Psalms 22:6-7

22:6 But I ¹  am a worm, ²  not a man; ³ 

people insult me and despise me. ⁴ 

22:7 All who see me taunt ⁵  me;

they mock me ⁶  and shake their heads. ⁷ 

Psalms 22:15

22:15 The roof of my mouth ⁸  is as dry as a piece of pottery;

my tongue sticks to my gums. ⁹ 

You ¹⁰  set me in the dust of death. ¹¹ 

Psalms 22:17

22:17 I can count ¹²  all my bones;

my enemies ¹³  are gloating over me in triumph. ¹⁴ 

[22:6]  ¹ tn The grammatical construction (conjunction + pronoun) highlights the contrast between the psalmist’s experience and that of his ancestors. When he considers God’s past reliability, it only heightens his despair and confusion, for God’s present silence stands in stark contrast to his past saving acts.

[22:6]  ² tn The metaphor expresses the psalmist’s self-perception, which is based on how others treat him (see the following line).

[22:6]  ³ tn Or “not a human being.” The psalmist perceives himself as less than human.

[22:6]  ⁴ tn Heb “a reproach of man and despised by people.”

[22:7]  ⁵ tn Or “scoff at, deride, mock.”

[22:7]  ⁶ tn Heb “they separate with a lip.” Apparently this refers to their verbal taunting.

[22:7]  ⁷ sn Shake their heads. Apparently this refers to a taunting gesture. See also Job 16:4; Ps 109:25; Lam 2:15.

[22:15]  ⁸ tc Heb “my strength” (כֹּחִי, kokhiy), but many prefer to emend the text to חִכִּי (khikiy, “my palate”; cf. NEB, NRSV “my mouth”) assuming that an error of transposition has occurred in the traditional Hebrew text.

[22:15]  ⁹ tn Cf. NEB “my jaw”; NASB, NRSV “my jaws”; NIV “the roof of my mouth.”

[22:15]  ¹⁰ sn Here the psalmist addresses God and suggests that God is ultimately responsible for what is happening because of his failure to intervene (see vv. 1-2, 11).

[22:15]  ¹¹ sn The imperfect verbal form draws attention to the progressive nature of the action. The psalmist is in the process of dying.

[22:17]  ¹² tn The imperfect verbal forms in vv. 17-18 draw attention to the progressive nature of the action.

[22:17]  ¹³ tn Heb “they.” The masculine form indicates the enemies are in view. The referent (the psalmist’s enemies) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[22:17]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “they gaze, they look upon me.”