My God, My God, Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me? by Paul Smithson

The Scriptures declare, in Jesus’ own words, that He was forsaken (Matt. 27:46). It was prophesied that He would be “forsaken” and “bruised” by God (Ps. 22:1; Isa. 53:10). Both of these prophets also foretold what this would entail.

Isaiah: He would be smitten by God, oppressed, afflicted, slaughtered, wounded, scourged, cut off from the living, stricken, put to death, and poured out.

David: He would be ridiculed, mocked, have His strength poured out, suffer thirst, be brought to the dust of death, have His hands and feet pierced, endure shame and nakedness, and more.

God had foretold this “bruising” from the beginning (Gen. 3:15). That He would allow His Son, “the Lord of glory,” to be crucified was at the heart of His eternal plan for saving mankind (1 Cor. 2:8-9).

This was absolutely necessary for God to justify us while remaining just in doing so. By His holy and righteous nature, God hates sin and, as the great Judge (Shaphat) of all the earth, deals justly with it. Hebrews 10:28 states, “Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.” One can imagine how impressed a young person would have been upon seeing a transgressor taken outside the camp and stoned to death, realizing how seriously God regarded His law and how greatly He hated sin, so much so He demanded that the one who opposed His will be put to death despite his pleadings.

But if the death of a transgressor demonstrates how much God hates sin, how much more does the death of His sinless Son! In this, God graciously showed mercy to us by forsaking His own Son on the cross, thereby ensuring that the just penalty for sin was fully paid.

Jesus was the ransom paid that secured our redemption, thereby justly making our justification possible (Mk. 10:45; 1Cor. 6:20; 1Pet. 1:18-19). The Father Himself accomplished this by forsaking Jesus on the cross and displaying Him “publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness…that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (Rom. 3:25-26).

Jesus paid the price for our sin by being forsaken on the cross (cf. 2 Cor. 5:21). He redeemed us by becoming a curse for us (Gal. 3:13).

What a cost! What a sacrifice for us! And not only for the Father, but also for Jesus, who forsook Himself by submitting to the Father’s will (Matt. 26:42) and willingly laying down His life (John 10:18). This gracious gift, which demanded the forsaking of Jesus by the Father, provides the redemption necessary for us sinners to be justified. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 3:23-24). All of this was possible only because both the Father and the Son were willing for Jesus to be forsaken on the cross.

How could such mercy not compel us to forsake ourselves for our Savior (Rom. 12:1; Matt. 16:24-26)?