Psalm 22 Poetic Features
Have you forsaken me?
Psalm 22
Poetic Features
In poetic features, we identify and describe the “Top 3 Poetic Features” for each Psalm. Poetic features might include intricate patterns (e.g., chiasms), long range correspondences across the psalm, evocative uses of imagery, sound-plays, allusions to other parts of the Bible, and various other features or combinations of features. For each poetic feature, we describe both the formal aspects of the feature and the poetic effect of the feature. We assume that there is no one-to-one correspondence between a feature’s formal aspects and its effect, and that similar forms might have very different effects depending on their contexts. The effect of a poetic feature is best determined (subjectively) by a thoughtful examination of the feature against the background of the psalm’s overall message and purpose.
Near and Far
If an emendation or revocalization is preferred, that emendation or revocalization will be marked in the Hebrew text of all the visuals.
| Emendations/Revocalizations legend | |
|---|---|
| *Emended text* | Emended text, text in which the consonants differ from the consonants of the Masoretic text, is indicated by blue asterisks on either side of the emendation. |
| *Revocalized text* | Revocalized text, text in which only the vowels differ from the vowels of the Masoretic text, is indicated by purple asterisks on either side of the revocalization. |
Feature
The repeated root רחק, far, occurs at critical points within the psalm (vv. 2, 12, 20). This is contrasted with the nearness of trouble (v. 12b, צָרָ֣ה קְרוֹבָ֑ה) and the surrounding (סבב, כתר, נקפ) of the psalmist's enemies (vv. 13a–b, 17a–b). The psalmist even speaks of his heart melting "within his interior" (v. 16d; בְּתוֹךְ מֵעָי). On the other hand, the same בְּתוֹךְ preposition, "within, inside," is used to speak of "the midst of the community" (v. 23b, בְּת֖וֹךְ קָהָ֣ל), among whose presence the psalmist delights in praising YHWH after YHWH answers him. In the final section of the psalm (vv. 28–32) the distance is portrayed by the nations being described as "all the ends of the earth" (v. 28a, כָּל־אַפְסֵי־אָרֶץ); nearness is portrayer by their need to (re)turn to a common point of origin, YHWH (יִזְכְּרוּ וְיָשֻׁבוּ אֶל־יְהוָה), when they consider the deliverance of the psalmist.
Effect
The distance portrayed between YHWH and the psalmist is key to understanding the suffering of the psalmist, in that, if YHWH has abandoned him, the inevitable result is death. While YHWH is portrayed as far, it is trouble that is near (v. 12a–b). Though he would have hoped to be surrounded by those helping, there are not any (v. 12c), but rather enemies have surrounded him (vv. 13, 17). While YHWH and any help is far, trouble and enemies are near, resulting in the trauma-induced interior suffering of a melted heart. However, in the second half of the psalm the preposition "in the midst of" is repeated so that the proximal nature describes not trouble, enemies and suffering, but rather the community of those with whom the psalmist will praise YHWH. The result of this salvation is that even those who are as far away as physically possible ("all the ends of the earth") are those who need to do the turning and drawing near to YHWH, not the other way round, since YHWH was always near, even in the midst of suffering.
Verbs of Communication
If an emendation or revocalization is preferred, that emendation or revocalization will be marked in the Hebrew text of all the visuals.
| Emendations/Revocalizations legend | |
|---|---|
| *Emended text* | Emended text, text in which the consonants differ from the consonants of the Masoretic text, is indicated by blue asterisks on either side of the emendation. |
| *Revocalized text* | Revocalized text, text in which only the vowels differ from the vowels of the Masoretic text, is indicated by purple asterisks on either side of the revocalization. |
Feature
The contextual domain of communication is repeated throughout the psalm. In v. 3, God had not answered (לֹא תַעֲנֶה) despite the psalmist's crying out, whereas his ancestors cried out and were rescued (v. 6). The onlookers, on the other hand, mock him (v. 8), while the opening of their mouth as if to roar (v. 14; שֹׁאֵֽג) is contrasted with the psalmist's words of groaning (v. 2, דִּבְרֵ֥י שַׁאֲגָתִֽי).
In the depth of the psalmist's suffering, he is able to count (ספר) all his bones (v. 18a). Numerically,[1] this verb falls at the exact center of the psalm, confirming its structural importance. The same root provides a lexical inclusio for the third poetic section (vv. 23a, 31b).
By v. 22 David considers God to have answered him (עֲנִיתָֽנִי), immediately followed by the root ספר again (v. 23a). The root repeated from v. 3 and 22 is homophonous with terms of affliction and poverty throughout the psalm (v. 25, עֱנ֬וּת עָנִ֗י; v. 27,עֲנָוִ֨ים)—those whom YHWH hears when they call to him (v. 25c). In the end, YHWH's actions will be proclaimed (v. 31) to the next generation, who, will come and tell (v. 32) those after them what YHWH has done.
Effect
Among scholarship, v. 23 is almost universally understood as the turning point in the psalm, between two verbal roots in the lexical domain of speaking (עֲנִיתָנִי, אֲסַפְּרָה). Besides forming part of the primary contextual domain of Ps 22 (communication), they echo other uses of the same roots and homophonous lexemes throughout the psalm.
The reader is left wondering if YHWH will ever answer the psalmist after he judges that, "you do not answer" in v. 3b. Soon, however, the declaration arrives: "you answered me!" (v. 22b). The roots for the poor and afflicted (vv. 25b, 27a) remind the reader of the verb in v. 22b—will YHWH also answer them? The answer is offered in v. 25c: "he heard when he cried to him for help."
Surrounded by actions of the enemies, David is left counting his bones (אֲסַפֵּר) in v. 18a, the numerical center of the psalm. Just a few verses later everything changes. He announces (אֲסַפְּרָה) the name of YHWH before the assembly—that is, who YHWH is and what he has done. By the end of the psalm, the psalmist is no longer concerned who is recounting the salvation that YHWH has brought about, rather, what's important is simply that it is being told (יְסֻפַּ֖ר) and re-told (v. 31), so that those who hear it will tell it again (v. 32).
A Chiasm of Enemies
If an emendation or revocalization is preferred, that emendation or revocalization will be marked in the Hebrew text of all the visuals.
| Emendations/Revocalizations legend | |
|---|---|
| *Emended text* | Emended text, text in which the consonants differ from the consonants of the Masoretic text, is indicated by blue asterisks on either side of the emendation. |
| *Revocalized text* | Revocalized text, text in which only the vowels differ from the vowels of the Masoretic text, is indicated by purple asterisks on either side of the revocalization. |
Feature
The psalmist complains of his suffering in the first poetic section of Psalm 22 and celebrates the deliverance thereof in the third and final poetic section. The central section (vv. 12–22) contains the description of the psalmist's suffering in this psalm with all its graphic and gory imagery. It mentions bulls, lions, dogs and piercing/a sword (vv. 13–17), followed by the same elements in reverse order (vv. 21–22). All eight of these mentioned constituents are grammatically indefinite.
Effect
The grammatical indefiniteness of these eight mentions intentionally creates poetic correspondence between them (as definiteness parallelism).[2]
The development of these images throughout the first half of the psalm's central section is followed immediately by the numerically central word of the psalm, אֲסַפֵּ֥ר (v. 18). As the psalm's second half begins, the reversal of these four images in chiastic fashion produces the expectation of the reversal of the psalmist's suffering and the arrival of his deliverance. Indeed, this arrival occurs immediately following the final mention of "bulls/oxen"—one of the most prominent words of the psalm, עֲנִיתָֽנִי "you answered me!"
The chiastic structure not only spans most of this central section, but also guides the reader/hearer through the depths of the suffering and out the other side, to a new hope.
Repeated Roots
The repeated roots table is intended to identify the roots which are repeated in the psalm.
| Repeated Roots legend | |
|---|---|
| Divine name | The divine name is indicated by bold purple text. |
| Roots bounding a section | Roots bounding a section, appearing in the first and last verse of a section, are indicated by bold red text. |
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Roots occurring primarily in the first section are indicated in a yellow box. |
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Roots occurring primarily in the third section are indicated in a blue box. |
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Roots connected across sections are indicated by a vertical gray line connecting the roots. |
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Section boundaries are indicated by a horizontal black line across the chart. |
Notes
The repeated roots chart has been limited to those occurring a minimum of three times (those roots occurring twice include ישׁע, ענה, פלט, בזה, סבב, רבב, שׁאג, עֶצֶם, פֶּה, לֵב, כֶּלֶב, עזר, ראה, עַם, יָד, נצל, ירא, קָהָל, אכל, אֶרֶץ, חוה, גּוֹי).
- The only occurrence of יהוה in the first half of the psalm is in the speech of the onlooking mockers. "God" (אֶל) is preferred (see vv. 2, 11), while "YHWH" is standard in the psalm's second half (vv. 24, 27, 28, 29).
- The root רחק, "be far," is limited to the first half of the psalm (vv. 2, 12, 20)—significantly in the repeated request "Do not be far" (vv. 12, 20)—as is בטח "trusting" (vv. 5, 6, 10).
- "Praise" (הלל) is mentioned once in the confession of v. 4, but becomes much more prevalent in the psalm's second half (vv. 23, 24, 26, 27), while "seed" (זֶרַע) is found three times, in vv. 24 and 31.
- Finally, the root ספר occurs in both halves and, indeed, on the very hinge into the second half of the psalm (vv. 18, 23, 31), though contains slightly different senses of "count" (v. 18), "announce" (v. 23) and "proclaim" (v. 31).
- In sum, God's apparent distance and appeals for him to not be far, and therefore the necessity to trust him, are found exclusively in the first half. On the other hand, praise and telling of his deeds are found almost exclusively in the second half.