Messiah in the Old Testament (W. Kaiser) – Psalm
22, 16
Walter Kaiser cites several Psalms in
his effort to draw the line from the Old Testament idea of Messiah to
identification of Jesus as the fulfillment of messianic prophecy. Included in his work are comments on Psalms
40, 45, 68 & 72. The reader can
refer to his book The Messiah in the Old
Testament (http://www.christianbook.com/the-messiah-in-the-old-testament/walter-kaiser/9780310200307/pd/0030X?product_redirect=1&Ntt=0030X&item_code=&Ntk=keywords&event=ESRCP)
for his comments on those Psalms. Here,
I will summarize Kaiser’s writing on Psalm 22 & Psalm 16 as each one points
to Jesus as messiah.
Kaiser cites five scholars dating
back to Calvin who, in different ways, believe that the sufferer in Psalm 22 is
King David, but also that the experience described in the Psalm transcends the
experiences of David. So, the Psalm
definitely ties to David, but also must be fulfilled by someone (a) who comes
after David, and (b) whose experiences are expressed in the Psalm in a way that
goes beyond David’s experiences of suffering.
One of the scholars cited by Kaiser, Charles Briggs, writing in 1889,
says, “The sufferings [described in Psalm 22] transcend those any historical
sufferer with the single exception of Jesus Christ.”[i]
In other words, only Jesus could fulfill what’s said in the Psalm.
Kaiser agrees, with his pointing to
New Testament quotations of the Psalm as being among the strongest of the
points in his argument. Two of the
supposed 7 last words of Christ, the 4th & 6th, come
from this Psalm. The fourth word is “My
God, My God, why have you forsaken me” (Psalm 22:1; Matthew 27:45-49; Mark
15:33-37). Kaiser observes that the
Psalms were titled by the first line of the Psalm when the New Testament was
written. Matthew and Mark present Jesus
as having the entire Psalm on his mind in those moments on the cross. Also, the point of emphasis is on the word “my,”
emphasizing the relationship of the speaker to God as his father.[ii]
The 6th word, “it is
finished,” signifies the completion of God’s redeeming work (Psalm 22:31; John
19:30). That Jesus’ final cry of accomplishment
is a quote of the final words of the Psalm further demonstrates his
identification with the one singing the lament.
From these observations as well as the other points he raises, it is
clear that Walter Kaiser sees the Messiah Jesus in the words of Psalm 22.
Psalm 16 points to the
resurrection. “My body lies secure; for you
do not give me up to Sheol” (16:9b-10a).
Peter quoted this Psalm in his Pentecost sermon in Acts 2:27 as he
discussed the resurrection. Kaiser feels the hinge that keys the messianic
interpretation is in the middle verse 9.
The NRSV translates the subject there “my body,” but the actual Hebrew
word is plural and means “Holy ones.”
Kaiser’s reputation believes this must be translated in the singular,
that it refers to Messiah, and that the Messiah is the one who will not be
given up to Sheol.
How does one avoid eternal
death? Resurrection. Kaiser believes David, the author/singer of
Psalm 16, knew one of his descendants would surpass him and would overcome
death. He thinks this is all David
knew. He didn’t know it would be Jesus,
a carpenter’s son from Nazareth. But, he
knew one of his descendants would be the one and he conveys that in Psalm
16:9-11. Kaiser also speculates that
Psalm 16 could have been one of the passages the resurrected Christ shared with
the Emmaus Road disciples (Luke 24).
Kaiser offers much more material
demonstrating the presence of the messiah in the Psalms. He says more about the two I’ve discussed as
well the ones I mentioned earlier and in the previous post on this topic. In the next post I will review his
identification of the messiah in passages from some of the Minor Prophets.
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