Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love;

according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.

Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.

For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.

Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight;

so you are right in your verdict and justified when you judge.

Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.

Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb; you taught me wisdom in that secret place.

Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones you have crushed rejoice.

Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity.

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.

Then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you.

Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, you who are God my Savior,

and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.

Open my lips, Lord, and my mouth will declare your praise.

You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.

My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.

May it please you to prosper Zion, to build up the walls of Jerusalem.

Then you will delight in the sacrifices of the righteous, in burnt offerings offered whole; then bulls will be offered on your altar.

As noted at the top of the Psalm, it is believed that David wrote it while dealing with the sin he committed against Bathsheba.

Several factors make this Psalm a powerful Lenten (Penitential) Psalm.

1. It is very personal. Over and over again, he says “me, me, me.” “I, I, I.”

“Have mercy on me.”

“Blot out my transgressions.”

"Cleanse me."

“I have sinned and done what is evil in your sight.”

“Wash me.”

There are more. This is personal. David is taking responsibility. David is pleading. David sinned. David needs forgiving.

2. Though David doesn’t say a specific sin, he is very clear; he sinned. Sometimes when we come before God, we are sorry, but not so clear that we sinned. “Lord I am sorry for the times that I have failed you … let you down… messed up… not done what I should …”. We have lots of euphemisms to allude to the idea of sin, but to lessen the sting, or the guilt we feel. David is clear. I am wrong. I sinned. I have done evil. Really taking responsibility is crucial if we are to truly confess.

3. David asks God to heal him. David knows that he cannot fix himself. David needs God to restore him.

4. In verses 13 and 14, we see that David means to act differently because he expects to be forgiven. Specifically, he will teach others, and he will worship.

Finally, the Psalm ends by showing that David has learned from the awful experience. He has a better understanding of what truly pleases God.

If this Psalm is not too familiar, there is a lot to take in.

If this Psalm IS familiar, there is a lot to take in.

Spend some time with the Psalm, then spend some time REALLY coming clean to God with YOUR sins.

“A broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.”

Grace, Mercy, and Peace,

Pastor Blaine