden His face from Him, And in His crying to Him He hears.

He does not despise or ignore those who are suffering; he does not hide (his face/himself) from them. He has listened to them when they cried out to him for help.

25 Of You My praise [is] in the great assembly. I complete My vows before His fearers.

Yahweh, in the great gathering [of your people], I will praise you for what you have done. In the presence of those who revere you, I will offer [the sacrifices] that I promised.

26 The humble eat and are satisfied, Those seeking Him praise YHWH, Your heart lives forever.

The poor people [whom I have invited to the meal] will eat as much as they want. All who come worship Yahweh will praise him. I pray that [God will enable] you all to live a long and happy life!

27 Remember and return to YHWH, Do all the ends of the earth, And bow themselves before You, Do all families of the nations,

I pray that [people in all nations, even] in the remote areas, will think about Yahweh and turn to him, and that people from all the clans in the world will bow down before him.

28 For to YHWH [is] the kingdom, And He is ruling among nations.

Because Yahweh is the king! He rules all the nations.

29 And the fat ones of earth have eaten, And they bow themselves, All going down to dust bow before Him, And he [who] has not revived his soul.

I desire that all the rich people on the earth will bow before him. Some day they will die, but I want them to prostrate themselves on the ground in his presence [before they die].

30 A seed serves Him, It is declared of the Lord to the generation.

People (in the future generations/who have not been born yet) will also serve Yahweh. Our descendants will be told about what Yahweh [has done].

31 They come and declare His righteousness, To a people that is born, that He has made!

People who are not yet born, [who will live in future years], will be told how Yahweh rescued his people. People will tell them, “Yahweh did it!”