Psalms 22 is retrospectively viewed by Christians as a foreshadowing or a prophecy consistent with Isaiah’s and Zechariah’s prophecies of a Messiah who is pierced. Some say it is neither, rather a falsehood.[1]
Prophecies are challenging due to many factors. Typically not straightforward nor easy to understand, a prophecy is often not fully or clearly understood until a full realization that it did, in fact, occur. In some cases, it may be clarified by other prophecies.[2]
Crucifixion does not need interpretation – Roman crucifixion had developed into a well-honed process by the end of the BC era. It was designed to extend death as long as possible while inflicting maximum pain and humiliation.
To have prophetic qualities, Psalm 22 would need to predict details about a crucifixion that are precise enough to avoid conjecture. Written at a time when the Roman Empire did not yet exist, the Psalm content appears more prophetic because the Roman-style crucifixion was not yet invented.
Jewish historian Josephus described an occasion where he was traveling with the Roman military when they came upon three of his Jewish acquaintances among many others being crucified along the road to Thecoa, not far from Bethlehem.[3] Struck with compassion, he pleaded personally to Titus Caesar to have mercy on them. Titus commanded them to be take down from their crosses and treated by Roman physicians, but still only one survived.
“I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart has turned to wax; it has melted away within me. My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth; you lay me in the dust of death. Dogs have surrounded me; a band of evil men has encircled me, they have pierced my hands and my feet. I can count all my bones; people stare and gloat over me.”[4]
Not quoted by a crucifixion victim known by Josephus, nor was it quoted by any other Roman historians who documented Roman crucifixions. The description was written by King David in Psalms 22 centuries earlier, yet the depiction is wholly consistent with that of a Roman crucifixion victim a millennium later.
Rashi commented in the second verse, “David recited this prayer for the future” and later for verse 27, the Rabbi commented “The humble shall eat” meaning “at the time of our redemption in the days of our Messiah.”[5] Psalms 22, at least in part in Rashi’s words, is prophetic.
Raising the bar for prophetic difficulty are the very distinct actions in Psalms 22 – quotes and explicit activities. Since persons other than the victim were involved, they could not be replicated by the victim:
PS 22:7-8 All who see me mock me; they hurl insults, shaking their heads: “He trusts in the LORD; let the LORD rescue him. Let him deliver him, since he delights in him.”(NIV)
PS 22:18 “They divide my clothes among themselves and throw dice for my garments.” (NIV)
Inflicted extreme suffering, specific actions, and spoken words in Psalms 22 are remarkably similar to the Gospel accounts of the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth. A montage of Gospel verses reflects those similarities:
JN19:17-18 “Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha).” Here they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle.
MT 27:36 “And sitting down, they kept watch over him there.”
MK15:24 “Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get.”
LK 23:35-36 “The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One. The soldiers also came up and mocked him.” (NIV)
A second quote, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” opens the first verse of Psalms 22. These words were also uttered by Jesus when he was dying on the cross:
Ps 22:1 “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (NIV)
MT 27:45-46, MK 15:33-34 “Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?’”(NIV)
Answers to two questions are in play: is Jesus the Messiah and is Psalms 22 prophetic?
By the time Jesus uttered these words, he had already endured severe flogging, exposed raw flesh, severe blood loss, acute dehydration, exposure to the weather, hanging by nails from the cross, labored and painful breathing and in state of shock. In his excruciating misery and naked humiliation, he would have seen and heard the gawking and sneering crowd with their taunts and insults.
Jesus would have to know in advance – before his arrest, trial, and crucifixion with the most unlikely collusion between the Jews and their hated Roman enemies – this opportunity would present itself in order to perpetrate a Messiah fraud by quoting from Psalms 22. No fraudster could know of this opportunity in advance, meaning having this advance knowledge would be supernatural.
Establishing a false Messiah image would have been fully dependent upon Psalms 22 being prophetic or else a false Messiah could not sell the fraud. Said another way, if the entirety of Psalms 22 was not prophetic, then quoting from it by the Messiah would be a pointless coincidence.
Catch 22
Apply the Doctrine of Chances to Psalms 22 containing at least five precise details that had to be met if the Psalm were to be a 100% fulfilled prophecy. All came to pass during the crucifixion of Jesus, according to the Gospels, making Psalms 22 prophetic.
What are the odds Psalms 22 is a Messiah prophecy fulfilled by the crucifixion of Jesus?
Nativity accounts of both Matthew and Luke report that Jesus of Nazareth was born during the lifetimes of three historical personages – Augustus, Herod and Quirinius.[1] King Herod’s death occurred shortly after the birth of Jesus of Nazareth making it the lynch pin date to determine his birth year, but it isn’t easy to determine.
Standardized calendars during Antiquity do not exist; instead, timelines and dates are linked to well-known historical events. Establishing the date of Herod’s death requires piecing together such clues as the reigns of Tiberius, King Herod and his sons; the Battle of Actium; the Jewish religious calendar; astronomy data, Josephus’ history accounts, etc.
Adding another level of complexity is “inclusive reckoning,” the question of whether a partial year was counted as a full year in historical references. The unsettled question instills a plus or minus factor of at least a year.[2]
Josephus wrote extensively in Antiquities of the Jews about the days surrounding Herod’s death. They are marked by bookend events of a lunar eclipse and the following Passover that Spring.
Calculations
Tetrarch Philip
Philip, one of King Herod’s sons, began reigning part of Judea after the death of his father when he was appointed by Caesar Augustus as tetrarch. Printed copies of Antiquities say Philip died in the “twentieth year of Tiberius,” after ruling for 37 years.[3]
“…Philip, Herod’s brother, departed this life, in the twentieth year of the reign of Tiberius after he had been tetrarch of Trachonitis, and Gaulonitis, and of the nation of Bataneana also thirty-seven years.” – Josephus (*printed)[4]
Tiberius began his reign when Caesar Augustus died in 14 AD, then adding 20 years it lands in 34 AD, minus Philip’s reign of 37 years calculates to 3 BC when King Herod died. With the partial lunar eclipse on March 13th, 4 BC, that year becomes the commonly accepted secular date for Herod’s death meaning Jesus of Nazareth had to be born in an earlier year.[5]
Secular history ends the reign of Tiberius in March, 37 AD, after almost 22 and half years when he began his reign in August, 14 AD. After factoring in the 37-year reign of Philip, he could not have began his reign in 4 BC.
Consultant and Biblical hobbyist, David Beyer, compared the 1544 Gutenberg printings of Antiquities to two dozen older, handwritten manuscripts predating Gutenberg. He discovered all older handwritten Antiquities manuscripts said that Philip died in the 22nd year of Tiberius, not the 20th year, and when corrected to 22 years places Herod’s death in the 1 BC time frame.[6]
Josephus’ two other references in Antiquities of the Jews and Wars of the Jews each back-up Beyer. In Antiquities, Josephus states that Tiberius died after serving as Caesar “twenty-two years, five months and three days” aligning with the secular history date of early 37 AD this placing Herod’s death in the 1 BC.[7]
Wars marked the Battle of Actium in the 7th year of Herod’s reign academically recognized as occurring in the year 31 BC. Josephus wrote that Herod served for 37 years backdating the beginning of Herod’s reign to 38 BC who then reigned himself for 37 years thereby again reckoning Herod’s death in the year 1 BC.
Agrippa, in 36 AD, traveled to Rome before the death of Tiberius. After saying to Caligula (Caius/Gaius) in a carriage ride that he wished Tiberius would die. The carriage driver told Tiberius who had Agrippa thrown into prison.
Six months later after the death of Tiberius, his successor, Caligula, gave the unfilled tetrarchy of Philip to Agrippa in 37 AD. Once again, factoring in the reign of Tiberius and backdating Philip’s death after reigning for 37 years, reckons to Herod’s death in 1 BC.[8]
Three historical references by Josephus are calculated three different ways. All land in the year 1 BC.
Historian expert Gerard Gertoux, using several calculations methods, arrived at similar results. Approaching the dilemma from several angles, Gertoux determined the King’s death occurred in 1 BC.[9]
Astronomy
Changing the date of Herod’s death to 1 BC poses a second question – what about the lunar eclipse referenced by Josephus marking the final days of King Herod?
NASA lunar eclipse data for Jerusalem reveals that on January 9-10, 1 BC, a full lunar eclipse occurred. Passover that year was observed on April 6th, twelve and half weeks later allowing eight additional weeks for the events described by Josephus to occur.[10]
By comparison, NASA data for Jerusalem shows only a partial, less-than-half, lunar eclipse occurred on March 13th, 4 BC, used to support the secular 4 BC timeline.[11] Passover in 4 BC fell on April 10th, four weeks later.[12]
Span of Eclipse to Passover Events
Aside from various dating methods, some experts question the timeline between the eclipse and Passover. Could all the events described by Josephus have occurred in the span of just 4 weeks if Herod died in 4 BC?
Josephus described in detail the events that took place between the eclipse and the upcoming Passover.[13] A gripping scene in Jerusalem began with rumors that Herod had died inciting insurrectionists to remove the long-hated sacrilege of Rome’s golden eagle insignia Herod had mounted over the entrance gate.[14]
Unfortunately for the insurrectionists, the King was not yet dead. Herod had the High Priest removed from office and 40 insurrectionists burned alive marked by a lunar eclipse that night.
Herod’s loathsome protruding bowels and gangrenous groin condition worsened. Physicians recommended therapy in the warm baths of Callirrhoe, about a 2-days journey from Jerusalem past another of Herod’s palace in Jericho, then across the Jordan River to the hot springs.[15]
Gaining no relief, his physicians then recommended soaking in a full vat of oil. Back to his closer palace in Jericho, King Herod soaked in a vat for three days, but that treatment also failed.
Preparing for the final chapter in his life, the King sent letters throughout Judea summoning all the “principal men” to Jericho:
“all the principal men of the entire Jewish nation, wheresoever they lived, should be called to him…a great number that came, because the whole nation was called, and all men heard of this call, and death was the penalty of such as should despise the epistles.” – Josephus[16]
Death would bring welcome relief. Misery overcame the King who decided to hasten his inevitable death with a kitchen carving knife, but his cousin saw what was about to happen, grabbed the King’s hand and began screaming.[17]
Echoing screams throughout the halls of the palace were misinterpreted that Herod had died touching off a great wailing lamentation. Antipater, Herod’s imprisoned eldest son, believed a twist of fate had now posited the kingdom into his grasp.
Antipater promised his jailer fortunes to release him immediately. Instead, the jailer informed Herod who became enraged, beat his head and ordered his son to be promptly executed.[18]
Herod died 5 days later, after Antipater’s execution, according to Josephus.[19] News of the King’s death spread across Judea and to other nations.
International dignitaries and top military personnel including centurions, captains and officers; and full regiments of the Thracians, Germans, Galatians and Gauls all outfitted in full battle gear traveled to the King’s funeral in Jericho. Meanwhile, a funeral bier was built of gold embroidered by “very precious stones of a great variety” and lined with purple material “of various contexture.”
After the funeral, an elaborate and slow procession to Herodium for the King’s interment took many more days. Following the King’s burial was a 7-day morning period, then a feast was given for the people of Judea before the Passover.[20]
Question
Historical records, archeological discoveries and astronomy data point to the death of Herod in the 1 BC time frame vs. the questionable secular 4 BC date. Did Herod’s death actually occur in 1 BC or the traditionally accepted year of 4 BC?
Suddenly and unexpectedly, a Town Crier, known as a praeco in Latin, shouted out a proclamation that changed history…and Mary’s destiny. He announced a decree from none other than Roman Caesar Augustus just days before Mary was to give birth, a game-changer with an immediate major impact.[1]
Highly unlikely was that Jesus would be born any place other than Nazareth. Gabriel, the angel, who visited Mary announcing her supernatural conception, did not instruct her to go anywhere else to bear her child and there was no reason to think otherwise.
Mary was expected to give birth at home – most certainly not in a stone enclave used to shelter livestock in the faraway town of Bethlehem.[2] Nearly 9 months pregnant, she probably would have been looking forward to having the support of her husband Joseph, family and friends over the few remaining days when that special moment would arrive.
LK 2: 1-3 “And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city.” NKJV
Traditional Nativity accounts often cite a “census” decree issued by Caesar Augustus, a word not found in many of English Gospel translations…and for good reason. Latin for “census” is the word censēre which is not found anywhere in New Testament Greek texts nor even any works by historian Josephus during the Roman era.[3]
Greek for “census” is kensos meaning “tax” which also does not appear in Luke’s Greek text. Used only four times in the New Testament, kensos is used exclusively by the author of Matthew, a former tax collector, each time in the context of “tax” and not related to the Nativity story.[4]
LK 2: 4-6 “Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child. So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered.”NKJV
Translating Greek to English has its challenges and Luke’s Nativity account is a prime example. The difficulty for translators is capturing the correct distinctions by relying, at least to some degree, on their contextual interpretation of the text.[5]
First and third verses of chapter 2, the Greek text of Luke contains the word apographo. The word is a verb meaning an activity to “write off (a copy or list), i.e. enrollment.”[6]
Verse 2 uses Greek word apographe, a noun meaning “an enrollment, by implication an assessment.”[7] It refers to the actual documented record – a written enrollment register or listing resulting from the enrollment activity initiated by Caesar’s decree.
Caesar’s decree initiated an action to make a list of the population in the Roman Empire by conducting an enrollment process. Various Bible versions have also translated the word “census” into English as “registration,” “enrolled,” “numbering,” and “taxed.”[8]
Common to all five English translation variations of Augustus’ decree have the characteristics of taking an action that produced a documented enrollment registration that was historically used later for taxation purposes. As such, English translations are consistent with a typical Roman census registration process.[9]
A Roman “census” was also used to enumerate the population; establish a public registry; identify Roman citizens; and size military needs.[10] Oft overlooked, it required an oath to be given at the time of registration that is not unlike today’s legal agreements and ULAs required for various purchases including mobile phones, credit cards services, and other online services.
Informing the people of the town, the announcement by the praeco of Augustus’ decree told them when and where to appear for the registration.[11] Compliance was not optional – failure to comply could result in loss of property, slavery, imprisonment or even death.[12]
Announcement of the decree came at the tail end of months of Roman government planning and implementation throughout the vast Empire.[13] Interestingly, if the announcement had occurred just a week later or a couple of weeks earlier, Jesus would have been born in Nazareth.
Terrain between Nazareth & Bethlehem
A unique confluence of events was set in motion soon to culminate in Bethlehem. Augustus’ registration decree compelled Joseph and Mary to do the unthinkable.
On short notice Joseph and Mary were compelled to travel 90-miles away. The journey risked the dangers that came with walking on the winding and hilly path through the wilderness to Bethlehem.[14]
Meanwhile, Magi from a foreign country were planning a month’s long journey to Jerusalem not knowing they would eventually also end up in Bethlehem…a small town where neither they nor Joseph and Mary had planned to be. The reigning King, Herod, actually sent the Magi to Bethlehem to find the baby “King of the Jews.”
Was the timing of the praeco’s announcement of Caesar’s decree merely a coincidence that unexpectedly changed the birthplace of Jesus from Nazareth to Bethlehem, the birthplace of King David, or was it a fulfillment of Micah’s Messiah prophecy?
Psalms 22 is retrospectively viewed by Christians as a foreshadowing or a prophecy consistent with Isaiah’s and Zechariah’s prophecies of a Messiah who is pierced. Some say it is neither, rather a falsehood.[1]
