What does Psalm 22 mean?
Psalm 22 is a suffering psalm that begins in deep anguish and ends in rescue and worship. Early Christians read it as a clear picture of Jesus’ death, shame, and triumph, especially in the lines about being mocked, pierced, and having lots cast for clothing. Clement of Rome, Barnabas, Justin Martyr, Tertullian, Origen, and Lactantius all use it this way. The passage means that God hears the afflicted servant and brings him through suffering to victory.
120 early-church witnesses · 201 source quotations · compared with Scripture
What does Psalm 22 mean?
Psalm 22 begins with a cry of pain, but it is not only despair. David describes a righteous sufferer who feels abandoned, mocked, and near death, then ends by trusting that God will answer and bring him through. Early Christians read this psalm as pointing to Jesus’ suffering on the cross, especially the lines about being forsaken, pierced, and having garments divided.
Many more early Christian quotations, Bible passages, and source links are gathered below so you can study the evidence for yourself.
Passage context
Psalm 22 is a Davidic psalm of suffering and trust. It describes a man surrounded by enemies, mocked by onlookers, and brought low in body and spirit. The psalm moves from complaint in the first half to praise and public worship in the end. It is often read alongside Jesus’ cry from the cross in the Gospels.
Why early Christian sources matter
Early Christian writers help show how the first generations of believers understood Psalm 22. Clement of Rome, Barnabas, Justin Martyr, Tertullian, Origen, and Lactantius all connect the psalm to Christ’s passion. They do not all quote the same verses, but they agree that Psalm 22 speaks about the Messiah’s suffering and victory. That makes their reading an important window into early Christian Bible use.
Common interpretation points
- Psalm 22 is both David’s prayer and, in early Christian reading, a prophecy of Christ.
- The strongest repeated links are the mocking crowd, the cry of abandonment, the pierced hands and feet, and the casting of lots.
- Some early writers quote only one verse, so the witness is broad for Christ’s suffering but thinner on detailed verse-by-verse explanation.
Evidence-Based Summary
Early Christians read Psalm 22 as a prophecy of Christ’s suffering, death, and vindication. Clement of Rome, Barnabas, Justin Martyr, Tertullian, Origen, and Lactantius all connect its lines to Jesus, especially the cry of abandonment, the pierced hands and feet, the mocked sufferer, and the casting of lots. The evidence is broad and early, though some witnesses focus on one verse or one part of the psalm rather than the whole chapter.
The strongest shared reading is that Psalm 22 points to the Messiah’s passion first and then to his deliverance and final honor.
Key Takeaways
- Psalm 22 is a suffering psalm that ends in trust and praise.
- Early Christians used Psalm 22 as a major text for Jesus’ crucifixion.
- The clearest early links are the cry of abandonment, mockery, pierced hands and feet, and divided garments.
Questions Answered by the Sources
Did the early Christians read Psalm 22 as a prophecy of Jesus?
Yes. Clement of Rome, Barnabas, Justin Martyr, Tertullian, Origen, and Lactantius all treat Psalm 22 as speaking about Christ, not just David. They use its lines about suffering, mockery, and shame as proof that the psalm points forward to Jesus’ passion.
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Clement of Rome, Connection to Psalms 22:6 Direct teaching
And again He says, "I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people. All that see me have derided me; they have spoken with their lips; they have wagged their head, [saying] He hoped in God, let Him deliver Him, let Him save Him, since He delights in Him." [Psalm 22:6-8] You see, beloved, what is the example which has been given us; for if the Lord thus humbled Himself, what shall we do who have through Him come under the yoke of His grace?
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Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho Direct teaching
...judgment to the king,’ you insist this psalm refers to Solomon because he was king, but the words clearly indicate the everlasting King, meaning Christ. Christ is King, Priest, God, Lord, angel, man, captain, stone, a Son born, first suffering, then ascending to heaven, and returning in glory with an everlasting kingdom, as proven by all Scriptures. To clarify, I'll quote the Psalm: ‘O God, give Your judgment to the king and Your righteousness to the king’s son to judge Your people with righteousness and the poor with justice. The mountains will bring peace to the people, and the little hills righteousness. He will judge the poor and save the children of the needy, and crush the oppressor. He will endure as long as the sun, and as long as the moon through all generations. He will come down like rain on mown grass, like showers watering the earth. In His days, righteousness will flourish, with abundance of peace until the moon is no more. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the river to the ends of the earth. Ethiopians will bow before Him, and His enemies will lick the dust. The kings of Tarshish and the distant isles will bring tribute; the kings of Arabia and Seba wi
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Origen, De Principiis (On First Principles) Direct teaching
5. And what are we to say regarding the prophecies of Christ in the Psalms, there being a certain ode with the superscription For the Beloved, whose tongue is said to be the pen of a ready writer, who is fairer than the sons of men, since grace was poured on His lips?
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Psalms 22:1 Background
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?
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Psalms 22:16 Background
For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.
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Psalms 22:6 Background
But I am a worm and not a man, scorned by mankind and despised by the people.
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Psalms 22:18 Background
They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.
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Mark 15:34 Background
And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
More related quotations from this section 1 shown
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Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho Direct teaching
“And from the ninety-fifth (ninety-sixth) Psalm they have taken away this short saying of the words of David: ‘From the wood.’ For when the passage said, ‘Tell ye among the nations, the Lord hath reigned from the wood,’ they have left, ‘Tell ye among the nations, the Lord hath reigned.’ Now no one of your people has ever been said to have reigned as God and Lord among the nations, with the exception of Him only who was crucified, of whom also the Holy Spirit affirms in the same Psalm that He was raised again, and freed from [the grave], declaring that there is none like Him among the gods of the nations: for they are idols of demons.
Which Psalm 22 verses did early Christians connect to the cross?
Early Christians linked Psalm 22 to the cross by pointing to the words about being forsaken, mocked, pierced, and stripped. Justin Martyr, Barnabas, Tertullian, Tatian, and Lactantius use these lines as direct Christ language, and the Gospel of Mark echoes the opening cry from the cross.
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Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho Direct teaching
I laid me down, and slept; I awaked, for the Lord sustained me.’ And Isaiah likewise mentions concerning Him the manner in which He would die, thus: ‘I have spread out My hands unto a people disobedient, and gainsaying, that walk in a way which is not good.’ And that He would rise again, Isaiah himself said: ‘His burial has been taken away from the midst, and I will give the rich for His death.’ And again, in other words, David in the twenty-first Psalm thus refers to the suffering and to the cross in a parable of mystery: ‘They pierced my hands and my feet;
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Tatian, The Diatessaron Direct teaching
...sus cried out with a loud voice and said, "Yail, Yaili, why have you forsaken me?" which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" And some of those standing there, when they heard it, said, "This man called Elijah."
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Lactantius, The Divine Institutes Direct teaching
Also David in the twenty-first Psalm: They pierced my hands and my feet;
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Barnabas, Connection to Psalms 22:16 Direct teaching
fasten my flesh with nails; for the assemblies of the wicked have risen up against me.
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Barnabas, Connection to Psalms 22:18 Direct teaching
The assembly of the wicked surrounded me; they encompassed me as bees do a honeycomb, and upon my garment they cast lots.
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Tertullian, Against Praxeas Supporting witness
of the Son's distinction from the Father, My God, why have You forsaken me?
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Tertullian, Against Praxeas Supporting witness
You have Him exclaiming in the midst of His passion: My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?
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Apostolic Constitutions, Apostolic Constitutions Direct teaching
My God! Why have You forsaken me? And a little afterward, when He had cried with a loud voice, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do, and had added, Into Your hands I commit my spirit, He gave up the ghost, and was buried before sunset in a new sepulchre.
More related quotations from this section 4 shown
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Tertullian, Against Marcion Direct teaching
If you require still further prediction of the Lord's cross, the twenty-first Psalm is sufficiently able to afford it to you, containing as it does the entire passion of Christ, who was even then prophetically declaring His glory.
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Dionysius of Alexandria, Exegetical Fragments Supporting witness
...ring Him, if we may so speak, beyond His utmost strength, He cried out to His Father, "Why have You forsaken me?" Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34. And this cry was in due agreement with the requests He had made before: "Why is it that death has been so closely joined with me all along until now, and You do not yet bear the cup past me? Have I not drunk it already, and drained it? But if not, I fear that I may be utterly consumed by its continual pressure. And that is what would happen to me, if You were to forsake me. Then the fulfillment would remain, but I would pass away, and be made of no effect. Now then, I beg You, let my baptism be finished, for indeed I have been greatly straitened until it should be accomplished." This, I judge, to have been the Saviour's meaning in this brief saying. And He certainly spoke truth then. Nevertheless, He was not forsaken. Even so, He drank out the cup at once, as His plea had implied, and then passed away. And the vinegar that was handed to Him seems to me to have been symbolic. For the turned wine indicated very well the swift turning and change that He underwent when He passed from His passion to impassibility, and from death to deathlessness
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Dionysius of Alexandria, Exegetical Fragments Supporting witness
But when His death was being prolonged, and when it was now overmastering Him, if we may so speak, beyond His utmost strength, He cried out to His Father, Why have You forsaken me?
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Dionysius of Alexandria, Exegetical Fragments Supporting witness
And He certainly spoke truth then. Nevertheless He was not forsaken.
Common Questions
Why did early Christians connect Psalm 22 to Jesus?
They saw the psalm’s suffering language as matching Jesus’ crucifixion: being mocked, feeling forsaken, having hands and feet pierced, and having garments divided.
Did early Christians think Psalm 22 was about the cross?
Yes. Justin Martyr, Barnabas, Tertullian, Origen, and Lactantius all use Psalm 22 language to speak about Jesus’ passion and crucifixion.
Does Psalm 22 end in hope?
Yes. The psalm moves from suffering to trust, and later verses turn toward God’s answer, worship, and public praise.
What part of Psalm 22 did early Christians quote most?
They often quoted the opening cry, the mockery lines, and the verse about pierced hands and feet.
Is Psalm 22 only about David?
David is the speaker, but early Christians also read the psalm as pointing ahead to Christ.
Source Index for Psalm 22
The guided sections above show the strongest quotations. This compact index highlights 160 ranked source links from 201 compiled sources for deeper study.
Source index 160 ranked links shown
Early Christian Writings 80 shown of 120
Primary-source quotations from early Christian writers and church documents.
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Clement of Rome, Connection to Psalms 22:6
Bible Passages 80 shown of 81
Related Bible passages saved for comparison with the early Christian quotations.