I had found that things sat a lot easier on a fella’s mind if he only worried about those things he could do something about.”
–Lou Bradshaw (Blue)
“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?”
–Matthew 6:25 (NKJV)
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The first part of Psalm 22, we saw David in deep depression and despair. His soul was in agony. Here we see him calling out to God. David, whenever there was a problem, or a situation that brought him anguish knew where to turn; he always turned to God. In these verses we also see the foretelling of another who was in deep despair–Jesus.
11 – Do not be far from me, because distress is near and there is no one to help.
12 – Many bulls surround me; strong ones of Bashan encircle me.
13 – They open their mouths against me—lions, mauling and roaring.
14 – I am poured out like water, and all my bones are disjointed; my heart is like wax, melting within me.
15 – My strength is dried up like baked clay; my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. You put me into the dust of death.
16 – For dogs have surrounded me; a gang of evildoers has closed in on me; they pierced my hands and my feet.
17 – I can count all my bones; people look and stare at me.
18 – They divided my garments among themselves, and they cast lots for my clothing.
19 – But You, Lord, don’t be far away. My strength, come quickly to help me.
20 – Deliver my life from the sword, my only life from the power of these dogs.
21 – Save me from the mouth of the lion! You have rescued me from the horns of the wild oxen. (HCSB)
Here is a description of the cross hundreds of years before crucifixion was invented. The woe and pain that Jesus would face on the cross is shown here. Philip P. Bliss would write:
“Bearing shame and scoffing rude,
In my place condemned he stood;
Sealed my pardon with his blood:
Hallelujah! what a Savior!”
People, “dogs” were snarling at David. They wanted to see him destroyed. Very similarly, the dogs sought to tear at Jesus. They snapped, and snarled, and bared their teeth. The way people act in a mob is atrocious, there is chaos, no control. The mob is a good description of a pack of dogs–they wanted the death of David, like in the future a mob of “dogs” would want the death of our Lord.
If you’ve ever seen a pack of dogs they are not like a pack of wolves. The dogs will be of all breeds and sizes. Even the seemingly innocent little dog becomes vicious when he is with a pack. Kipling said that dogs were “lesser breeds without the Law.” My, my doesn’t that fit society today? Listen to the snarling. There is no sense among them, they just want to tear to shreds whomever they come against. The “dogs” of that day would raid villages and take the youth and children, strip them naked, chain them together and sell them as slaves. The Greek word “cynic” means a dog on the loose in the streets.
Men would carry clubs when they walked the streets because of the dogs. In later times, that club would become a cane, but the purpose was to ward off the dogs that might be encountered. David said, “the dogs have surrounded me.” Are we seeing that again? Are the dogs coming together, vicious and snarling, ready to devour and tear apart? Jesus had to face the “dogs” as well. They came at Him, and eventually they put Him on the cross, all the time snarling and drooling. They thought they had destroyed Him. Ha, they did not know with whom they were dealing. Jesus did not beat them off. He had another plan, one for you and me, yes, and even the dogs. “Christ submitted to suffer nakedness that we might be covered with righteousness and glory and walk with him in white forever.” (George Hutcheson)