Have mercy on me, O God
according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
blot out my transgressions.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin!”
Psalm 51:1-2 (ESV)
David wrote these words after the prophet after Nathan confronted David with his sin with Bathsheba. He broke at least three of God’s Commandments. Let’s look at this passage and try to understand it better.
Have mercy on me, O God,
David asks for God’s love, although he realizes he doesn’t deserve it. He asked for mercy. Please notice that David did not ask for anything else.
according to your steadfast love;
David asks for God’s mercy as God defines it. He realizes God is in control. He realizes that God’s love is the greatest we can experience.
according to your abundant mercy
He recognizes that God has a vast amount of mercy. He knows God’s mercy has no limits. Sometimes, we give conditional mercy when we forgive another person of hurting us.
blot out my transgressions.
He asks God to erase his wrongdoing from His memory. As humans, we tend to keep certain information in the back of our minds and bring them to the forefront when we deem it advantageous to us.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity
David asked that God do a complete job of removing his sin from the ledger.
and cleanse me from my sin!
David presents his request a third way. He truly wants to be free of this sin. I read somewhere that the cleansing process of the hyssop was a scrubbing process. This could be why David dwells on the removal of his sin.
"My sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought...My sin, not in part, but the whole...is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more, praise the Lord, praise the Lord, Oh my soul!...It is well, with my soul, it is well, it is well with my soul..." (My favorite verse from that hymn, It is Well) Love this Psalm of David. Thank you for sharing it with us. Grace, Grace, God's Grace...I see that up there now. Yes, marvelous grace of our loving Lord... We have so many things to praise Him for, don't we? Thank you for lifting up this time of praise.
ReplyDeletePam: Thank you for your heartfelt thoughts. At some Ash Wednesday services, we have the opportunity to give our personal sins to God by the act of nailing them to a cross. It is a very impressive part of the service. Peace and blessings.
DeleteHow deeply grateful I am for God's mercy! If not for him, I'd be lost in my sin. Thank God for the blood of Jesus that erases our past--even the recent past!
ReplyDeleteJeanette: If it wasn't for God's mercy, I would not be here. I give thanks for that mercy every time He reminds me of what He did for me. Peace and blessings.
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