Psalm 51

God’s Great Grace

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To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.

1 Have mercy on me, O God,
    according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
    blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
    and cleanse me from my sin!

3 For I know my transgressions,
    and my sin is ever before me.
4 Against you, you only, have I sinned
    and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you may be justified in your words
    and blameless in your judgment.
5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
    and in sin did my mother conceive me.
6 Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,
    and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.

7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
    wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
8 Let me hear joy and gladness;
    let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
9 Hide your face from my sins,
    and blot out all my iniquities.
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God,
    and renew a right spirit within me.
11 Cast me not away from your presence,
    and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
    and uphold me with a willing spirit.

13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
    and sinners will return to you.
14 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,
    O God of my salvation,
    and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.
15 O Lord, open my lips,
    and my mouth will declare your praise.
16 For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;
    you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.
17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
    a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

18 Do good to Zion in your good pleasure;
    build up the walls of Jerusalem;
19 then will you delight in right sacrifices,
    in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings;
    then bulls will be offered on your altar. – Psalm 51:1-19 ESV

In 1910, Julia H. Johnston penned the words to the hymn “Marvelous Grace of Our Loving Lord.” They reflect her understanding of the unmerited grace God made available to sinners through the death of His Son, Jesus Christ.

Marvelous grace of our loving Lord,
Grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt!
Yonder on Calvary’s mount out-poured,
There where the blood of the Lamb was spilled.

Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that will pardon and cleanse within;
Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that is greater than all our sin.

That last line speaks volumes and echoes the sentiment expressed by David in this psalm. As the title of the psalm suggests, David wrote this well-known and oft-quoted song of praise after reflecting on the marvelous reality of God’s grace in the face of unforgivable sin.

That God’s grace is greater than all our sins is a truth that is virtually impossible for us to comprehend. It’s difficult to fathom how a holy and completely righteous God could love us so much that He would be willing to extend us grace despite our consistent struggle with sin. But David had experienced this truth first-hand. Here in Psalm 51, he is dealing with the aftermath of his sin with Bathsheba. David was known as the man after God’s own heart and was the anointed king of Israel, yet he wrestled with the guilt and conviction of his affair with a married woman. As if that sin was not enough, when David discovered his illicit sexual tryst had produced a baby, he ordered the death of Bathsheba’s husband so that he might marry her and provide a more acceptable explanation for her pregnancy.

His was a sin of the first degree. It shocks even the most hardcore agnostic or atheist. These kinds of things are just not done in civilized society. But here is the leader of God’s chosen people confessing his guilt and willingly accepting God’s just judgment.

Against you, and you alone, have I sinned;
    I have done what is evil in your sight.
You will be proved right in what you say,
    and your judgment against me is just. – Psalm 51:4 NL

David opened his psalm with an admission of guilt and a plea for mercy. He describes the stain of his sin and the impurity of his guilt as barriers to God. He knew he was guilty, but he was counting on the fact that Yahweh was merciful and compassionate.

Have mercy on me, O God,
    because of your unfailing love.
Because of your great compassion,
    blot out the stain of my sins. – Psalm 51:1 NLT

He firmly believed that God was ready and willing to forgive his sin and restore him to a right relationship with Himself. He also knew that God was the only one who could provide restoration. So he cries out to God for mercy and appeals to God’s unfailing love. He asks God to show him compassion and begs for the stain of his sin to be removed. He pleads with God to wash him clean from his guilt and purify him from his sin.

David understood the depth of his sin and guilt. He had not attempted to excuse his actions or diminish his culpability. He owned his sin and confessed that he deserved God’s just judgment. But this did not prevent him from crying out for God’s mercy and grace.

Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean;
    wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
Oh, give me back my joy again;
    you have broken me—
    now let me rejoice. – Psalm 51:7-8 NLT

David was a broken man. Ever since his lust-fueled liaison with Bathsheba, he had been plagued by guilt and shame. His role in her husband’s death only stoked the flames of the raging condemnation that consumed his joy. When the prophet Nathan confronted the king about his sin, David confessed, “I have sinned against the Lord” (2 Samuel 12:14 NLT). And while Nathan assured David that God would forgive him, he warned that his sin would still be consequences.

Nathan replied, “Yes, but the Lord has forgiven you, and you won’t die for this sin. Nevertheless, because you have shown utter contempt for the word of the Lord by doing this, your child will die.” – 2 Samuel 12:13-14 NLT

The child was born but suffered from a deadly disorder. David fasted and prayed that God would spare the life of his son, but seven days later, the child died. This loss weighed heavily on David’s heart. Yet, David didn’t lash out at God in anger and resentment. He bore the brunt of God’s righteous wrath and cried out for restoration.

David knew that only God could make him clean. Time doesn’t heal all wounds, but God certainly can. Only God could renew his broken heart and restore a sense of joy through His compassionate act of salvation. Only God could give him the ability to return to a life of obedience and righteousness.

Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
    and make me willing to obey you. – Psalm 51:12 NLT

David was at the mercy of God and found comfort in that fact. The key to David’s appeal to God was his understanding that God was looking for true repentance from a heart grieved over its mistreatment of God and His Word. David knew that his sin was ultimately against God, not Bathsheba or Uriah. He also knew that God was looking for godly sorrow and not just a false sense of remorse or regret. The apostle Paul explains what godly sorrow looks like in his letter to the Corinthian church.

For the kind of sorrow God wants us to experience leads us away from sin and results in salvation. There’s no regret for that kind of sorrow. But worldly sorrow, which lacks repentance, results in spiritual death. – 1 Corinthians 7:9-10 NLT

The sacrifice God wanted from David had little to do with lambs, goats, blood, or offerings. But it had everything to do with a broken and contrite heart. A heart that is broken and crushed because it understands that it has offended a holy, yet loving and merciful God.

You do not desire a sacrifice, or I would offer one.
    You do not want a burnt offering.
The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit.
    You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God. – Psalm 51:16-17 NLT

God wanted sacrifices offered in the right spirit, with the right kind of heart behind them. David’s sin had been an affront to God, and that sin needed to bother him as much as it did God. It seems clear from this beautifully worded and bluntly honest psalm that David had come to grips with the weight of his sin and built. That is what led him to come before God in sorrow, repentance, openness, honesty, and complete reliance on God’s mercy and grace.

David had full confidence that God would hear and restore him because he knew that God was gracious, kind, loving, and merciful. David’s God was forgiving. His grace was greater than all of David’s sins – from the smallest to the largest. David’s sins of adultery and murder rank high on our scale of transgressions against God, and yet David found mercy, grace, and forgiveness even for these two heinous sins against God’s holiness. God’s grace really was greater than David’s worst sins. Long before Julie H. Johnston wrote the words of he own song of praise, David learned the powerful truth they contain.

Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that will pardon and cleanse within;
Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that is greater than all our sin.

Father, thank You that Your grace truly is greater than my sin. And because of Your grace I can receive forgiveness, cleansing. restored joy, and the constant assurance of Your unfading love. Too often, I begin to believe that my sin is greater than You are. I listen to the words of the enemy and begin to doubt the reality of Your forgiveness, grace, and mercy. He convinces me that I am undeserving and You are unrelenting in Your hatred for my transgressions. Help me to understand that Your love is never based on my loveliness or loveableness. Your grace and mercy are there because I need them, not because I deserve them. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Sin Against God.

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And the Lord sent Nathan to David. He came to him and said to him, “There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor. The rich man had very many flocks and herds, but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. And he brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children. It used to eat of his morsel and drink from his cup and lie in his arms, and it was like a daughter to him. Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was unwilling to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the guest who had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.” Then David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die, and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.”

Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul. And I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your arms and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah. And if this were too little, I would add to you as much more. Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and have taken his wife to be your wife and have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’ Thus says the Lord, ‘Behold, I will raise up evil against you out of your own house. And I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the sun.’” David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die. Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord, the child who is born to you shall die.” – 2 Samuel 12:1-14 ESV

When David had received the news from Joab that Uriah had been killed in battle (just as David had commanded), he responded in very flippant manner: “Do not let this matter displease you…” (2 Samuel 11:25 ESV). The Hebrew word he used, yara`, can also mean “evil”. So in other words, David was telling Joab not to see what he had done as evil or sinful. He wasn’t to grieve over it or be upset about it. The prophet, Isaiah, wisely wrote, “What sorrow for those who say that evil is good and good is evil, that dark is light and light is dark, that bitter is sweet and sweet is bitter” (Isaiah 5:20 NLT). David was attempting to negate the gravity of his sin and was even unwilling to see what he had done to Uriah and with Bathsheba as sin. He didn’t want Joab to be displeased about his role in the affair. But David forgot about the displeasure of God. What he had done was sin and God hates sin. He is the holy and righteous God who must deal justly with sin. He can’t ignore it, excuse it, or turn his back on it. And because David was the king of Israel, he was held by God to an even higher standard. He was God’s chosen representative. He was the leader of God’s people. And as the old proverb states: “As is the king, so are the subjects.”

What is amazing about this story is that it took a third party to bring David to a point of repentance. It was not until Nathan, the prophet, showed up at David’s doorstep, that David had second thoughts about what he had done. Even Psalm 51, written by David as a result of this whole affair regarding Bathsheba and Uriah, was written after Nathan had been used by God to convict David. The description attached to the psalm explains this fact: “A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.” It was because God had sent Nathan and Nathan had exposed David’s sin, that David realized the gravity of what he had done. It took the rather deceptive tactics of Nathan to get David to recognize the reality of his sin and the depth of God’s displeasure.

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!

For I know my transgressions,
    and my sin is ever before me.
Against you, you only, have I sinned
    and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you may be justified in your words
    and blameless in your judgment. – Psalm 51:1-4 ESV

While David may have been able to dissuade Joab from being displeased with his role in Uriah’s death, David had not been able to convince God that what he had done was a good thing. God was displeased. He was angry, and His was a righteous indignation. He had taken David’s actions personally.

“Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and have taken his wife to be your wife and have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites.” – 2 Samuel 12:9 ESV

God reminded David that He had been the one to put him on the throne. David’s reign had been God’s doing. “I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul” (2 Samuel 12:7 ESV). God even reminded David of what had happened to Saul, who had also multiplied wives for himself, in direct violation of God’s command.

“And I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your arms and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah. And if this were too little, I would add to you as much more.” – 2 Samuel 12:8 ESV

This was not God giving approval of Saul’s collection of wives. And it cannot be used to say that God was transferring the rights to Saul’s many wives to David. This would be in direct contradiction to God’s own commands regarding the king and his wives (Deuteronomy 17:17). God was simply stating that the sins of Saul had led to his fall. David had taken ownership of all that had belonged to Saul, all because God had made it possible. And David’s response had been to disobey God.

And God gave David the very bad news regarding his sin: “Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife” (2 Samuel 12:10 ESV). David’s sin was going to have dire consequences. He was going to receive forgiveness from God, but that would not change the fact that he would also be punished by God for what he had done.

“Behold, I will raise up evil against you out of your own house. And I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun. For you did it secretly, but I will do this thing before all Israel and before the sun.” – 2 Samuel 12:11-12 ESV

This very devastating news got David’s full attention. As a result of what he heard, David responded: “I have sinned against the Lord” (2 Samuel 12:13 ESV). He owned up to his sin. He admitted that what he had done had been a sin against God Himself. He had violated the law of God. He took responsibility for it, and repented of it. But Nathan would give David a good-news, bad-news report:

“The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die. Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord, the child who is born to you shall die.” – 2 Samuel 12:13-14 ESV

Years later, in one of his psalms, David would say of God, “as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us” (Psalm 103:12 ESV). David would come to love and appreciate the forgiveness of God. But he would also know the discipline of God.

The most difficult thing about this passage is the death of the child born to David and Bathsheba. This innocent child had been the result of their adulterous affair, but had played no part in it. He had been the unwitting byproduct of their sin. And yet, it was the child who died. We must always keep in mind the passage regarding sin found in James, chapter one.

But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. – James 1:14-15 ESV

To blame God for the death of the child would be wrong. It was the sin of David that caused the child’s death. The sad reality about sin is that the innocent always suffer the most. When we sin, we almost always try to justify or rationalize our actions by claiming that we are not hurting anybody else. But sin always has a victim other than us. If we look at the list of sins listed in Galatians five, we see that they are all other-oriented. Our sins are always damaging to others. And it was David’s sin with Bathsheba and his role in the death of Uriah that led to the loss of his own son. He could not point his finger at God and attempt to blame Him. As we will see in the rest of the chapter, David would pray to God for his son’s healing, but he would not blame God for his sickness. He knew where the blame belonged. David had taken another man’s wife and shown no pity. He had arranged for the murder of that very same man, and had shown no remorse.

But David was going to learn a powerful and life-changing lesson from this dark moment of the soul. He would later write these words that reflect his new understanding regarding sin and repentance.

For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;
    you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
    a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. – Psalm 51:16-17 ESV

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Cleansed by God.

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Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice. Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. – Psalm 51:7-9 ESV

Psalm 51

David came to God humbly confessing his sin. He took full responsibility for what he had done and acknowledged that his sin had been against God. But David was not done. He came to God because he desperately needed something from God. Yes, he desired God’s forgiveness, but he greatly needed and wanted God to cleanse him from his sin, guilt, shame and brokenness. David’s sin had taken its toll on him. He was burdened by what he had done. He knew he had displeased God and as long as his sin remained unconfessed and hidden, he was miserable. In another one of his psalms, David gives a description of just what his mindset would have been. “When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat” (Psalm 32:3-4 NLT). The purpose for David’s confession was far more than a guilt-free conscience. He knew that confession alone would not remove his sin. He needed God’s cleansing. The apostle John gave us an important reminder on the power of confession in the life of a believer. “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us” (1 John 1:8-10 ESV). Refusal to believe that we are even capable of sin may make us feel better, but it doesn’t fool God. To deny the sin for which God convicts us is to call Him a liar. But if we will own up to our sin and humbly confess it to God, He will not only forgive us but cleanse us from all unrighteousness. God doesn’t just remove the guilt, He takes away the cause of the guilt.

David asked God to purge him with hyssop. This was a reference to the practice of the priest sprinkling animal blood on the altar with a hyssop branch. The animal was killed as a substitute for the sinner and its blood was sprinkled on the altar as a sacrifice or payment for the sins of the individual. The writer of Hebrews, speaking of the Old Testament sacrificial system, said, “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins” (Hebrews 9:22 ESV). While David would have surely taken advantage of the opportunity to offer sacrifice for his sins, he was asking God Himself to make him clean. He wanted God to do for him what no human being could do: remove the stain of his sin completely. He asked God to restore his joy and gladness. He begged God to blot out all his iniquities. David’s broken relationship with God, caused by his own sin, was as painful and debilitating as an actual broken bone. He needed the healing of the Great Physician. Sin brings sorrow, guilt and shame. It leaves us alienated from God. And while we are responsible to come to Him in confession, we are completely dependent on Him for forgiveness and cleansing.

David was appealing to the mercy and love of God. He knew God well. He understood God’s holiness, but he also depended on God’s unfailing love and mercy. In another one of his psalms, David revealed his personal view of God’s relationship with him. “He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust” (Psalm 103:10-14 ESV). That was what David was counting on. He knew that God understood his faults, failings and weaknesses. He understood and was counting on the fact that God was compassionate and kind. David was relying on God’s unfailing love. He knew that if God removed the guilt of his sin, it would be complete and permanent, as far as the east if from the west. The apostle John would have us remember that “Jesus came to take away our sins” (1 John 3:5 ESV) and “the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8 ESV). Jesus died in order to pay the debt owed for our sins. He came to remove the penalty of death that hung over our heads due to our sin natures inherited from Adam, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23 ESV). But John reminds us that “the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7 ESV). God has provided a means by which we can receive forgiveness and cleansing from ALL our sin – past, present and future. We will still sin, because we still have our sin natures. But the debt has been paid. The blood has been shed. All we must do is confess our sins and God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. The result is the removal of guilt and shame, restoration of fellowship with God, healing from our pain and sorrow, and renewed joy and gladness. There is an old Scottish proverb that says, “confession in good for the soul.” David would agree. But it is not the act of confession that brings the benefit. It is the cleansing power of the blood of Christ that provides the gracious and complete forgiveness of God.

Sin Against God.

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For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment. – Psalm 51:3-4 ESV

Psalm 51

Over in 2 Corinthians 7:10, the apostle Paul wrote about two kinds of sorrow. One he called “godly sorrow.” It is the kind of sorrow that God wants us to experience, because it leads us away from sin and results in salvation. And while it’s still sorrow, in the long run, it comes with no regrets. On the other hand, there is “worldly sorrow.” That kind of sorrow is superficial, lacking true repentance and ultimately results in spiritual death. It may appear genuine and be accompanied by true remorse, but remorse is nothing more than deep and painful regret for wrongdoing. It does not necessarily produce repentance, or a change in heart. Worldly sorrow may even result in nothing more than regret, a feeling of disappointment or dissatisfaction over what you have done. But again, if it is not accompanied with repentance, the end result will be spiritual death. Remorse and regret can only produce guilt and shame. Guilt and shame, by themselves, are destructive, rather than constructive.

David seemed to understand this truth. He had great sorrow over what he had done. He realized that his sin with Bathsheba was serious and that he deserved God’s punishment for it. I am sure he felt sorrow, regret, remorse, as well as guilt and shame for what he had done. Word had gotten out. His reputation had been sullied. He had gotten what he had wanted: Bathsheba as his wife, but not without great cost. He was stuck trying to continue the cover up of his sin, including Bathsheba’s pregnancy with the child from their immoral relationship. David knew he was responsible for the death of Bathsheba’s husband, Uriah. And he knew that Joab, his military commander and the one who carried out the death sentence, knew as well. David’s little house of cards was beginning to tremble all around him. Every night he went to be he couldn’t help but think about the gravity of what he had done. But with the help of Nathan the prophet, David was brought to his senses and convicted of his sin and his need for repentance. He had to return to God. David woke up to the fact that his sin had been against God. Yes, he had most definitely sinned against Uriah by having sex with his wife, then by attempting to deceive him by trying to get him to sleep with Bathsheba in order to cover up who was the true father of the child. David had sinned against Bathsheba as well, using his power and influence as king to coerce her to be unfaithful to her husband and commit adultery. But at the end of the day, David had to acknowledge that his sin had been against God. Which is why he prayed, “Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight.” David took ownership for what he had done and acknowledge that his actions had been against God. He had broken God’s laws. He had disobeyed God’s commands. And he recognized that God had every right to do with him as He saw fit. God would be fully justified to punish David for all he had done. Sin against God always comes with consequences and David knew it. And he was ready to accept whatever God decided to do.

But David had begun his prayer with a cry for mercy. He knew that he was at God’s mercy. God could do with him whatever he wanted and would have been justified in whatever punishment he deemed necessary. And David knew there was nothing he could do to rectify his problem. The deed was done. The sin had been committed. He couldn’t bring Uriah back to life. He couldn’t reverse the affair he had had with Bathsheba. And there she was, walking around the palace, carrying his child, as a daily reminder of his sin. That is why David had asked God to “Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!” (Psalm 51:2 ESV). David was powerless to remedy his situation. But he knew that God could forgive him and cleanse him from the damaging influence of his own actions.

David needed to repent. He needed to turn back to God. His sin had created a barrier between he and God. Emotionally, he found himself separated from God. His guilt made it difficult to face God. His inability to fix what he had done allowed the enemy to step in and accuse him of his failure to remain faithful to God. All David would do was feel guilt for what he had done or attempt feel nothing, trying to rationalize his actions away and learn to minimize his sin. Fortunately, David repented. He turned away from his sin and back to the one who could help him do something about it. He turned to God. But to do so, he had to come in humility and with a heart ready to confess what he had done. No more running. No more ignoring. No more rationalizing and justifying. No more blame. It was time for godly sorrow, the kind that leads to repentance and restoration. God wants to restore. He wants to renew. But He requires that we come to Him with broken and contrite hearts. Later on in this same Psalm, David will express that very sentiment. “The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit. You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God” (Psalm 51:17 NLT). God desires to see our hearts truly repentant and ready to return to Him for help, hope and healing. We can’t fix what we have done, but He can.