The Joy of Forgiveness

Psalm 32 is a Psalm of wisdom and a great penitential one as well.  There is so much happening within its eleven verses.  It is believed that David wrote the Psalm following his infamous affair with Bathsheba (2 Sam 11). The psalm starts off with a description of blessings:

Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,

Whose sin is covered (atoned)*. 

Blessed is the man to whom 

the Lord does not impute iniquity, 

And in whose spirit there is no deceit. vv 1-2

Then David shifts gears a bit and talks about how he has kept silent about a sin he has committed.  This is not to say that the Lord doesn't know about the sin, but that he has failed to confess the sin to the Lord.  We all know that the Lord doesn't need us to tell him what we did wrong, He knows exactly what we did wrong, but he wants us to confess our sin-acknowledge our wrong doing and repent. 

When I kept silent, my bones grew old

Through my groaning all the day long.

For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;

My vitality was turned into the drought of summer. vv 3-4

Now David realizes the consequences of the failure to confess...so he finally confesses in verses 5-6:

I acknowledged my sin to You,

And my iniquity (immoral behavior)* I have not hidden.

I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,"

And You forgave the iniquity of my sin. 

He is feeling much, much better now that he confessed and is forgiven.  He knew, like we do, that when we don't confess our sin, we are separating ourselves from the Lord.   Then, overjoyed because the load of "hidden sin" was taken from him through his confession/repentance, he decides to warn people to do the same and then quickly changes to address the Lord and acknowledges His protection:

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.

You are my hiding place;

You shall preserve me from trouble;

You shall surround me with songs of deliverance. vv 6-7

Then the speaker (David) changes and the Lord "comes in" the psalm to also instruct the people.  

I will instruct you and teach you 

in the way you should go;

I will guide you with My eye.

Do not be like a horse or like the mule,

Which have no understanding 

Which must be harnessed with bit and bridle,

Else they will not come near you. vv 8-9

The Lord is asking us to trust Him and let Him teach us the way which we should go.  He is mentioning "mules" and "horses" (which are both stubborn animals) and tell us not to be like them.  He wants us to respond to Him quickly and on our own accord-not being dragged or forced.  Lastly, David ends the hymn by contrasting the many sorrows of the wicked with the joy of the believer and instructing the believer to praise the Lord:

Many sorrows shall be to the wicked;

But he who trusts in the Lord,

mercy shall surround him.

Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous;

And shout for joy, all you upright in heart!  vv 10-11

Like I said, this psalm has it all: Praise, Acknowledgment of sin and the consequences of hiding it; Confession and repentance; Warning to the righteous; More praise; The Lord's warning; Comparison of wicked and righteous; And finally, instruction to praise the Lord.  I just LOVE this psalm.

We've all tried ,at some point or another, to hide our transgressions from the Lord (as if we could) and have paid dearly for it-mostly in the fact that we are "not right" with Him.  When we confess our sin, the "earthly" consequences of our actions don't necessarily disappear, but our relationship with the Lord is restored and we must rejoice and praise the Lord for that!

  

* definition added~ word in parenthesis are not part of the the Psalm.