¹How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered! ²How blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit! … ¹¹Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous ones; and shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart.

What a wonderful song of forgiveness! David speaks from the depths of his soul with overwhelming emotion, “Be glad in the Lord and rejoice…shout for joy” (vs. 11). This is no superficial forgiveness that sloughs over moral and spiritual failure, but it comes hard on the heels of abject and brutally honest confession (“in whose spirit there is no deceit”). God is not in the business of ignoring sin, like a magician who waves his hand with an “Abracadabra” incantation. Nor does our Lord act like a kindly old man who simply says, “No problem, don’t get too hung up on your mistake.” We think of the covering of skins God provided for Adam and Eve’s sin, which required the killing of animals. The covering acknowledges the naked need created by sin.

It is hard not to see this psalm as a follow-up complement to Psalm 51, where David confesses his sin with Bathsheba (note: the psalms in Scripture are not arranged in chronological order). We find the historical background for both psalms in 2 Samuel 11-12, where David consciously and willfully violated the Ten Commandments. He was guilty not only of adultery (his more well-publicized sin) but also of murder (killing of Bathsheba’s husband), deceit (covering up his sin), and theft (stealing Bathsheba away from her husband).

David is remarkably candid about his sin. Today’s pop psychology would interpret this as obsessive, but David was a realist and wanted to live in the integrity of spiritual truth. He did not complain of presumed judgment by others or beg for any allowance over his failure. He would certainly have thought it strange if someone suggested he should learn to forgive himself. It was God’s forgiveness that he wanted and which he now enjoyed! Listen to the realism of this godly man:

When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. Selah. (Ps 32:3–4)

The kernel of his confession follows and serves as an example to all of us who want to be godly:

I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I did not hide; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord”; and You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah. (Ps 32:5)

In the NT, John the apostle echoed the same truth:

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us. (1 John 1:9–10)

Out of such baring of the soul and tenacious holding to God’s forgiveness, he can be confident in praying for the Lord’s protection whenever he needs it (Ps. 32:6-7). And from this experience of forgiveness comes the desire to teach others so they won’t have to learn the same harsh realities of sin in their lives that he experienced (vss. 8-10). As William MacDonald eloquently puts it, “The believer should be so sensitive to the Lord’s leading that he does not need the harsher disciplines of life to bring him into line” (BBC).

The joy and blessedness that David experienced should be common to all who want to live righteously. It is not a joy that comes from sinless perfection—such a goal sets a person up for failure and renders joy an unattainable carrot on a stick. Nor does joy come from hiding one’s sin inside a cubicle of shame. But real joy comes from self-exposure before God and faith that His lovingkindness will surround us with His amazing forgiveness!

Lord, convict me of my hidden sins, and please keep reminding me of Your total and complete forgiveness.