PSALM 51 - REPENTANCE & RESTORATION

PSALM 51

This is a Psalm written by King David as he repented of his sin after committing adultery with Bathsheba and killing her husband. You can read the story in 2 Samuel 11 and 12.

David did not go to war with his troops. Instead he stayed home in Jerusalem. Evidently he had nothing to do, so he went walking on the roof of his house. From there, he saw Bathsheba bathing in the back courtyard of her house.. He had her brought to him and had sex with her. Then he had her husband, Uriah, to the front of the battle where he was killed.

To make it even worse, Uriah was one of David’s “Mighty Men” and a loyal soldier.

Afterward, Nathan the prophet came and confronted David with his sin. David repented. This Psalm records his repentance.

51:1-2
A Plea For Forgiveness

The psalm begins with David asking God to have mercy on him. He did not claim any right to forgiveness, but asked God to forgive him out of his steadfast love and abundant mercy.

He asked God to forgive him. To “blot out” his transgressions is an image of his sins being written down and asking God to mark them out. When God forgives, he no longer remembers sin to hold it against us.

David also asked God to wash him, to cleanse him of his sin and iniquity. He realized that he could not stand before God stained by sin. It had to be removed and only God could remove it. God promises to do this for believers in 1 John 1:9, which says “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness”.

51:2-3
Confession of Sin

You can tell by these verses that David was under conviction. He said he knew his transgressions. He knew he had done wrong before Nathan came, since he knew the covenant law. Adultery and murder were both sins. But, certainly, after Nathan pointedly accused David of sin, he knew and was convicted by the Holy Spirit that he had greatly sinned.
David acknowledged that he sinned against God, who gave the law to Israel. He also acknowledged that God was blameless and righteous in judging David to have sinned. God is righteous and so is his law.

51:5-6
Acknowledgment of “Original Sin”

When David said he was brought forth, or born, in iniquity and conceived in sin, he was not saying sex is a sin. He was saying he was born a sinner.

Sin is a rebellion against God’s will with our will. R. C. Sproul called it “cosmic treason”. We are born with a heart inclined toward sin. This is so because we inherited it from Adam, the first sinner and the representative of mankind. In Romans 5, Paul wrote that sin came into the world through one man, meaning Adam, and death through sin, so death spread to all mean because all sinned in Adam. Augustine called this “original sin”. Some people call it our “fallen nature” or the “sin nature”.

So, David confessed that he sinned and that he was a sinner, born that way.

David originally thought he committed his sins in secret. Certainly he tried to hide them. But God knows our sin even if it is hidden from others. David acknowledged that, saying God delights in truth in the inward being. Regardless of your outward appearance, God knows your heart. He wants you to be holy in your thoughts and in your unseen actions.

51:7-12
Asking For Forgiveness

David used a couple of metaphors to ask for forgiveness from God. He asked God to purge him with hyssop. Hyssop is a plant that is broom like. If you dip it in something, you can fling that substance around from the plant.

Hyssop was used in Israel’s cleansing ceremonies. Priests cleansed lepers by dipping hyssop in the blood of a sacrificial bird and sprinkling the leper with it seven times. (Leviticus 14:6) David asked God to remove the stain of his sin as a priest would remove leprosy with the hyssop.

David also used the metaphor of washing clothes, asking God to wash him and he would be whiter than snow. We use that same metaphor in our hymns. James Nicholson wrote a hymn in 1872 entitled “I Shall Be Whiter Than Snow”. You probably know the refrain: “Whiter than snow, yes, whiter than snow. Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow”.

David also wanted to be restored in his spirit. He had suffered in his separation from God and feeling guilty for his sins. He said the Lord had broken his bones. (8) But he wanted to again experience joy and gladness.

That restoration would include a restoration to holy living. He asked for a clean heart and a right spirit. (10) He also asked God not to take away his Holy Spirit from him. Having been anointed as king, he could not bear the thought of living without God’s presence in him.

51:13-17
The Result of Forgiveness

Once forgiven, David said he would teach other sinners God’s ways and bring them to repentance. He would sing of God’s righteousness, praising him in song.

David also acknowledged that ritual would not help him. God wants a broken spirit and contrite heart, not just ritual.

This Psalm is written by David, but made into a song for the whole congregation to sing. So, the Psalm ends with a corporate plea for God to do good to Israel. In turn, they will offer the right sacrifices in which God will delight. (18-19)

Do not postpone repentance and suffer as David did. Confess, repent, and seek restoration of your fellowship with God. Then rejoice, be thankful, and tell others.