Psa 51:3 | KingComments | STEP | David knows his transgressions ( ). Awareness of this is necessary if God is to do His work of restoration. There must be complete openness about it. His sin is constantly before his eyes since Nathan discovered it for him. This is not a pleasant state, but it is extremely beneficial. Only when God sends Nathan to him does he come to full and sincere confession. This psalm is proof of that. Although David has sinned against his neighbor, he confesses that he has sinned against God, yes, against God only ( ; ). The point of sin is first and foremost that it is evil in God’s eyes. Dishonor has been done to God . Any sin against a neighbor is first and foremost a sin against God. If this awareness is not at the top, there will be no thorough confession. Then there is only regret and that mainly about the consequences, but no repentance for the deed. God is absolutely righteous. If we acknowledge that we have sinned against Him and done what is evil in His sight, we acknowledge that He is righteous in His judgment of sin. The word ‘confess’ means ‘to say the same thing’. To confess a sin is to see a sin as God sees it and to say of it the same as He says. This is what David did when Nathan confronted him with his sin on behalf of God. He admitted God was right in His judgment of the sin he committed. Paul quotes this verse in the letter to the Romans, the letter in which he explains what the righteousness of God is ( ). God defines what sin is. Sin is anything done without the acknowledgment of His right to our lives. Man was created for the goal of glorifying his Creator. He misses that goal by living as a sinner ( ). In His law, He states what man must do and what He will do if man breaks the law. When God judges because His law has been broken, He proves that He is pure. His “eyes are too pure to approve evil” ( ). Only when a person acknowledges that God is righteous and pure God can declare that person righteous and pure. David descends even deeper into the problem of sin. He acknowledges that he was “brought forth in iniquity” and “in sin … conceived” by his mother ( ). This is not a shrugging off of his guilt, but the recognition that he is a sinner to the core of his being. He speaks not only of his sins as deeds, but of the sin that is in him as the source of the deeds, of the sinful nature that every man has (cf. ). We call this “original sin”, which is every human being’s nature since Adam fell into sin. We are not sinners because we sin; we sin because we are sinners. The teaching on this is given in the letter to the Romans. It is recommended that we read that letter regularly. Seeing the difference between sin as an act and sin as a source is fundamental if there is to be a profound confession. This statement by David is a rare and yet clear statement about original sin in the Old Testament (cf. ; ). David has a deep understanding of what God seeks and values ( ). He knows that God desires “truth in the innermost being”. The innermost is the inner self, the soul or heart (cf. ). He experienced in his feelings that God had no joy in his innermost being, nor did he experience God’s joy when he hid his sins in his innermost being. Joy is the result of God’s work. He creates the joy ( ). The truth in which He finds joy is the recognition of sin before Him and the acceptance of His judgment of it without reservation. If in the sinner that truth is present as a deep conviction, then God “makes known wisdom in the hidden part”. There is room in the innermost being through confession and now God can make His wisdom known therein. As a result, the restored believer can make the right decisions in the choice he is always faced with: the choice between good and evil.

‏ Psalms 51:3

Confession and Repentance

David knows his transgressions (Psa 51:3). Awareness of this is necessary if God is to do His work of restoration. There must be complete openness about it. His sin is constantly before his eyes since Nathan discovered it for him. This is not a pleasant state, but it is extremely beneficial. Only when God sends Nathan to him does he come to full and sincere confession. This psalm is proof of that.

Although David has sinned against his neighbor, he confesses that he has sinned against God, yes, against God only (Psa 51:4; 2Sam 12:13a). The point of sin is first and foremost that it is evil in God’s eyes. Dishonor has been done to God. Any sin against a neighbor is first and foremost a sin against God. If this awareness is not at the top, there will be no thorough confession. Then there is only regret and that mainly about the consequences, but no repentance for the deed.

God is absolutely righteous. If we acknowledge that we have sinned against Him and done what is evil in His sight, we acknowledge that He is righteous in His judgment of sin. The word ‘confess’ means ‘to say the same thing’. To confess a sin is to see a sin as God sees it and to say of it the same as He says. This is what David did when Nathan confronted him with his sin on behalf of God. He admitted God was right in His judgment of the sin he committed. Paul quotes this verse in the letter to the Romans, the letter in which he explains what the righteousness of God is (Rom 3:4).

God defines what sin is. Sin is anything done without the acknowledgment of His right to our lives. Man was created for the goal of glorifying his Creator. He misses that goal by living as a sinner (Rom 3:23). In His law, He states what man must do and what He will do if man breaks the law. When God judges because His law has been broken, He proves that He is pure. His “eyes are too pure to approve evil” (Hab 1:13a). Only when a person acknowledges that God is righteous and pure God can declare that person righteous and pure.

David descends even deeper into the problem of sin. He acknowledges that he was “brought forth in iniquity” and “in sin … conceived” by his mother (Psa 51:5). This is not a shrugging off of his guilt, but the recognition that he is a sinner to the core of his being. He speaks not only of his sins as deeds, but of the sin that is in him as the source of the deeds, of the sinful nature that every man has (cf. Rom 7:18a).

We call this “original sin”, which is every human being’s nature since Adam fell into sin. We are not sinners because we sin; we sin because we are sinners. The teaching on this is given in the letter to the Romans. It is recommended that we read that letter regularly. Seeing the difference between sin as an act and sin as a source is fundamental if there is to be a profound confession. This statement by David is a rare and yet clear statement about original sin in the Old Testament (cf. Job 14:4 ; Job 15:14 ; Job 25:4; Psa 58:3).

David has a deep understanding of what God seeks and values (Psa 51:6). He knows that God desires “truth in the innermost being”. The innermost is the inner self, the soul or heart (cf. Job 38:36). He experienced in his feelings that God had no joy in his innermost being, nor did he experience God’s joy when he hid his sins in his innermost being. Joy is the result of God’s work. He creates the joy (Isa 65:17-18). The truth in which He finds joy is the recognition of sin before Him and the acceptance of His judgment of it without reservation.

If in the sinner that truth is present as a deep conviction, then God “makes known wisdom in the hidden part”. There is room in the innermost being through confession and now God can make His wisdom known therein. As a result, the restored believer can make the right decisions in the choice he is always faced with: the choice between good and evil.