Verse 15. “My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and My tongue clings to My jaws; you have brought Me to the dust of death.” And in John 19:28. “After this, Jesus, knowing that all things had been accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, “I thirst!” Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth.” This fulfilled a saying from Psalm 69:21. “They also gave me gall for my food, and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.” (The Gall represented all the hurtful words hurled at him by the bystanders.)
Matthew 27:46. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” This is the first verse of Psalm 22, and it is explained in verse 2. “O My God, I cry in the daytime, but You do not hear; and in the night season, and am not silent.” During the six hours on the cross there had been no communication from His Father. But He also refers back to Gethsemane, where He was “not silent”, calling out to His Father three times, but no answer. This is the meaning of “forsaken”. But in fact His Father had not left Him.
The truth was contained in Psalm 22:24. “For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; nor has He hidden His face from Him; But when He cried to Him, He heard.” Truly, “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not reckoning their trespasses against them.” 2 Cor.5:19
Our Lord was vividly aware of all that had been happening to Him, and He knew that all the prophecies speaking of His death were being fulfilled to the letter. This is why He proclaimed verse 1 in a loud voice, followed shortly afterwards by the cry –
Verse 31. He has wrought it! It has been accomplished! Fait accompli! What has been accomplished? Everything prophesied about His death. This was a cry of victory, not a last dying word. All that the Father sent Him to do had been fulfilled to the letter, nothing was missing. When Jesus cried “It is finished!” the translators should have said, “It has been accomplished” exactly the same as the last words of Psalm 22.
So the whole of Psalm 22:1-24 had been fulfilled to the letter. Indeed, all that the Scriptures had prophesied of Him had been fulfilled.
We can now read the final victorious words of Psalm 22, verses 24-31.
All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord.
All the families of the nations shall worship before Him
All the proud of the earth shall bow down
All who go down to the dust shall bow before Him.
God has exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow in heaven, on earth, and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of the Father. Philippians 2:9-11.
And I heard every creature in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and in the sea, and all therein, saying, ‘To Him who sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honour and glory and might unto the ages of the ages.’ Rev.5:13
Wonderful victory, yet to be seen in all its fullness. A wonderful Saviour we have! Bless the Lord, O my soul!
[Translator’s note. When John said, Jesus, knowing that all things had been accomplished, these three words in bold are TETELESTAI in Greek. When Jesus cried out It is finished! the Greek is also TETELESTAI. Why therefore didn’t the translators use the same words for both? Jesus said, It has been accomplished! ]
