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Observations from Psalm 51 on True Repentance
The idea of repentance is cornerstone to following God. From the Old Testament to the New Testament, it is the intended result of all the preaching of the prophets, apostles, and Jesus Himself. But what is it, exactly? Is it a sense of guilt or mental self-flagellation? Is it feeling sorry for something you’ve done?
In Psalm 51, the heart of the repentant person is laid bare before us, revealing both the process of repentance and the attitude behind it. David, the king of Israel, is well-known for his victory in battles and his deep love for God, but also for his great failure in his affair with Bathsheba and murder of her husband (told in 2 Samuel 11-12). This psalm is written after he is confronted with his sin.
Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
blot out my transgressions.
Observation 1: Repentance is an appeal to God for forgiveness on the basis of who He is, not who I am. It is the realization that I won’t receive mercy because I’m deserving of it, but because He is merciful.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin!
For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is ever before me.
Observation 2: Repentance implies a conviction about my sin. I can’t repent if I won’t acknowledge my sin or if I try to make excuses for it.
Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you may be justified in your words
and blameless in your judgment.
Observation 3: Repentance must first be Godward before it can be directed towards others. I need to recognize that my sin is an offense to God that must be dealt with, not just an interpersonal or private problem.
Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
and in sin did my mother conceive me.
Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,
and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.
Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
Observation 4: Repentance desires and purposes to change. It involves turning away from sin and turning towards God, a change of mind and heart which will result in a change of action. Many times when we feel we are repenting, we are only experiencing an emotion about sin that has no lasting effect on us, but true repentance will be a shift in the “inward being” and “secret heart” towards wisdom and truth.
Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out all my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.
Observation 5: Repentance acknowledges that it is God who cleanses the heart, not the repentance itself. My sorrow over sin and my intention to change my actions cannot make up for my sin and create a clean heart within me; only God can do that.
Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and uphold me with a willing spirit.
Observation 6: Repentance comes from a desire to restore one’s relationship with God. While external consequences of sin may motivate the repentance, the driving motivation is to remove the distance that sin places in my relationship with Him.
Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners will return to you.
Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,
O God of my salvation,
and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.
Observation 7: Repentance will result in praise and calling others to repentance. While we sometimes feel that if we’ve sinned in the past we’ll be viewed as hypocrites for doing so, forgiven sin does not inhibit teaching and worship.
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;
you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
Do good to Zion in your good pleasure;
build up the walls of Jerusalem;
then will you delight in right sacrifices,
in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings;
then bulls will be offered on your altar.
Observation 8: Repentance is irresistible to God; He will not ignore the sincerely repentant heart. His desire is never for us to make up for sin by doing acts of service or great expressions of devotion, but for us to be truly broken-hearted by the things we’ve done and come to Him for forgiveness.
In 2 Samuel 12:13, when David has been convicted of his sin by the words of Nathan and repents, the prophet says to him, “The Lord also has taken away your sin; you shall not die”. How blessed are we to know the God who is so ready to forgive us when we repent!
