Bible Strands
Psalms 22:1
For the choirmaster. To the tune of “The Doe of the Dawn.” A Psalm of David. My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Why are You so far from saving me, so far from my words of groaning?
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — David (per the superscript) addresses God directly from a position of acute abandonment, crying out with no answer by day or night (v. 2). The speaker is not in doubt about God's existence but in anguish over His apparent absence.
The words — עֲזַבְתָּנִי ('a.zav.Ta./ni), from the root 'azab (H5800), "you have forsaken me," is the hinge of the verse: a verb of deliberate leaving, not passive distance. The speaker does not say God is far in the abstract; he says God has actively left him.
The thread — Jesus quotes this exact cry from the cross (Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34), and Hebrews 5:7 frames it within a pattern of loud cries and tears during his earthly life. The verse moves from a psalm of David to the words of the crucified Son.
Why it lands — The verse refuses to let the reader skip from intimacy ("My God") to comfort; it holds the two together in a single breath. It asks whether the reader can bring the same unpolished question to God, or whether they will perform a more dignified faith.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
To the chief Musician upon Aijeleth Shahar, A Psalm of David. My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?
Cross-references
- Mark 15:34 At the ninth hour, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
- Matthew 27:46 About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
- Hebrews 5:7 During the days of Jesus’ earthly life, He offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the One who could save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverence.
- Psalms 22:16 For dogs surround me; a band of evil men encircles me; they have pierced my hands and feet.
- Job 3:24 I sigh when food is put before me, and my groans pour out like water.
- Psalms 10:1 Why, O LORD, do You stand far off? Why do You hide in times of trouble?
- Psalms 43:1 Vindicate me, O God, and plead my case against an ungodly nation; deliver me from deceitful and unjust men.
- Luke 24:44 Jesus said to them, “These are the words I spoke to you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about Me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms.”
- Psalms 31:14 But I trust in You, O LORD; I say, “You are my God.”
- 1 Samuel 12:22 Indeed, for the sake of His great name, the LORD will not abandon His people, because He was pleased to make you His own.