Psalm 22 Devotional:

1 David complained because he was brought into such extremities that he was past all hope, but after he had rehearsed the sorrows and griefs, wherewith he was vexed. 10 He recovereth himself from the bottomless pit of tentations, and groweth in hope. And here under his own person he setteth forth the figure of Christ, whom he did foresee by the spirit of prophecy, that he should marvelously, and strangely be rejected, and abased, before his Father should raise and exalt him again.

To him that excelleth upon Aijeleth Hashahar. A Psalm of David.

1 My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?

2 O my God, I cry in the day time, but thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent.

3 But thou art holy, and dost inhabit the praises of Israel.

4 Our fathers trusted in thee: they trusted, and thou didst deliver them.

5 They cried unto thee, and were delivered: they trusted in thee, and were not confounded.

6 But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people.

7 All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,

8 He trusted on the Lord that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him.

Previously we saw from Psalm 22 the manner in which David gathers comfort from prayer, even by meditating on God’s holiness and faithfulness and His past dealings with his people. For who ever looked back on God’s works towards His church and was stricken with grief or consternation on account of it? Has not God always been kind and compassionate towards His people? As it is written, “Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles’ wings, and brought you unto myself.” and again, “He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.” and again, “Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.” and again, “Thus saith the Lord, What iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain?” and again, “Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.” wherein we see the marvelous mercy of God towards His people which is no little comfort to the saints on their journey towards the celestial city. Therefore do the people of God draw water from these wells of salvation and receive comfort by looking back upon God’s works towards His people in time’s past. We ought also to note the humility of the prophet here demonstrated, inasmuch as he freely confesses that he is a worm and no man, and therefore not worthy of being looked upon as a man. And this is a particular attribute of the believer, even to confess our own sins before God and admit that we are worms before Him. For inasmuch as he is called a worm by himself, he is confessing he is more unworthy than his fathers, since he knows within himself what sins lurk hidden in his bosom, and inasmuch as he is called a worm by others, it is a grievous affliction which is cause to cry out to God for deliverance and comfort. For the wicked, those who are of this world cannot bear to be accused or maligned without becoming hostile or revengeful, but the righteous commit all their troubles unto God and cast their cares upon Him, whether from the hand of God or the mouths of wicked men. So David saith, “so let him curse, because the Lord hath said unto him, Curse David. Who shall then say, Wherefore hast thou done so?” and so in godly fashion does not revenge himself upon this wicked man although he was the king, but allows him his say. And this is peculiar to the godly who know in their own hearts that they have sinned and therefore are worthy of this cursing, so to speak. For to accuse one’s self of sin before God which is necessary in confession is to admit that we are worthy of the execration of God and will not be so troubled or vexed when cursed by men, seeing it is natural for us to be cursed who have sinned. Therefore David saith, “I am a worm and no man.” For knowing that he has offended God and is worthy of death, knows by this he has forfeited by his own merit any kind of manly reward. Inasmuch as man was bound to God by obedience and by the fall became vile, so he lost the honor and dignity of a man and is worthy to be cursed by even the vilest of men. So may this teach us humility.

Calvin,
David does not murmur against God as if God had dealt hardly with him; but in bewailing his condition, he says, in order the more effectually to induce God to show him mercy, that he is not accounted so much as a man. This, it is true, seems at first sight to have a tendency to discourage the mind, or rather to destroy faith; but it will appear more clearly from the sequel, that so far from this being the case, David declares how miserable his condition is, that by this means he may encourage himself in the hope of obtaining relief. He therefore argues that it could not be but that God would at length stretch forth his hand to save him; to save him, I say, who was so severely afflicted, and on the brink of despair. If God has had compassion on all who have ever been afflicted, although afflicted only in a moderate degree, how could he forsake his servant when plunged in the lowest abyss of all calamities? Whenever, therefore, we are overwhelmed under a great weight of afflictions, we ought rather to take from this an argument to encourage us to hope for deliverance, than suffer ourselves to fall into despair. If God so severely exercised his most eminent servant David, and abased him so far that he had not a place even among the most despised of men, let us not take it ill, if, after his example, we are brought low. We ought, however, principally to call to our remembrance the Son of God, in whose person we know this also was fulfilled, as Isaiah had predicted, “He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” (Isaiah 53:3)
By these words of the prophet we are furnished with a sufficient refutation of the frivolous subtlety of those who have philosophised upon the word worm, as if David here pointed out some singular mystery in the generation of Christ; whereas his meaning simply is, that he had been abased beneath all men, and, as it were, cut off from the number of living beings. The fact that the Son of God suffered himself to be reduced to such ignominy, yea, descended even to hell, is so far from obscuring, in any respect, his celestial glory, that it is rather a bright mirror from which is reflected his unparalleled grace towards us.

Henry,
The complaint renewed of another grievance, and that is the contempt and reproach of men. This complaint is by no means so bitter as that before of God’s withdrawings; but, as that touches a gracious soul, so this a generous soul, in a very tender part, Psalms 22:6-8; Psalms 22:6-8. Our fathers were honoured, the patriarchs in their day, first or last, appeared great in the eye of the world, Abraham, Moses, David; but Christ is a worm, and no man. It was great condescension that he became man, a step downwards, which is, and will be, the wonder of angels; yet, as if it were too much, too great, to be a man, he becomes a worm, and no man. He was Adam–a mean man, and Enosh–a man of sorrows, but lo Ish–not a considerable man: for he took upon him the form of a servant, and his visage was marred more than any man’s,Isaiah 52:14. Man, at the best, is a worm; but he became a worm, and no man. If he had not made himself a worm, he could not have been trampled upon as he was. The word signifies such a worm as was used in dyeing scarlet or purple, whence some make it an allusion to his bloody sufferings. See what abuses were put upon him. 1. He was reproached as a bad man, as a blasphemer, a sabbath-breaker, a wine-bibber, a false prophet, an enemy to Cæsar, a confederate with the prince of the devils. 2. He was despised of the people as a mean contemptible man, not worth taking notice of, his country in no repute, his relations poor mechanics, his followers none of the rulers, or the Pharisees, but the mob. 3. He was ridiculed as a foolish man, and one that not only deceived others, but himself too. Those that saw him hanging on the cross laughed him to scorn. So far were they from pitying him, or concerning themselves for him, that they added to his afflictions, with all the gestures and expressions of insolence upbraiding him with his fall. They make mouths at him, make merry over him, and make a jest of his sufferings: They shoot out the lip, they shake their head, saying, This was he that said he trusted God would deliver him; now let him deliver him. David was sometimes taunted for his confidence in God; but in the sufferings of Christ this was literally and exactly fulfilled. Those very gestures were used by those that reviled him (Matthew 27:39); they wagged their heads, nay, and so far did their malice make them forget themselves that they used the very words (Matthew 27:43; Matthew 27:43), He trusted in God; let him deliver him. Our Lord Jesus, having undertaken to satisfy for the dishonour we had done to God by our sins, did it by submitting to the lowest possible instance of ignominy and disgrace.”

>

Therefore let us be humbled in prayer even as Christ was humbled for our sakes. As he was abased on account of our sin, let us be abased for our own sin, confessing our treason and calling out for forgiveness in Jesus Christ who alone wrought redemption for His people.

Opening Prayer.

Lesson 31. To the True and Faithful Congregation of Christ’s Church, Part 1.
The construction of the temple.

Intro.
1. From both epistles we see their understanding of the need for Christian learning. (historical, theological)
And their identification of the true church. (the spiritually minded)
2. The identity of the church which is at stake.
3. A historical introduction to the Westminster.
(the great suffering of the martyrs and the production of the greatest of Christian documents)
The suffering of a Christian produces courage.
4. The arguments used to recommend are generally applied, and particularly to the Westminster.

To the true and faithful congregation of Christ’s universal church, with all and singular the members thereof, wherever congregated or dispersed through the realm of England, a protestation or petition of the author, wishing to the same abundance of all peace and tranquility, with the speedy coming of Christ the spouse, to make an end of all mortal misery.

1. Solomon, the peaceable prince of Israel, as we read in the third of Kings, after he had finished the building of the Lord’s temple (which he had seven years in hand), made his petition to the Lord for all that should pray in the said temple, or turn their face toward it. And his request was granted, the Lord answering him, as we read in the said book, chapter 6: “I have heard (saith he) thy prayer and have sanctified this place,” etc. 1 Kings 6:11-13, 1 Kings 8.

2. Although the infinite majesty of God is not to be compassed in any material walls, yet it so pleased His goodness to respect this prayer of the king, that not only He promised to hear those who prayed there, but also replenished the same with His own glory. For so we read again in the book aforesaid: “And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord” (1 Kings 8:11).
i. God’s true and universal church is not restricted to material walls.
ii. Yet God’s church is ever called a congregation.
iii. Comprised of those who profess the truth in the word of God.

3. Upon like trust in God’s gracious goodness, if I, a sinful wretch, not comparing with the building of that temple, but following the zeal of the builder, might either be so bold to ask, or so happy to succeed, after my seven years’ travail about this ecclesiastical history, most humbly would crave of almighty God to bestow His blessing upon the same…
i. Although our lives are not after the same fashion as our fathers in the faith, yet we follow their faith and zeal and pray for God’s blessing.
ii. The glory of the second temple much exceeds the glory of the first.\
iii. Man’s soul is a habitation for God.
iv. The mind to comprehend, the affections to adore, the will to endeavor and perform.
1 Cor. 3:16-17
1 Cor. 6:19-20
2 Cor. 6:16
Eph. 2:20-22
1 Pet. 2:5
Rom. 12:1

4….that as the prayers of them which prayed in the outward temple were heard, so all true disposed minds which shall resort to the reading of this present history containing the acts of God’s holy martyrs and monuments of His church, may by example of their life, faith, and doctrine, receive some such spiritual fruit to their souls through the operation of His grace, that it may be to the advancement of His glory and profit of His church, through Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.
i. The motive of all the godly is the glory of God and the benefit of the church, not personal profit.
ii. The glory of God.
iii. The benefit of the church.

Conclusion.

Closing Prayer.

YouTube Link: https://youtu.be/J7gK5RsVyE8