Using a multi-level approach to Mark 15:34, and contra to the opinion of the majority of Markan scholarship, a contextual reading of Ps 22:2 does not serve to negate or dilute the presentation of Jesus as one in distress. Rather, such a reading enhances this aspect of his death by underscoring his identity as a Righteous Sufferer who experiences suffering but has the promise of vindication. The evidence that supports a contextual reading of the citation in the Markan narrative includes: (a) the importance of Jesus' impending resurrection/vindication and its foreshadowing; (b) the relatively co