August 18, 2011“Nailing” An Alleged Crucifixion Scenario Page 1 of 10 Psalms 22 – “Nailing” An Alleged Crucifixion Scenario A Counter-Missionary Education

August 18, 2011 “Nailing” An Alleged Crucifixion Scenario Page 1 of 10

Psalms 22 – “Nailing” An Alleged Crucifixion Scenario

A Counter-Missionary Education Lesson

by

Uri Yosef, Ph.D., Director of EducationVirtual Yeshiva of the Messiah Truth Project, Inc.

http://virtualyeshiva.com

[The article on this topic is located here - http://thejewishhome.org/counter/Psa22.pdf]

Copyright © Uri Yosef 2011 for the Messiah Truth Project, Inc.All rights reserved

Counter-Missionary Education

http://virtualyeshiva.com/

http://virtualyeshiva.com/

http://thejewishhome.org/counter/Psa22.pdf

http://thejewishhome.org/counter/Psa22.pdf


Introduction

A casual reading of Psalms 22, either in the Hebrew or in an accurate translation from the Hebrew, is not likely to raise many eyebrows or draw much attention as having some special and unique significance to Christianity. It is only when one reads any of the common Christian translations of this psalm (e.g., KJV, NASB, NIV, NKJV, and RSV, to name just a few) that the reasons for its being dubbed the "Crucifixion Psalm" by Christians start to surface. This, of course, makes the 22nd chapter in the Book of Psalms an important element in the portfolio of the Christian missionary. In fact, some Christian sources lay claim to more than 20 passages in this 32-verse psalm as "messianic prophecies" (i.e., "proof texts") that were allegedly "fulfilled" by Jesus.

In this lesson we examine the four "proof texts" from Psalms 22 that are most commonly used by missionaries, one of which can be considered as the “smoking gun” of the Christian fabrication. For each of these, the Christian perspective is contrasted with the Jewish perspective by analyzing the respective Hebrew texts. The analysis demonstrates that Psalms 22 is an historic account by its author, King David, rather than "messianic text" that foretells the suffering and crucifixion of Jesus.


Summary of the Christian and Jewish Perspectives on Psalms 22

Christianity (†) Judaism ()

Psalms 22 is a prophetic messianic text that describes the agony of the Passion, the Crucifixion, and the Resurrection of Jesus, the Messiah of Christianity.

Psalms 22 is historical text, in which King David describes events from his personal life, and makes certain proclamations based on these experiences.

• The opening verse from this psalm is used by the authors of the Gospels of Matthew (Mt 27:46) and Mark (Mk 15:34) as the passionate statement of Jesus and his last words before dying on the cross.

• In the opening “stanza”, verses 2-9, David voices his despair, wondering why God, who intervened on his behalf and on behalf of our ancestors in the past, seems to not be hearing his cries for help this time.

• The authors of the Gospels of Matthew (Mt 27:35) and John (Jn 19:24) use verse 19[18] in their respective "Crucifixion narrative“.

• In verses 10-22 David pleads with God to intervene on his behalf, because he is so scared and needs God to guide him to safely escape his adversaries.

• The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews (He 2:12) uses verse 23[22] to explain that Jesus needed to suffer in order to triumph, celebrate, and publish God's gracious dealings upon his resurrection.

• In verses 23-32 David ends this psalm with a promise to express his own gratitude and praise of God, as well as to call on all people who fear God to praise and honor Him.


Psalms 22:2[1]

Can these two perspectives be valid simultaneously?

King James Version Translation Jewish Translation from the Hebrew Hebrew Text

Psalms 22 ʡʫʭʩʬʩʤ̋ [To the chief Musician upon Aijeleth Shahar, A Psalm of David.]

1 For the conductor, on the Ayelet haShahar, a Psalm of David.

ʸ ˣʮʍʦʑʮy ʔʧ ʔ̄ʔʤ̋ ʓʬʓ̞̀ ʚʬʔ̡ʔʧʒ˞ʔhʍʮʔʬʟʣʑʥʕʣʍʬ

ʠ

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?(i)

2

My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? [You are] so far from my salvation, from the words of my loud moaning?

ʩʑhʕsʍʡʔʦʏ̡ʤʕʮʕʬʩʑʬʒʠʩʑʬʒʠʷˣʧʕyʟʩʑ̋ʕʢʏʠ ʔ̌ʩʒyʍʡʑːʩʑ̋ʕ̡˒̌ ʩʑʮ

ʡ

(i) Matthew 27:46(KJV) - And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me? Mark 15:34(KJV) - 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?

Christianity’s Perspective () Judaism’s Perspective ()

Psalms 22:1(KJV) is a messianic prophecy that is fulfilled in the accounts of the same passionate cry of the crucified Jesus and his last words as he was dying on the cross recorded by the authors of the Gospels of Matthew and Mark.

In Psalms 22:2[1] King David, feeling that he has been abandoned by God, who was his strength, his shield, and who heard his supplications and intervened on his behalf in the past, lets out this cry of desperation as he is grieved that God is not listening to his prayers this time.


Psalms 22:2[1] (continued)Since Christian missionaries claim that King David and his kingdom are “types” that “foreshadow” Jesus and his “heavenly” kingdom, they recognize the historicity of David’s psalms. But what happens when these words of David are placed in the mouth of Jesus as he was dying on the cross?

Situation Observation

In Psalms 37:25 King David says that throughout his lifetime he has “not seen the righteous forsaken”.

• Since Jesus complained about being forsaken, was he not righteous – a sinner? (Christians will argue that, when Jesus was on the cross he, being a “sin sacrifice” by God, carried their sins [2Cor 5:21]. The flaws in this logic will be covered in future lessons.)

Christians who believe in the Trinity claim that its three “personages” – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit – are divine co-equal parts of one God.

Now, Jesus, the Son, complains: “My God, My God, [why art thou so] far from helping me, [and from] the words of my roaring?” [Psalms 22:1(KJV)]

• To whom is Jesus actually complaining?

• Why would Jesus, the Son, be complaining to another of the triune godhead’s components?

• How is it possible that God (the Father) cannot hear the cries of God (the Son)?

• How is it possible that an all-knowing God cannot understand His own predicament?

The last words of Jesus per GLuke & GJohn: • How is it possible that (the same) Jesus said

different “last words” as he was dying on the cross?

“… Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit …” [Luke 23:46(KJV)]

“… It is finished …” [John 19:30(KJV)]


Psalms 22:17[16]

The table to the right shows all five instances of the word י ִר' ֲא( (ka’aRI) ָּכ+in the Hebrew Bible.

The problem with the Christianperspective is evident – it is basedon the false translation of the word י ִר' ֲא( .ָּכ+

King James Version Translation Jewish Translation from the Hebrew Hebrew Text

Psalms 22 ʡʫʭʩʬʩʤ̋

16

For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.

17

For dogs have surrounded me; a band of evildoers encompassed me; like a lion [they are at] my hands and my feet.

ʭʩʑ̡ʒyʍʮ̋ ʔʣʏ̡ʭʩʑʡʕʬʍ̠ʩʑh˒ʡʕʡʍɦʩʑ̠ʩʑh˒ ʴ ʩʑ˟ʑʤʩʑyʏʠʕ̠ʟʩʕʬʍʢʔyʍʥʩʔʣʕʩ

ʦʩ

Christianity (†) Judaism ()

This verse describes, in metaphorical terms, the crucifixion of Jesus, whose hands and feet were “pierced” by the nails that the Roman soldiers used to affix him to the wooden cross.

In this verse King David describes, in metaphorical terms, his enemies encircling him, aiming to either kill him or dispossess him of his kingdom, just as vicious dogs and lions surround their prey before they go in for the “kill”.

Reference Hebrew

word KJV rendition Comment

Psalms 22:17[16] £² è� �� they pierced Incorrect Numbers 24:9 £² è� �� like a lion Correct Isaiah 38:13 £² è� �� like a lion Correct Ezekiel 22:25 £² è� �� like a lion Correct Numbers 23:24 £² ¥� �� and … as a young lion Correct


Psalms 22:17[16] (continued)Unwilling to give up this “gem” of a “proof text”, albeit the product of a deliberate revision of King David’s own words, Christian missionaries have been pointing to a fragment of the Dead Sea

Scrolls that contains this word, except with a somewhat elongated scribed letter י (YOD), and claim

it is the letter ו (VAV). This, they claim, is not כֲאִרי (ka’aRI), but כֲאִרו (kaRU, with a “silent” letter

”meaning “they dug”, a possible metaphorical representation of “they pierced ,(ֲא

The figure to the right shows two side-by-side Dead SeaScrolls (DSS) sources with

the hand-scribed word כֲאִרי in the paleo-Hebrew font.

Even a casual comparison of the two words inside a red box shows that, in both cases, the

last letter, י, is elongated. Yet, the KJV has the correct translation at Isaiah 38:13 andthe incorrect translation at Psalms 22:16.

Is it just a coincidence that the KJV has different renditions of the identical word?


Psalms 22:19[18]King James Version Translation Jewish Translation from the Hebrew Hebrew Text


18 They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.(ii)

19 They divide my garments among themselves, and cast lots for my raiment.

ʩʑ̌˒ʡʍʬʚʬʔ̡ʍʥʭʓʤʕʬʩʔʣʕʢʍʡ˒̫ ʍ̆ʔʧʍʩʟʬʕyˣʢ˒ ʬʩʑ̋ʔʩ

ʨʩ

(ii) Matthew 27:35(KJV) - And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted mygarments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots. John 19:23-24(KJV) - (23) Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts, to every soldier a part; and also [his] coat: now the coat was without seam, woven from the top throughout. (24) They said therefore among themselves, Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall be: that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots. These things therefore the soldiers did.


The author of the Gospel of John points to Psalms 22:19[18] as a prophecy that was fulfilled when Jesus was on the cross.

The previous verse, Psalms 22:18[17], is critical to obtaining a correct understanding of the true context of this verse:

Depicted here is the person in Psalms 22:19[18], who is starving and so skinny that his bones are visible, as he is counting them while those who are taking and dividing among themselves his garments look on and gloat. King David uses this metaphorical language to describe the desire of his enemies to take away his mantle of royalty and make it their own.

Was Jesus ever in this situation? Over which earthly kingdom did Jesus ever rule?

Psalms 22:18 - I can count all my bones. They look and stare at me.

Psalms 22:17(KJV) - I may tell all my bones: they look [and] stare upon me.


Psalms 22:23[22]King James Version Translation Jewish Translation from the Hebrew Hebrew Text


22

I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.(iii)

23

I will declare Your Name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation will I praise You.

ʬʕʤʕ̫ʍʪx ʺ ʍˎʩʕʧʓʠʍʬʕʪʍʮʑ̌ʤʕyʍ̋ʔɦʏʠʟʕ̟ʓʬʍʬʔʤʏʠ

ʢʫ

(iii) Hebrews 2:12(KJV) - Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.


The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews "quotes" this verse at Hebrews 2:12 to help explain why Jesus needed to suffer for humanity.

The theme is the praising of God's name for being so good and benevolent, a theme that is often used by King David in his other psalms (e.g., Psalms 9:3, 54:8, 61:9, 69:31).

Earlier in the same psalm, the one who speaks here refers to himself, a man, as a worm:

King David use of this metaphor, as he describes the plight of his own people, is not a unique case in the Hebrew Bible. The prophet Isaiah likens the Jewish people to a worm:

Job’s friend, Bildad the Shuhite, refers to man as a worm:

Does the worm metaphor fit Jesus? Did he ever refer to himself as a worm?

Psalms 22:7[6] - But I am a worm, and not a man; a reproach of man and despised by the people.

Isaiah 41:14 - Fear not, O worm of Jacob, the number of Israel; "I have helped you," says the Lord, and your redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

Job 25:6 - How much less, man, who is a worm, and the son of man, who is a maggot!"


Summary

• The Christian messianic perspective of Psalms 22 is incorrect because○ This is an historical account of events in the life of, and related by, King David○ The “messianic” message was artificially retrofitted through mistranslations

• The Christian interpretation of Psalms 22:2[1] is incorrect because○ It is inconsistent, and even conflicts, with other Christian theological principles○ It is inconsistent, and even conflicts, with other accounts in the New Testament

• The Christian interpretation of Psalms 22:17[16] is incorrect because○ It is based on an obvious mistranslation of the Hebrew word י ִר' ֲא( (ka’aRI) ָּכ+○ It ignores the context of the verse relative to the surrounding text○ It is based on a false claim regarding the word י ִר' ֲא( as it appears in the DSS ָּכ+

• The Christian interpretation of Psalms 22:19[18] is incorrect because○ It ignores the context in which these words were spoken by King David○ The New Testament never describes Jesus being so starved that all of his bones are visible○ The New Testament never states that Jesus ruled over an earthly kingdom

• The Christian interpretation of Psalms 22:23[22] is incorrect because○ It ignores the fact that the same “voice” speaks throughout the psalm○ Nowhere in the New Testament does Jesus refer to himself as being “a worm”

Documents

August 18, 2011“Nailing” An Alleged Crucifixion Scenario Page 1 of 10 Psalms 22 – “Nailing” An Alleged Crucifixion Scenario A Counter-Missionary Education