King David was the most respectful and successful king of Israel. God handpicked him to be the king of His people. God said this about David:

“‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My heart, who will do all My will.” Acts 13:22 NASB

David did marvelous, many courageous and heroic deeds. David was the one who defeated the strongest and mighty man of Philistine, Goliath (1 Samuel 17). David led the Israelites in many victories. He was feared by his enemies and loved by his people.

Sure David had many dark days as King Saul was jealous of his wits, talents and gifts. But at the end, King David took Saul’s place and became king over Israel. God saved David’s life from countless perils.

However, David committed the most serious and grieves sin. He took the wife of one of his soldiers while his soldier (Uriah) was in war and slept with Uriah’s wife (Bathsheba). Then Bathsheba got pregnant and let David know, he put Uriah to death (2 Samuel 11 & 12) thinking and probably believing that he could hide his sin from others and God.

But God, by his mercy and grace, sent His prophet, Nathan, to King David and convicted David of his sin (2 Samuel 12) and David confessed his sin.

Psalm 51 is the prayer of this sinful king. It reads like this:

¹Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness;
According to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions.
² Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity
And cleanse me from my sin.
³ For I know my transgressions,
And my sin is ever before me.
⁴ Against You, You only, I have sinned
And done what is evil in Your sight,
So that You are justified when You speak
And blameless when You judge.

⁵ Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
And in sin my mother conceived me.
⁶ Behold, You desire truth in the innermost being,
And in the hidden part You will make me know wisdom.
⁷ Purify 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,
Let the bones which You have broken rejoice.
⁹ Hide Your face from my sins
And blot out all my iniquities.

¹⁰ Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
¹¹ Do not cast me away from Your presence
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.
¹² Restore to me the joy of Your salvation
And sustain me with a willing spirit.
¹³ Then I will teach transgressors Your ways,
And sinners will be converted to You.

¹⁴ Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, the God of my salvation;
Then my tongue will joyfully sing of Your righteousness.
¹⁵ O Lord, open my lips,
That my mouth may declare Your praise.
¹⁶ For You do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it;
You are not pleased with burnt offering.
¹⁷ The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.

¹⁸ By Your favor do good to Zion;
Build the walls of Jerusalem.
¹⁹ Then You will delight in righteous sacrifices,
In burnt offering and whole burnt offering;
Then young bulls will be offered on Your altar.

 

This chapter is impregnated by countless truths of God. It has a number of life-giving principles of God. Here are some of the principles I found in this chapter:

1. David knew that only God could forgive sin

King David knew that it was only God who could forgive his sin. He didn’t cry on Nathan, the prophet of God because David knew that the only difference between Nathan and David is their call. Otherwise he knows that they are the same, creatures of God.

So, David, as soon as he realized that he could no more hide his sin, he directly went to God, but not taking his name, “King David,” but in the name of God’s revealed and “yet-to-be-revealed” mercy – the mercy God revealed in the Messiah.

“Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness;
According to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions.” Psalm 51:1

David didn’t pray saying,

“Forgive me according to what I did so far in Your Kingdom,” or,

“Forgive me since I cried A LOT!” Or,

“Forgive me since I am praying standing on my one leg,” or,

“Forgive me since I am the king over your people.”

No! David prayer, forgive me according to “mercy” – loving kindness, and “compassion”

2. David didn’t play blame-shifting game with God

David said to God,

“Against You, You only, I have sinned
And done what is evil in Your sight,
So that You are justified when You speak
And blameless when You judge.” Psalm 51:4 NASB

David didn’t say to God: “It was Bathsheba’s fault, not mine. If she didn’t take shower outside, I wouldn’t have sinned!”

No, he didn’t!

Rather. David said, it was me the sinner! I the sinner am asking to forgive me!

Praise God!

3. David knew that God was the only who could cleanse him

“Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” Psalm 51:7

Priests used hyssop to apply the blood of the Passover Lamb (Exodus 12:22) and purifying water (Numbers 19:18) and here, David is asking God to be his Priest.

David is praying seeing the coming Messiah, as we pray to God seeing the already coming Messiah, Jesus Christ, who is our High Priest.

And when David asking God to “wash” him, he is not really asking God to give him bath, but to cleanse him from his “swinish nature” (borrowing the phrase), asking God to wash him clean from his naturally sinful nature, the nature David describes as this:

“Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
And in sin my mother conceived me.” Psalm 51:5 NASB

This process of washing and cleansing David also includes putting David in a painful process but David was willing to go through that painful process knowing that it will soon be good for him.

The write of Hebrews puts this truth this way:

“It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.” Hebrews 12:7-11 NASB

4. David asked God not to take away His Spirit from him

Nothing is important for David, and us, as the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. So, David prayed,

“Do not cast me away from Your presence
And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.” Psalm 51:11 NASB

Beautiful, isn’t it?

You will find more life-giving principles from studying the whole chapter. Please read and study it. ///