Psalms 32:1-11 (NKJV)
1 A Psalm of David. A Contemplation.
Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered.
2 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity, And in whose spirit there is no deceit.
3 When I kept silent, my bones grew old Through my groaning all the day long.
4 For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was turned into the drought of summer. Selah
5 I acknowledged my sin to You, And my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord," And You forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah
6 For this cause everyone who is godly shall pray to You In a time when You may be found; Surely in a flood of great waters They shall not come near him.
7 You are my hiding place; You shall preserve me from trouble; You shall surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah
8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.
9 Do not be like the horse or like the mule, Which have no understanding, Which must be harnessed with bit and bridle, Else they will not come near you.
10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked; But he who trusts in the Lord, mercy shall surround him.
11 Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous; And shout for joy, all you upright in heart!
Verses 1-5 remind us of the release found in forgiveness. “Blessed is he…” That is to say, “Happy is he who has sought the Lord for forgiveness of his sins.” David points out in verses 3-4 that as long as he refused to seek forgiveness, he was miserable:
“When I kept silent, my bones grew old…groaning all the day long…day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was turned into the drought of summer.”
Have you felt that way? Your spirit is heavy; there is no joy in anything that you do. Every where you turn something reminds you of the unconfessed sin in your life. Though you are not an old person or a sickly person, you feel sickly, heavy, and sluggish. Gone are your joy and your youthfulness, for the guilt of sin lies heavy upon you.
Maybe your sin is an ongoing thing; something that you continue to do. You know it is wrong, but you don’t know how to stop. Or maybe you have tried to stop so many times - only to begin again - that you have begun to feel that confession and starting over are useless for you.
Precious Child of God, those are lies of the evil one. God has said that if we will confess our sin, He will cleanse us from all unrighteousness (John 1:9). He doesn’t say I will only cleanse you twice or three times. The Bible just says, here and elsewhere, that if we come with a repentant heart, God will forgive and cleanse and allow us to start again. The devil wants you to give up. The deeper a child of God falls into sin and hopelessness; the more useless he is for God’s glory. Which is the devil’s goal – to steal the glory of God.
But what does the Psalmist say?
5 I acknowledged my sin to You, And my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord," And You forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah
David knew the joy of cleansing. He also knew the agony of defeat. Throughout his life, he failed many times, but he always knew what to do about his failure. Sometimes he had to be confronted; sometimes he felt immediate conviction and went to the Lord. Either way, David always found the Lord ready and willing to forgive.
Verses 6 and 7 point out that this forgiveness is for everyone who will come. David calls God his hiding place; his deliverance. Throughout Scripture we find God likened to an eagle under whose wing we can find shelter (Psalm 91 and other references). He is also likened to a mother chick who wants to gather and protect us, a solid rock, a fortress, a shield, and on and on we could go. God never intended for us to try to make it alone. When you became his child, you received the privilege of His forgiveness and His shelter (I John 1:12).
Jesus sought God when He was grieved and in need of strength. How much more should we seek shelter in the weakness of our flesh!
Jesus said,
Matthew 11:28 (HCSB)
28 “Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
He longs for you to bring your burdens, including your sin, and let Him carry you, give you rest from this awful burden.
Verse 8-10
8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.
9 Do not be like the horse or like the mule, Which have no understanding, Which must be harnessed with bit and bridle, Else they will not come near you.
10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked; But he who trusts in the Lord, mercy shall surround him.
God wants to instruct us and teach us how to go; but first we must acknowledge that we have sinned and ask His forgiveness. There is such sweet release when the words break forth from a repentant heart: “Father, I have sinned. Forgive me.” For some of us, cleansing tears will follow. For others, there is immediate dancing and rejoicing. Maybe you are a person who will not have a great show of emotion, but in your heart there will be great joy and release.
There is a warning in verse 9. The warning admonishes us not to be stubborn like the horse and the mule. Do not make God discipline you in order to bring you to repentance. The Bible tells us that He disciplines those whom He loves. If you are a child of God, He will not let your sin go on indefinitely. Either you repent and allow Him to deal with you as a loving Father, or He will discipline you until you repent and seek His face.
Verse 10 offers a promise. The only forgiveness for those who are not children of God is the total repentance of sin and acceptance of Jesus, otherwise only sorrow will follow them to the grave and Hell. “But he who trusts in the Lord, mercy shall surround him.” Many times throughout Scripture we are reminded of God’s mercy, of His willingness and delight in forgiving and loving His children (Psalm 103).
Why do we wait?
11 Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous; And shout for joy, all you upright in heart!
It is not boastful to feel righteous or upright in heart. We are always aware of our frailty in light of Jesus Christ. We are always aware of our mortality. But we can be glad and rejoice because we have a right relationship with God through Jesus. When God looks at a repentant, forgiven child, all He sees is His dear Son. When Jesus died on the cross, He died for all of our sins: past, present, and future.
The living water is there, won’t you drink and drink deeply? Drink of His mercy and His forgiveness. You don’t know how? You believe you will fail again? Let Him take care of those issues. Kneel in your heart and say, “Father, I have sinned…” He will take care of the rest. Conversation will flow freely from that point. Do not let the enemy tell you that you cannot be forgiven. Do not let the enemy tell you that you will do it again. Trust Jesus! He paid it all! He loves you just as you are.
**Father, I have sinned and done evil in Your sight. Please forgive me and restore to me the joy of my salvation. Please restore my passion for You…”
