7And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. ... 9 Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in His sight? Thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. 10 Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast despised me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife. 11 Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house, and I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbor, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun. 12 For thou didst it secretly: but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun. 13And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the Lord. And Nathan said unto David, The Lord also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die. 14 Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die.
Psalm 51
To the chief Musician, A psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet came unto him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba. 1 Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of Thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. 2 Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. 3 For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. 4Against Thee, Thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Thy sight: that Thou mightest be justified when Thou speakest, and be clear when Thou judgest. 5 Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. 6 Behold, Thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part Thou shalt make me to know wisdom. 7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. 8 Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which Thou hast broken may rejoice. 9 Hide Thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. 10 Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right [settled] spirit within me. 11 Cast me not away from Thy presence; and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation; and uphold me with Thy free spirit. 13 Then will I teach transgressors Thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto Thee. 14 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, Thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of Thy righteousness. 15 O Lord, open Thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth Thy praise. 16 For Thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: Thou delightest not in burnt offering. 17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise. 18 Do good in Thy good pleasure unto Zion: build Thou the walls of Jerusalem. 19 Then shalt Thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offering and whole burnt offering: then shall they offer bullocks upon Thine altar.
Meditation
It is upon the grace of God that David casts himself; there is no thought of redeeming oneself. Neither tears of repentance, humiliation, reformation, nor reparation, can accomplish redemption (Psa. 49:7). Repentance is not grief — though godly grief leads to repentance: “for grief according to God works repentance to salvation” (2 Cor. 7:10 JND). Man grieves, and, being occupied with himself, he shuts God out. Very often he is angry with God for having been found out. True repentance, on the other hand, takes God’s side against oneself: “I have sinned against the Lord” (2 Sam. 12:13). David accepts God’s view of his sin and justifies God in His judgment (vs. 4).
Man is unclean from birth (Lev. 12); he is shapen in iniquity (vs. 6). “By one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned” (Rom. 5:12). David is not in the least excusing himself; instead, he not only acknowledges the sin committed but also recognizes that there is a condition far more serious with man. How is it then, that he can add, “thou desirest truth in the inward parts” (vs. 6)? Indeed, how should man be just with God? (Job 9:1). “If I justify myself, mine own mouth shall condemn me. ... If I wash myself with snow water, and make my hands never so clean; yet shalt Thou plunge me in the ditch, and mine own clothes shall abhor me” (Job 9:20, 30-31). Only God can cleanse the guilty sinner; He alone can make us to know wisdom in our inmost heart (vs. 6). “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow” (vs. 7). Hyssop was used to sprinkle the leper with blood (Lev. 14:6-7); the shed blood is the only righteous ground upon which God can cleanse. However, we must remember, whereas David knew something of the law of the leper, he knew nothing of that precious blood that cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:7). David did not have the assurance of sins forgiven; he could only pray that God would hide His face from his sin and blot out all his iniquities (vs. 9).
Though David’s spirit trembled within him, he desired to be at peace again in the presence of God (vss. 10, 12). It is important to see the contrast between David’s position and the one we now enjoy. Because of the judgment borne on the cross by our Lord, we have no more conscience of sins (Heb. 10:2); there should be an awakened sense of sin, but not dread or anxiety for the believer. We may surely grieve the Holy Spirit, but it is equally clear that we are “sealed unto the day of redemption” (Eph. 4:30). While David pleaded with God, “take not thy Holy Spirit from me” (vs. 11), it would be ignorance for a believer to say such words. We can, however, lose the joy of our salvation, with our spirits restrained within us (vs. 12).
The restored sinner teaches others of the ways of God (vs. 13). Sadly, however, Nathan must tell David, “By this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme” (1 Sam. 12:14). Unfortunately, our lives may speak so loudly that our words are not heard, no matter how right they are.
Nothing in the law could clear David. His plea must be to the grace of God alone and the sacrifice of “a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart” (vs. 16-17). Once restored, and only then, could God take pleasure in sacrifices (vs. 19).
The latter portion of the psalm clearly anticipates the restoration of the remnant in Israel (vs. 18). Though David was indeed guilty of the blood of Uriah, the nation has been guilty of the blood of the Messiah. However, it is in the cross, the very place where Christ’s blood was shed, that God can in righteousness justify the sinner; there He becomes the God of my salvation (vs. 14).