"But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel." [Psa 22:3]
Regarding when Jesus was suffering at the hands of men, Isaiah says, “As many were put to silence at thee; His appearance was disfigured beyond that of a man, and the outline of His body beyond the sons of men.” [Isa 52:14] The LORD tells us here that Jesus’ appearance was so badly marred by men that He ceased to look like a human being. And all that was before He got to the cross; this does not take into account the period of which Jesus says through David,
“I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint: my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels. My strength is dried up like a potsherd; and my tongue cleaveth to my jaws; and thou hast brought me into the dust of death. For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.” [Psa 22:14-16]
During Jesus’ “passion,” [Acts 1:3] which He endured “for the joy that was set before Him,” [Heb 12:2] through which Jesus was afflicted beyond measure, there was yet one more thing which pleased The Father to put upon His Son. In addition to the physical mutilation, Christ also had to be forsaken by God His Father. He had to taste that spiritual death for us. As Jesus cried out in Psalms and upon the cross, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” [Psa 22:1] Yes, Jesus was utterly cast off from The Father. Forsaken. Jesus goes on, saying,
“…why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? O my God, I cry in the day time, but thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent.” [Psa 22:1-2]
In His greatest time of distress, when Jesus, as a man who had to endure all of our temptations in like manner yet without sin [Heb 4:15], was afflicted and crushed as the grape upon the press, there was none to help Him. As the curse of the law, of which Jesus was made into [Gal 3:13] says, “thy heaven that is over thy head shall be brass, and the earth that is under thee shall be iron.” [Deut 28:23] Jesus was not heard in His cries. God was far from helping Him, and so too was man. Though Jesus cried out, yet according to the Psalms’ words, God did not hear.
And though we see that Jesus was heavily tormented, forsaken, and cast off by God, none of His words reaching heaven’s ears, yet in all that distress, Jesus still trusted and hoped in God. For as our verse today says, quoting Christ, “But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.” [Psa 22:3] Jesus’ attitude was, in all of this, that God was perfectly holy. Jesus refused to give up hope; He refused to sin, to lose faith in His Father. Still, no matter the pain, Jesus said, “but thou art Holy.” Thanks be to our God, to Christ our King, who prevailed and has overcome. For because of His righteous life and victory, we too shall overcome. Through Jesus’ example here we see that we too can have a good attitude in all distress; for “The LORD is righteous in all His ways, and holy in all His works.” [Psa 145:17]
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