PSALM 22
METER: 76 76 D
SUGGESTED TUNE: PASSION CHORALE
This is the meter for the hymn "O Sacred Head, Now Wounded"
1. My God, why have you left me?
Why do my cries not help?
I cry by day--no an-swer--
And night--but get no rest.
But you, O Lord, are ho-ly,
En-throned on Is-rael's praise.
In you our fore-bears trust-ed
And you de-liv-ered them.
2. They cried to you, you saved them;
You did not fail their trust.
But I'm a worm, not hu-man,
Scorned and de-spised by all.
All who look at me taunt me,
They laugh and shake their heads.
"He trust-ed God, let God save,
For he de-lights in him."
3. Yet from the womb you brought me,
A babe, you kept me safe.
From birth I've trust-ed in you;
You've al-ways been my God.
O do not go far from me;
In trou-ble I'm a-lone.
My foes sur-round like wild bulls,
Like hun-gry lions roar.
4. My strength is like spilled wa-ter,
My bones are out of joint;
My heart in me is melt-ed
Like wax with-in my breast;
My strength's dry as a pot-sherd,
My tongue sticks in my mouth.
In the dust I'm left ly-ing
As if I'm good as dead.
5. Yes, dogs are all a-round me--
A gang of e-vil ones.
They tear at me like li-ons,
They pierce my hands and feet.
My bones can all be count-ed.
Foes stare and gloat o'er me,
They gam-ble for my cloth-ing,
And each one takes a share.
6. But you, Lord, please stay near me!
Come quick-ly to my aid!
Save my life from the sword and
These dogs who want me dead!
From li-ons' mouths de-liv-er,
And from the wild bulls' horns.
I'll tell my peo-ple of you,
Be-fore them praise your name.
7. You who fear Yah-weh, praise him!
O Ja-cob, hon-or him!
O Is-ra-el, re-vere him
And stand in awe of him!
He did not turn his back on
The suff-ering of the poor;
His face he has not hid-den,
But an-swers cries for help.
8. I'll praise you with your peo-ple
For all you've done, O Lord;
With all who wor-ship you I
Will pay up on my vows.
The poor shall eat and be filled;
Those who come to the Lord
Shall praise his name for-ev-er.
May they pros-per al-ways.
9. All na-tions will re-mem-ber
And turn un-to the Lord;
From all parts of the whole world,
From ev-ery race and clime,
They'll turn to him and wor-ship.
The Lord our God is King;
O'er earth he has do-min-ion;
The na-tions he does rule.
10. The proud bow down be-fore him;
All mor-tals shall serve him.
Pos-ter-i-ty shall serve God;
Peo-ple shall speak of him
To future gen-e-ra-tions,
To peo-ple yet un-born:
"The Lord has brought de-liv-erance,
His peo-ple he has saved."
Stanzas 1-5 and 8-10 reprinted by permission of the publisher from Sing the Psalms! by Dale A. Schoening. Copyright 1988 Dale A. Schoening. Stanzas 6-7 reprinted by permission of the publisher from Supplementary Volume to Sing the Psalms by Dale A. Schoening. Copyright 1992 Dale A. Schoening.
