“Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against them and in whose spirit is no deceit. Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord .” And you forgave the guilt of my sin. You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance. Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!”
Psalm 32:1-2, 5, 7, 11
I have never before seen the cohesiveness of this Psalm. Its a Davidical Psalm, wtitten sometime during the second half of his reign. David had sinned greiviously against God. One day, instead of leading his men into battle, he stayed home and sent them instead. The results of this day would follow him for the rest of his life. This is a summary (perhaps enheanced) version of what happened: One morning, while his soldiers were gone, David looked out from over his palace’s balcony. His kingdom lay before him. He saw the plains that decended to the west and into thee Mediterranean Sea. He saw his kingdom borders to the east where the fertile, lush hill country suddenly turned into desert. He saw the river that ran thru the middle of his kingdom. He saw the array of flat, multicolored rooftops fror Jerusalem. What’s this? He saw a beautiful women bathing atop a nearby rooftop. He, being a man of morals, looked away, so as to not stare at the beautiful women. Then, as a man, he looked back at her, then looked again, and then stared, lusted and desired. As King, he called for her and being his subject, she was obligated to come. He committed audultry with her, then to make matters worse, he arranged for her husband to be killed in battle to cover his sin when she realized she was pregnant by him. He carried the weight of this sin for over a year until the prophet Nathen confronted him with his sin.
It is from this context that he wrote Psalm 32. Covering and carrying his sin was rough. It weighed David down. He greived over his sin and its ongoing consequences, both to himself and his family. He said to God, when I hid sin, it literally almost killed me. Alright David was! Unconfessed Sam, bitterness, anger and rage can wreak havoc on our physical body. It was only when David came clean with God that life got better for him. David plainly stated that the person whose sins are forgiven and who’s wrong doings are covered by God and His grace are Most Blessed. Is also from that context that we come to be known as the “righteous” of verse 11, who are able to totally rejoice in the Lord! It is from that context that we can also find that to be our hiding place – even hiding us from our own and its consequences! God is all about relationship! His love for God gives us no license to sin, it does, however, gives a a remedy and relief from sin!
What’s your solution for the guilt of wrong-doings? Jesus has already paid the price for any and all of it! Trust Him for forgiveness today. Think about it!
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