Was Christ Abandoned by the Father?

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” — Psalm 22.1

On the cross the Lord Jesus was heard crying out these words from Psalm 22 (Mat 27.46). Over the years I’ve heard many preachers explain that God the Father abandoned his Son because he cannot look upon sin, which Jesus bore the sin of the world upon him on the cross. However, this explanation has always bothered me. If I were to believe that Jesus is divine and part of the Trinity (and I do) then how can he divest himself from being a member of the Godhead at this moment? Does that imply that God’s nature became a duality from a triunity for a mere moment? Of course not, otherwise that would be heresy!

Some attempted to respond by explaining that this was Jesus the human speaking, not Jesus the divine. Again, if I were to believe that Jesus is the God-man (and I do), that he uniquely possessed a nature that is both divine and human, then neither can he separate his divinity from his humanity. This is referred to as his hypostatic union (hupostasis), the union of his divinity and his humanity into one essence. It means he does not have two separate essences but rather a singular divine-human essence, much like when mixing cream in coffee where the liquid is not part cream and part coffee but rather an insoluble homogenous coffee-cream mixture. Therefore, Jesus can no more divest himself from his humanity and remain the Second Person of the Trinity than the Godhead can divest the Son from the Trinity and remain God.

Finding these explanations unsatisfactory, I began to study Psalm 22. In my study, I discovered that the Hebrew verb “forsaken” (ȃzab) means to loosen, that is, relinquish or permit. In this context it can be understood as refusal to help. David was crying out to God, begging him to come to his aid but no one came, as he cried out, “Be not far from me, for trouble is near, and there is none to help” (Psa 22.11). We know that David did not believe he was abandoned by God since later he wrote, “For he has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted, and he has not hidden his face from him, but has heard, when he cried to him” (Psa 22.24). Thus, the feeling David had was not the actual abandonment by the Lord but rather he felt alone because there is no one who can help in time of trouble.

By applying this understanding of the meaning of forsaken, now I am able to resolve the main tension from these agonizing words of Christ on the cross. Jesus was crying out to the Father in agony because he must endure the cross without the Father’s help of deliverance. In other words, he must endure the agony of death on his own in order to redeem all humanity as the final sacrifice foretold in Isaiah 53.10.

Furthermore, I believe Jesus may have recited Psalm 22 in its entirety. You might ask how I arrived at this conclusion. Psalm 22 ends with, “they shall come and proclaim his righteousness to a people yet unborn, that he has done it.” Take note of the last four words, “he has done it.” It literally means “It is finished!” which were the same last words spoken by Jesus (Joh 19.30).

Therefore, it is important to look at the theme of Psalm 22 in order to understand Matthew 27.46. Despite of his feeling of abandonment, David continues to place his trust in the Lord for he has shown himself to be faithful and trustworthy to his people. He says, “The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek him shall praise the LORD! May your hearts live forever!” (Psa 22.24). No, the Father did not abandon Jesus on the cross. It was his steadfast love for all humanity that kept him from rescuing his Son from a torturous death. As you reflect on the work of Christ this Easter, thank the Father for his steadfast, extravagant love that it was his will to crush him to redeem you for all eternity. Take hope and be encouraged, for the same God who did not despise or forsaken David in his time of trouble is the same one who will hear you when you cry out to him in distress.