Psalm 51
As the superscription for today’s psalm indicates, the backdrop for Psalm 51 is David’s adultery with Bathsheba, the murder of her husband, Uriah the Hittite, and the subsequent confrontation of David by Nathan the prophet. You can find that story in II Samuel 11-12. You might also want to see our commentary on it from 2023.
I expect this psalm is somewhat familiar to many or most of us, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t read it afresh. And read it afresh we must in order that we, too, might come before our Most Holy God in repentance, confessing our sin with a broken and contrite heart. No amount of sacrifice can substitute for repentance. So read Psalm 51 today in your own voice in true repentance, confessing your own sin, presenting your own contrite heart to the Lord, asking for His Holy Spirit and the cleansing that only He can provide.
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