Was Jesus Forsaken? Part 2

This morning (several days ago now*) the LORD caught me concerning my first post on Psalm 22, and what I had typed.  He pricked me by His Spirit and reminded me that He was pouring out His wrath against the sins of men, while His Son was on the cross.  So do I retract what I said about the Father looking lovingly on while His Son laid down His life?  I do not.  I think that while the Father poured out His wrath, He was acting in Agape (unconditional love) for humanity, His creation, and though He still loved the Son perfectly, the Son, Yeshua became the object of El Elyon's most horrific wrath!

News travels quick!  Already news of this insight made its way to my pastor, and he disagreed with me, saying that "If God did not turn away from Jesus, then what was the Wrath of God?"  Which brings up an interesting question, and I'm not sure I've got the answer, though I can attempt to formulate an answer.  "How was the wrath of God poured out on Yeshua?"

When Jesus, or Yeshua, died on the cross, he died as the fulfillment of the sacrificial Passover lamb.  Yeshua was the lamb to which the Hebrew sacrifice pointed.  He was the fulfillment!  Yeshua was the perfect fulfillment!  When the sacrifice occurs, what happens?  The Passover lamb is slain, with its blood collected by priests in goblets, and then sprinkled on the altar, (according to one Passover site).  The animals entrails were removed, washed, and its fat offered on the altar as an aroma pleasing to God (Gen. 8:21, Lev. 1:9, 14, 17; Lev. 3:5 etc.).

But as for the Passover ritual, I see nothing more required of the sacrificial victim.  Now, we know that after Messiah had been crucified, he descended into hell.  And most think that he suffered the torments and suffering of hell for us in our place.  Ineed, I believe that Scripture teaches that Messiah died as a substitute for our punishment (Rom. 3:25, Heb. 2:17, 1 Jn. 2:2, 4:10).  But did he suffer the torments of hell?  Is that taught in Scripture?  Peter tells us that Messiah, being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the Spirit, made proclamation to the spirits in prison (i.e. hades or Sheol).  But it's a mystery what really transpired during this time.  The apostle Paul, quoting from the Psalms, teaches that Yeshua, when he ascended, he led captive a host of captives.  This is typically understood as the inhabitants of Paradise (a.k.a. Abraham's Bosom), which was located in center Earth, along with Hades.  Remember, Yeshua said to the thief who demonstrated faith in Him, "Today you will be with Me in Paradise!" (Lk 23:43).

So we know that on that day, Jesus accompanied the thief (Insurrectionist) into Paradise, in the central part of the Earth.  (The Bible far surpasses Science!  That "molten core" model of the earth that is taught as fact in public schools is a anti-christ theory of science that says the God's word is untrustworthy!  But as we've seen, the further science advances, the more it proves the Bible!  With the development of molecular science and our discovery of the most basic level of cells/molecules, that they are irreduclibly complex!  This means that at their most basic level, molecules must have all the variant complex components to function.  It's sorta like the mouse trap.  Without the spring, a mouse trap still looks like a mouse trap, but it doesn't work!  All its components must be in place.  In molecular science, we see this to be true of all molecules at their simplest levels.)

Peter tells us that Yeshua descended and made proclamation to the spirits in prison (i.e. hades, or sheol)!  So at some point, Yeshua arrived in Paradise, the destination of the thief on the cross for his faith in Messiah (notice, he wasn't baptized, or said the name Jehovah to be saved, simply faith in Yeshua as Messiah!), and at some other point in his two days in the belly of the earth (i.e. center earth) he traveled to hades to preach God's victory to the imprisoned fallen angels and fallen souls of men awaiting judgment.  Then again, Paul tells the Ephesians that when He ascended (40 days later?) He led captive a host of captives, taking with Him paradise to heaven (2 Cor. 12:4; Rev. 2:7).

But as far as I can tell, the idea that Yeshua Messiah suffered the torments in hell, is foreign to the Biblical text.  I think it can be easily mis-read into the Biblical text, but this is where it is critically important to have good Biblical hermeneutics.  And this is what I'm striving to do.  If any of you sees something I miss, or clearly sees an error in my theology, I encourage and invite dialogue.

Blessings as we near the return of Messiah; after the One-World leader emerges!  :-)

Was Jesus Forsaken? A Study on Psalm 22

The common view of Christians, at least in America is that when Jesus was on the cross, God the Father turned His back on the Son, when the sins of the world were applied to Him, and that is why the whole world grew dark.  Well the LORD showed me something that will challenge that conventional belief.

So when Jesus was hanging upon the cross, he cried out, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me? (Ps. 22:1)"  Most Chrisitans assume that the Father turned His back on Jesus because He could not bear to look upon all the sins of the world being laid upon His only begotten Son.  It's sweet sentiment, but is it Biblical?  Where do we see in the scriptures that the Father turned away from the Son, and stopping His gaze from being upon Him?  We don't.  It's not in there!

What Jesus was doing when He cried out the first verse of Psalm 22, is that as a good Rabbi, He was calling the attention of His students, His disciples, to Psalm 22, which the Jews of that era knew was a Messianic Psalter.  If we continue to go through this Psalm, not only does it foretell precisely what happened to Jesus as He was crucified, with the nails through His hands and feet (Ps. 22:16), to His physical appearance (v. 17), the centurions gambling for his clothes, the Psalm goes on to tell us more.

Verse 22 the Psalm shifts to the subject person of the Psalm moving to praise God, and tell of His great name.  But verse 24 tells us: "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 for help, He heard."

As I was reading this Psalm, thinking that the Psalm is a prophecy about Jesus, I identified "the afflicted" with Jesus.  He is the subject of this Psalm, and to shift the meaning from the Messiah, to the world, or  to the poor, is to wrongfully interpret the meaning of the Psalm.

But verse 24 tells us that God "has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted, nor has He hidden His face from him"!  We always say "When Jesus was on the cross, God turned His back on Him."  But that's not in there!  That's not Biblical!  Psalm 22:24 says that God indeed DID NOT turn His back on Yeshua!

So why did Yeshua cry out, "My God My God, why have You forsaken Me?"  We know that when the disciples or others addressed Jesus, they referred to him as Rabbi, but sometimes we lose sight of the fact that this is indeed what and who Jesus of Nazareth is.  He is the Rabbi of all rabbis!  He IS the living Word of God, that became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14).  We also need to remember that the chapter and verse numerical arrangement is a historically recent thing, and did not exist in the time of Jesus and the Jewish Tanakh (their Bible).  So whenever a Rabbi wanted to tell others about a certain passage of scripture, he would call out the first verse of that section.

Rabbi Yeshua  was calling people to turn to Psalm 22, which was all about Him, and prophesied of the very event they had all just witnessed, from the times of King David, circa 3,000 B.C.  

So why did the skies grow dark while Jesus was on the cross?  What does the Bible have to say about dark clouds?  For what reason do they appear?  

2 Samuel 22:12   "And He made darkness canopies around Him, A mass of waters, thick clouds of the sky. 

and

Psalm 97:1-2  The LORD reigns, let the earth rejoice; Let the many islands be glad.  2 Clouds and thick darkness surround Him; Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne. 

So why did the sky become Dark when Yeshua was upon the cross as a propitiation for our sins (Rom.3:25)?  From what scripture declares, that the LORD surrounds Himself with clouds and thick darkness, it seems that the Father was not far away, turning His back in grief and disgust at the sin, but He was RIGHT THERE, Enthroned on the first row, carefully and lovingly watching over His Son who willingly laid down His life (John 10:18).

Coming Soon:  Was Jesus Forsaken? A Study... Part 2

Zabur 22

For the Muslim, the Zabur represent the Psalms of the Hebrew Old Testament.  The Psalms are beautiful songs that were composed in praise of God, the King.  The Psalms are very poetic and majestic in nature, and they also reveal much about God's plans in working out of redemption (salvation).


1 My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?

Far from my deliverance are the words of my groaning .

2 O my God, I cry by day, but You do not answer;

And by night, but I have no rest.

3 Yet You are holy,

O You who are enthroned upon the praises of Israel.

4 In You our fathers trusted;

They trusted and You delivered them.

5 To You they cried out and were delivered;

In You they trusted and were not disappointed .



6 But I am a worm and not a man,

A reproach of men and despised by the people.

7 All who see me sneer at me;

They separate with the lip, they wag the head, saying,

8 "Commit yourself to the LORD; let Him deliver him;

Let Him rescue him, because He delights in him."



9 Yet You are He who brought me forth from the womb;

You made me trust when upon my mother's breasts.

10 Upon You I was cast from birth ;

You have been my God from my mother's womb.



11 Be not far from me, for trouble is near;

For there is none to help.

12 Many bulls have surrounded me;

Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled me.

13 They open wide their mouth at me,

As a ravening and a roaring lion.

14 I am poured out like water,

And all my bones are out of joint;

My heart is like wax;

It is melted within me .

15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd,

And my tongue cleaves to my jaws;

And You lay me in the dust of death.

16 For dogs have surrounded me;

A band of evildoers has encompassed me;

They pierced my hands and my feet.

17 I can count all my bones.

They look, they stare at me;

18 They divide my garments among them,

And for my clothing they cast lots.



19 But You, O LORD, be not far off;

O You my help, hasten to my assistance.

20 Deliver my soul from the sword,

My only life from the power of the dog.

21 Save me from the lion's mouth;

From the horns of the wild oxen You answer me.



22 I will tell of Your name to my brethren;

In the midst of the assembly I will praise You.

23 You who fear the LORD, praise Him;

All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him,

And stand in awe of Him, all you descendants of Israel.

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 for help, He heard.



25 From You comes my praise in the great assembly;

I shall pay my vows before those who fear Him.

26 The afflicted will eat and be satisfied;

Those who seek Him will praise the LORD.

Let your heart live forever!

27 All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD,

And all the families of the nations will worship before You .

28 For the kingdom is the LORD'S

And He rules over the nations.

29 All the prosperous of the earth will eat and worship,

All those who go down to the dust will bow before Him,

Even he who cannot keep his soul alive.

30 Posterity will serve Him;

It will be told of the Lord to the coming generation.

31 They will come and will declare His righteousness

To a people who will be born, that He has performed it.

Psalms 22:1-31 (NASB95)