Why Do Christians See Psalm 22 in Jesus' Crucifixion?

Christians see Psalm 22 in Jesus’ crucifixion because the Gospels portray the cross as the psalm’s suffering—and its hope—coming to fulfillment.

Jesus deliberately voices its opening

As Jesus hangs on the cross, he cries,

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” — Matthew 27:46; Mark 15:34

Those are the opening words of Psalm 22:1. He is not merely borrowing a phrase of pain; he invokes a whole psalm David wrote about righteous suffering, public mockery, and eventual vindication.

The scene closely echoes the psalm

Psalm 22 describes a sufferer surrounded by hostile people who:

• mock him: “He trusts in the LORD; let him deliver him” (Psalm 22:7–8). The chief priests and others say essentially this to Jesus: “He trusts in God; let God deliver him” (Matthew 27:43).
• divide his clothing by lot (Psalm 22:18). The soldiers do this at Jesus’ crucifixion (John 19:23–24).
• endure bodily agony, exposure, thirst, and the nearness of death (Psalm 22:14–17). The Gospel accounts present Jesus crucified in that same public shame and suffering.

Some Christians also connect Psalm 22:16’s wording about hands and feet with crucifixion, though the Hebrew textual reading at that precise phrase is disputed. The garment-lots and mocking parallels are especially clear and undisputed.

The psalm does not end in abandonment

Psalm 22 turns from desperate lament to praise: God hears the afflicted sufferer, and the nations are called to worship the Lord (Psalm 22:22–31).

That movement matters. Jesus’ cry reveals the real horror of bearing sin and suffering death, yet it is not despair or defeat. The crucified Messiah is vindicated in resurrection, and through him the good news reaches the nations.

The cross is therefore not an accident that overcame Jesus; it is the suffering Scripture had already taught Israel to recognize—and the path to God’s saving victory.