Guided reading · 7 passages
The servant and the psalm
Read Isaiah's servant and Psalm 22 alongside the Passion: explicit quotations, related imagery, and the textual questions behind the hands and feet. Zechariah and Wisdom add the pierced figure and the tested righteous man.
Psalms 22:1–18
My God, my God
CPDV · Psalm 21:2–19 · verified
21:2O God, my God, look upon me. Why have you forsaken me? Far from my salvation are the words of my offenses
21:3My God, I will cry out by day, and you will not heed, and by night, and it will not be foolishness for me
21:4But you dwell in holiness, O Praise of Israel
21:5In you, our fathers have hoped. They hoped, and you freed them
Isaiah 53:3–12
The suffering servant
CPDV · Isaiah 53:3–12 · verified
53:3He is despised and the least among men, a man of sorrows who knows infirmity. And his countenance was hidden and despised. Because of this, we did not esteem him
53:4Truly, he has taken away our weaknesses, and he himself has carried our sorrows. And we thought of him as if he were a leper, or as if he had been struck by God and humiliated
53:5But he himself was wounded because of our iniquities. He was bruised because of our wickedness. The discipline of our peace was upon him. And by his wounds, we are healed
53:6We have all gone astray like sheep; each one has turned aside to his own way. And the Lord has placed all our iniquity upon him
Zechariah 12:10
They will look on him whom they have pierced
CPDV · Zechariah 12:10 · verified
12:10And I will pour out upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of prayers. And they will look upon me, whom they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only son, and they will feel sorrow over him, as one would be sorrowful at the death of a firstborn
Wisdom 2:12–20
The just man condemned
CPDV · Wisdom 2:12–20 · verified
2:12Therefore, let us encircle the just, because he is useless to us, and he is against our works, and he reproaches us with our legal offenses, and makes known to us the sins of our way of life
2:13He promises that he has the knowledge of God and he calls himself the son of God
2:14He was made among us to expose our very thoughts
2:15He is grievous for us even to behold, for his life is unlike other men’s lives, and immutable are his ways
Matthew 27:35–46
Crucifixion after Psalm 22
CPDV · Matthew 27:35–46 · verified
27:35Then, after they had crucified him, they divided his garments, casting lots, in order to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying: “They divided my garments among them, and over my vestment they cast lots.
27:36And sitting down, they observed him
27:37And they set his accusation above his head, written as: THIS IS JESUS, KING OF THE JEWS
27:38Then two robbers were crucified with him: one on the right and one on the left
John 19:24–37
Garments, bones, and the pierced side
CPDV · John 19:24–37 · verified
19:24Then they said to one another, “Let us not cut it, but instead let us cast lots over it, to see whose it will be.” This was so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, saying: “They have distributed my garments among themselves, and for my vesture they have cast lots.” And indeed, the soldiers did these things
19:25And standing beside the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, and Mary of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene
19:26Therefore, when Jesus had seen his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold your son.
19:27Next, he said to the disciple, “Behold your mother.” And from that hour, the disciple accepted her as his own
Acts 8:32–35
Philip and the Ethiopian
CPDV · Acts 8:32–35 · verified
8:32Now the place in Scripture that he was reading was this: “Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter. And like a lamb silent before his shearer, so he opened not his mouth
8:33He endured his judgment with humility. Who of his generation shall describe how his life was taken away from the earth?
8:34Then the eunuch responded to Philip, saying: “I beg you, about whom is the prophet saying this? About himself, or about someone else?
8:35Then Philip, opening his mouth and beginning from this Scripture, evangelized Jesus to him
Sources and interpretation
Evidence for this thread
Every supporting connection, including links between nonadjacent readings.
Psalms 22:1–18 → Matthew 27:35–46
Matthew places the opening cry of Psalm 22 on Jesus's lips and echoes its mockery and divided garments. John explicitly applies the garment verse. The wording about hands and feet varies across textual traditions and is not directly quoted in the New Testament.
Sources & review
- Interpretation
- quotation
- Principal basis
- Explicit New Testament application
- Review status
- source checked
- scripture
Ps 22
- scripture
Matt 27:35-46
- scripture
John 19:24
- catechism
Catholic Church, Catechism of the Catholic Church
Vatican English edition
Theological context for the cry of abandonment. It does not establish the disputed wording about hands and feet.
- commentary
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, New American Bible, Revised Edition
USCCB online Bible and notes
Supports the distinction between the opening quotation and other Passion allusions. The NABRE counts the superscription, shifting verse numbers relative to Atlas.
- church father
Augustine of Hippo, Expositions on the Psalms
Exposition on Psalm 22, sections 1-2, 17-19
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series I, vol. 8 (New Advent)
Evidence of a Christian interpretation of the psalm, including the crucifixion and garments; it does not settle the Hebrew textual question.
- church father
Justin Martyr, First Apology
Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1 (New Advent)
Justin explicitly applies the hands-and-feet wording to the cross. This is a later Christian application, distinct from a New Testament quotation.
- scholarly
Conrad R. Gren, Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society
Piercing the Ambiguities of Psalm 22:16 and the Messiah's Mission, pp. 283-299
48/2 (2005)
Argues for a piercing reading and discusses Greek and Hebrew witnesses. This is one scholarly position, not a consensus finding.
- scholarly
Rivka Ulmer, The Jewish Jesus: Revelation, Reflection, Reclamation
Psalm 22 in Pesiqta Rabbati: The Suffering of the Jewish Messiah and Jesus, pp. 106-109
Purdue University Press (2011), author text hosted by the University of Arizona
Discusses differing readings of the Nahal Hever letters and Jewish and Christian reception. The manuscript discussion does not establish a universally accepted original reading.
- commentary
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, New American Bible, Revised Edition
USCCB online Bible and notes
Identifies the opening Psalm quotation and distinguishes the mockery's Psalm and Wisdom parallels.
Editorial questions
Accepted with qualification · textual variant
The received Hebrew wording is commonly rendered like a lion, while the ancient Greek has a digging expression. The Nahal Hever fragment and the reconstruction of its letters remain debated. CPDV reads pierced and DRC reads dug. The New Testament does not directly quote this disputed clause; the quotation warrant rests on Matthew's abandonment cry.
Editorial response: The explicit NT warrant rests on the abandonment cry, with separate garment parallels. The hands-and-feet wording varies across textual traditions, is not directly quoted by the NT, and remains a textual question. CPDV and DRC are displayed as their own editions, not as adjudications of the original Hebrew.
Accepted with qualification · disputed dating
The stored 200 BC composition cutoff and 232-year interval are editorial estimates; the textual witnesses discussed here do not establish that exact cutoff.
Editorial response: The 200 BC cutoff is retained as an editorial composition estimate. The displayed interval is conditional on that estimate, not a manuscript-secured minimum; this qualification is visible in the connection's time explanation.
Isaiah 53:3–12 → Acts 8:32–35
Isaiah's servant is led silently to slaughter and bears the sins of many. Acts quotes the passage directly and says that Philip began from this Scripture to proclaim Jesus to the Ethiopian official.
Sources & review
- Interpretation
- fulfillment
- Principal basis
- Explicit New Testament application
- Review status
- source checked
- scripture
Isa 53
- scripture
Acts 8:32-35
- scripture
Matt 8:17
- scripture
1 Pet 2:24
- catechism
Catholic Church, Catechism of the Catholic Church
Vatican English edition
Interpretive support for the suffering servant and the saving obedience of Christ. These paragraphs do not date the Isaiah manuscript.
- church father
Irenaeus of Lyons, Against Heresies
Book III, chapter 12, section 8
Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1 (New Advent)
Irenaeus explicitly identifies the Isaiah passage preached by Philip and its application to Jesus.
- scholarly
Israel Museum, Jerusalem, The Great Isaiah Scroll
The Great Isaiah Scroll, Introduction, p. 2
Exhibition prospectus for the museum's 60th anniversary
Manuscript evidence: the museum dates this copy to about 125 BC. That does not by itself substantiate Atlas's earlier 200 BC composition cutoff or the Christian interpretation of Isaiah.
Zechariah 12:10 → John 19:24–37
John 19:37 explicitly applies Zechariah's pierced figure to Jesus after the soldier opens his side. The original figure in Zechariah remains debated; John's application is clear without identifying that earlier figure with certainty.
Sources & review
- Interpretation
- fulfillment
- Principal basis
- Explicit New Testament application
- Review status
- source checked
- scripture
Zech 12:10
- scripture
John 19:34-37
- catechism
Catholic Church, Catechism of the Catholic Church
Vatican English edition
Interpretive support: conversion is described through looking upon the pierced Christ. This is not independent historical corroboration of the spear wound.
- commentary
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, New American Bible, Revised Edition
USCCB online Bible and notes
Explicitly identifies John's application while leaving the original figure and the rendering of the Hebrew pronouns open.
- church father
Augustine of Hippo, Tractates on the Gospel of John
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series I, vol. 7 (New Advent)
Directly joins John's spear wound and his quotation about looking upon the pierced one.
Editorial questions
Accepted with qualification · interpretive dispute
John's christological application is explicit. The original pierced figure in Zechariah and the Hebrew shift between me and him remain disputed.
Editorial response: The original pierced figure and pronoun rendering in Zechariah remain debated. Atlas records John's explicit application to Jesus without claiming to settle the oracle's original historical referent.
Wisdom 2:12–20 → Matthew 27:35–46
Wisdom portrays opponents testing a righteous man who calls God his Father; Matthew 27:43 echoes the same taunt at the cross. Catholic commentary and patristic writers have long read the passage in relation to Christ's Passion.
Sources & review
- Interpretation
- typology
- Principal basis
- Commentary
- Review status
- source checked
- scripture
Wis 2:12-20
- scripture
Matt 27:39-43
- commentary
George Leo Haydock, Haydock Catholic Bible Commentary
Haydock Catholic Bible Commentary, notes on Wisdom 2:12 and 2:20
Online commentary
Traditional Catholic interpretation of the righteous man in Wisdom 2 in relation to Christ's Passion.
- commentary
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, New American Bible, Revised Edition
USCCB Bible, note on Matthew 27:43
USCCB online Bible and notes
Interpretive support for the Passion reading. The USCCB describes the Wisdom allusion in Matthew as probable.
- commentary
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, New American Bible, Revised Edition
USCCB Bible, note on Wisdom 2:12-20
USCCB online Bible and notes
Interpretive support for the Passion reading. The USCCB describes the Wisdom allusion in Matthew as probable.
- church father
Cyprian of Carthage, Testimonies
Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 5 (New Advent)
Direct evidence of a Christian reading of Wisdom 2 in relation to the Passion; it does not establish Matthew's literary dependence.
- church father
Augustine of Hippo, City of God
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series I, vol. 2 (New Advent)
Direct evidence of a Christian reading of Wisdom 2 in relation to the Passion; it does not establish Matthew's literary dependence.