The Prayer Book of the Rabbi
No prayer in Scripture evokes more sorrow than that offered by our Savior on the cross - "Eloi, Eloi, Lema Sabachthani", or "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
These heartbreaking words remind us of the terrible price Jesus paid for our sins; not just the physical suffering, but the cosmic separation between the Father and the Son that stems from the Selfless One bearing the penalty of our self-centeredness.
My God, My God, Why Have You Forsaken Me?
In the account from Mark 15:25-39, Jesus cries out to his Father, and for the first time, hears nothing in response. No voice from heaven proclaims "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased", and no "angels waited on him" as occurred at his baptism and after his temptation in the wilderness. Instead of comfort, Jesus hears only an awful silence.
This silence reveals a critical concept. Jesus is not speaking in hyperbole; he has been forsaken by his Father. On the cross, God "imputed" our sin upon Jesus, and Jesus' righteousness upon us. At the moment of crucifixion, therefore, Jesus took upon himself all the sin that ever was or ever will be. He became abhorrent to his Father, and there was a divorce in the Godhead - a separation of the Trinity that lasted for three days. When we proclaim that Jesus "descended into hell" in the Apostles Creed each week, we confess that Jesus endure that divine divorce; a fate far worse than any fire or brimstone or darkness that we could ever imagine.
And yet, this is not a story without hope. Jesus prays the first verse of Psalm 22 (My God, my God, why have you forsaken me), knowing full well how that Psalm changes in tone after the sorrow and suffering:
"From the horns of the wild oxen you have rescued me. I will tell of your name to my brothers and sisters; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you." (v21-22)
"All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the LORD; and all the families of the nations shall worship before him." (v27)
Through his cross, Jesus will bring all the ends of the earth and all the families of the nations to his Father. And after the cross, Jesus will still stand in the midst of his loved ones and praise the name of his Father, who will raise him from the grave.
Extras
Psalm 22 is an enormously important Psalm in the story of Jesus and throughout the New Testament. Here are just some of the places Psalm 22 is quoted.
Jesus quotes verse 1 here in Mark 15:34.
The crowds quote verse 8 to Jesus in Matthew 27:43.
The Gospel author quotes verse 18 in Mark 15:24, as a fulfilled prophecy about the Messiah.
The author of Hebrews quotes verse 22 in Hebrews 2:12.