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LXX Psalms

Septuagint

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Psalm 21

1 For the end, concerning the morning aid, a Psalm of David. 2 God, my God, attend to me: why have you forsaken me? the account of my transgressions is far from my salvation.⁠ 3 my God, I will cry to you by day, but you will not hear: and by night, and it shall not be accounted for folly to me. 4 But you, the praise of Israel, dwell in a sanctuary. 5 Our fathers hoped in you; they hoped, and you delivered them. 6 They cried to you, and were saved: they hoped in you, and were not ashamed. 7 But I am a worm, and not a man; a reproach of men, and scorn of the people.⁠ 8 All that saw me mocked me: they spoke with their lips, they shook the head, saying, 9 He hoped in the Lord: let him deliver him, let him save him, because he takes pleasure in him.⁠ 10 For you are he that drew me out of the womb; my hope from my mother's breasts. 11 I was cast on you from the womb: you are my God from my mother's belly. 12 Do not stand aloof from me; for affliction is near; for there is no helper. 13 Many bullocks have surrounded me: fat bulls have beset me round. 14 They have opened their mouth against me, as a ravening and roaring lion. 15 I am poured out like water, and all my bones are loosened: my heart in the midst of my belly has become like melting wax. 16 My strength is dried up, like a potsherd; and my tongue is glued to my throat; and you have brought me down to the dust of death. 17 For many dogs have surrounded me: the assembly of the wicked doers has beset me round: they pierced my hands and my feet.⁠ 18 I counted all my bones; and they observed and looked upon me. 19 They parted my garments among themselves, and cast lots upon my clothing. 20 But you, Lord, do not remove my help afar off: be ready for my aid. 21 Deliver my soul from the sword; my only-begotten one from the power of the dog. 22 Save me from the lion's mouth;⁠ and regard my lowliness from the horns of the unicorns. 23 I will declare your name to my brothers: in the midst of the church I will sing praise to you. 24 You that fear the Lord, praise him; all you seed of Jacob, glorify him: let all the seed of Israel fear him. 25 For he has not despised nor been angry at the plea of the poor; nor turned away his face from me; but when I cried to him, he heard me. 26 My praise is of you in the great congregation: I will pay my vows before those that fear him. 27 The poor shall eat and be satisfied; and they shall praise the Lord that seek him: their heart shall live for ever. 28 All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord: and all the kindred of the nations shall worship before you. 29 For the kingdom is the Lord's; and he is the governor of the nations. 30 All the fat ones of the earth have eaten and worshiped: all that go down to the earth shall fall down before him: my soul also lives to him. 31 And my seed shall serve him: the generation that is coming shall be reported to the Lord. 32 And they shall report his righteousness to the people that shall be born, whom the Lord has made.

Texts in conversation

Compare LXX Psalm 21:9 and Matthew 27:43

Septuagint · New Testament

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Summary

Matthew 27 echoes Psalm 22, where mockers challenge the sufferer to rely on God for rescue. In the psalm this taunt highlights the scorn faced by the righteous, while in Matthew it is placed in the mouths of those mocking Jesus at the cross.

Passages

LXX Psalm 21:9

Septuagint
7 But I am a worm, and not a man; a reproach of men, and scorn of the people. 8 All that saw me mocked me: they spoke with their lips, they shook the head, saying, 9 He hoped in the Lord: let him deliver him, let him save him, because he takes pleasure in him. 10 For you are he that drew me out of the womb; my hope from my mother's breasts. 11 I was cast on you from the womb: you are my God from my mother's belly.
100–1 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in LXX Psalms

Matthew 27:43

New Testament
41 In the same way even the chief priests—together with the experts in the law and elders—were mocking him: 42 “He saved others, but he cannot save himself! He is the king of Israel! If he comes down now from the cross, we will believe in him! 43 He trusts in God—let God, if he wants to, deliver him now because he said, ‘I am God’s Son’!” 44 The robbers who were crucified with him also spoke abusively to him. 45 Now from noon until three, darkness came over all the land.
70–90 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Matthew

References

"... Brown detects the greatest number of parallels between Matthew 27 and Psalm 22. He thinks the early Christians applied Psalm 22 to Jesus as the Son of David, because they would have thought David composed Psalm 22 based on the superscription. Brown deduces that Matthew 27:46 quotes Psalm 22:2 when Jesus cries out from the cross. He says the wording in Matthew 27:46 is slightly closer to Psalm 22 in the LXX than Mark 15:34, but he does not specify how. The passersby blaspheming Jesus while he is on the cross in Matthew 27:39, 44 plausibly alludes to the sufferer in Psalm 22 being reviled by humans (Psalm 22:7). Those passing by, wagging their heads, probably allude to Psalm 22:8, which reads, “They spoke with the lips; they wagged the head.” Psalm 22:9 is partially echoed in the challenge to Jesus on the cross: “Save yourself” in Mark 15:30 and Matthew 27:40. Matthew 27:43 more fully echoes Psalm 22:9, though, by saying, “He has trusted in God. Let him be delivered if he wants him” (Matthew 27:43). Brown also concludes that the description of the division of Jesus’ clothes in all four Gospels alludes to Psalm 22:19 (Matthew 27:35) ..."
Christopher Winchester, “Thematic Association in the Gospel of Matthew: Situating Exegesis in the Gospel of Matthew in Its Second Temple Context” (PhD diss., University of Edinburgh, 2017), 58.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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LXX Psalm 21:9 and Matthew 27:43

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