Psalms 51:4

_AGAINST THEE, THEE ONLY, HAVE I SINNED, AND DONE THIS EVIL IN THY SIGHT: THAT THOU MIGHTEST BE JUSTIFIED WHEN THOU SPEAKEST, AND BE CLEAR WHEN THOU JUDGEST._ AGAINST THEE, THEE ONLY, HAVE I SINNED, AND DONE THIS EVIL IN THY SIGHT. So in 2 Samuel 12:9; 2 Samuel 12:13, the sin, though externally against Uriah, is represented as having its chief malignity in being against "the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in His sight;" and David's confession is, "I have sinned against the Lord." That we are not to think that the sins which he confesses are merely against the first table of the law, appears from Psalms 51:14, "Deliver me from blood-guiltiness." What makes an offence against our fellow-man a sin is, t

4._Against thee, thee only, have I sinned _(260) It is the opinion of some that he here adverts to the circumstance of his sin, although it was committed against man, being concealed from every eye but that of God. None was aware of the double wrong which he had inflicted upon Uriah, nor of the wanton manner in which he had exposed his army to danger; and his crime being thus unknown to men, might be said to have been committed exclusively against God. According to others, David here intimates, that however deeply he was conscious of having injured men, he was chiefly distressed for having violated the law of God. But I conceive his meaning to be, that though all the world should pardon him, he felt that God was the Judge with whom he had to do, that conscience hailed him to his bar, and that the voice of man could administer no relief to him, however much he might be disposed to forgive...

1-6 David, being convinced of his sin, poured out his soul to God in prayer for mercy and grace. Whither should backsliding children return, but to the Lord their God, who alone can heal them? he drew up, by Divine teaching, an account of the workings of his heart toward God. Those that truly repent of their sins, will not be ashamed to own their repentance. Also, he instructs others what to do, and what to say. David had not only done much, but suffered much in the cause of God; yet he flees to God's infinite mercy, and depends upon that alone for pardon and peace. He begs the pardon of sin. The blood of Christ, sprinkled upon the conscience, blots out the transgression, and, having reconciled us to God, reconciles us to ourselves. The believer longs to have the whole debt of his sins blotted out, and every stain cleansed; he would be thoroughly washed from all his sins; but the hypocr...

Verse Psalms 51:4. _AGAINST THEE, THEE ONLY, HAVE I SINNED_] This verse is supposed to show the impropriety of affixing the above _title_ to this Psalm. It could not have been composed on account of the matter with Bath-sheba and the murder of Uriah; for, surely, these sins could not be said to have been committed against God ONLY, if we take the words of this verse in their common acceptation. That was a _public_ sin, grievous, and against society at large, as well as against the peace, honour, comfort, and _life_ of an innocent, brave, and patriotic man. This is readily granted: but see below. _THAT THOU MIGHTEST BE JUSTIFIED WHEN THOU SPEAKEST_] Perhaps, to save the propriety of the _title_, we might understand the verse thus: David, being _king_, was not liable to be called to account by any of his _subjects_; nor was there an

AGAINST THEE, THEE ONLY, HAVE I SINNED - That is, the sin, considered as an offence against God, now appeared to him so enormous and so aggravated, that, for the moment, he lost sight of it considered in any other of its bearings. It “was” a sin, as all other sins are, primarily and mainly against God; it derived its chief enormity from that fact. We are not to suppose that David did not believe and notice that he had done wrong to people, or that he had offended against human laws, and against the well-being of society. His crime against Uriah and his family was of the deepest and most aggravated character, but still the offence derived its chief heinousness from the fact that it was a violation of the law of God. The state of mind here illustrated is that which occurs in every case of true penitence. It is not merely because that which has been done is a violation of human law; it is n...

EXPOSITION THIS is the first of a series of fifteen psalms assigned by their titles to David, and mostly attached to special circumstances in his life, which are said to have furnished the occasions for their composition. The school of writers which brushes aside the "titles" as unauthorized and unhistorical, and so regards itself as wholly free to assign to any psalm any date and any author that it prefers, places this among post-Captivity compositions, especially on account of Psalms 51:18, Psalms 51:19 (so Professor Cheyne, Dr. Robertson Smith, the Four Friends, and others). Those, on the contrary, who consider the "titles" to be_ _entitled to regard and respect, even if not absolutely authoritative,_ _find either nothing in the psalm unsuitable to David's t

AGAINST THEE, THEE ONLY, HAVE I SINNED,.... All sin, though committed against a fellow creature, being a transgression of the law, is against the lawgiver; and, indeed, begins at the neglect or contempt of his commandment, as David's sin did, 2 Samuel 12:9; and being committed against God, that had bestowed so many favours upon him, was a cutting consideration to him, which made his sorrow appear to be of a godly sort; wherefore he makes his humble and hearty confession to the Lord, and who only could forgive his sin; AND DONE [THIS] EVIL IN THY SIGHT; for with respect to men it was secretly done; and was only known to God, with whom the darkness and the light are both alike; THAT THOU MIGHTEST BE JUSTIFIED WHEN THOU SPEAKEST, [AND] BE CLEAR WHEN THOU JUDGEST; not that David committed this sin that God might be just, and pure, and holy; but this was t

This is a portion of Scripture, which can never be read too often. If any among us have never found mercy, let them use this Psalm as their own personal prayer; while those who have found mercy can read between the lines, and read the sweetness of pardon into the bitterness of sorrow for sin. This Psalm was written by David when Nathan came to him after his great sin with Bathsheba. He needed Nathan to come to him to rebuke him. If David had not been in a very sad state of heart, he would not have fallen into the sin; and it was that state of heart which left him so hardened, so obdurate, that he needed Nathan pointedly to say to him, «Thou art the man.» After that, he wrote and prayed this truly penitential Psalm. Psalms 51:1. _Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness_ He used to talk about being God's servant; but he says nothing about that now. He u

Psalms 51 The Confession _ 1. Conviction and prayer for forgiveness (Psalms 51:1)_ 2. Prayer for cleansing and restoration (Psalms 51:9) 3. Blood guiltiness acknowledged (Psalms 51:14) 4. Prayer for Zion (Psalms 51:18) This great penitential Psalm, according to the inscription, was the outburst of confession and repentance of David when Nathan had uncovered his sin. Well has it been said, “So profound a conviction of sin, so deep and unfeigned a penitence, so true a confession, a heart so tender, so contrite, a de

LI. A PENITENTIAL PSALM. Psalms 51:1. Prayer for pardon and inward renewal. Psalms 51:13. A promise to proclaim God's mercy and bring sinners back to Him. Psalms 51:18 f. Prayer for the restoration of Jerusalem, which will make sacrifice possible and popular once more. The Ps. was not written by David, and still less by David after his double sin of murder and adultery. How could David have said, Against thee, thee only, have I sinned? Besides, the Ps. shows the influence of exilic and post-exilic literature. The mention of the Holy Spirit occurs here only and Isaiah 63:10 in the so-called Third Is