Psalm 32

Psalm 32 sounds an awful lot like Psalm 51. They are considered companion chapters, as they deal with the same thing and were most likely written at about the same time. Psalm 32, however, shows us what happens after David progressed through the awful reality of Psalm 51. Psalm 32 is about forgiveness. 

I own a study Bible from the 1970s. It's old, and it looks it. It's just one of a few Bibles I own. I would say it's mid-pack in the looks department. No matter, because I want to talk about what it says inside. First of all, go ahead and read the psalm here. You can see there is a familiar progression, with David saying this is a "teaching moment," so to speak. But where Psalm 51 dwells on the raw reality of David's awful predicament, Psalm 32 is a reminder of God's forgiveness. David screwed up bigger than at any other time in his life. I mean, this was a massive series of mistakes he was caught up in. If he had not admitted his sins to Nathan the prophet and God, it would have surely been the end of him. But, he did confess his sins, endured God's punishment, and lived a long, blessed life. David's heart, though fouled up by his sin, wanted to do the right thing.

Anyway, I want to quote a bit from my study Bible. It says, "This psalm of forgiveness is probably the sequel to Psalm 51, in which David confesses his sin with Bathsheba. Here he describes the blessings of forgiveness which followed chastening and confession, then encourages others to seek the Lord's deliverance rather than stubbornly refusing to follow Him, and finally exhorts them to rejoice in the Lord." Concerning verses 3 and 4, it says, "While David kept silence (did not immediately confess his sin), God chastened him physically and emotionally." Sin separates us from God. Not only that, but we must endure God's punishment. A person can only go in two directions at this moment of confrontation. We can either go TO God or AWAY from God. I don't know about anyone else, but spankings are much easier when I'm going to the one spanking me. If I'm going away from Him, there's a lot more leverage. When my son gets spanked, he's figured out I can't spank him very well with him hugging my neck. It's hard to get leverage. It's the same with me and God.

Psalm 32 is an amazing picture of God's grace at a time when grace wasn't often extended to God's people. The Old Testament is derided as being cold and brutal, with a fierce, punishing God. That's one aspect of God. Psalm 32 shows us another aspect. Without a clear understanding of sin, we cannot fully understand the amazing gift of grace. Without the Old Testament, the New Testament, in which grace is poured out for all mankind, is not fully understood.

Why does any of this matter to me? Oh, my soul has been laid open, no, torn open by my many sins. I've hurt so many people, and I am deserving of so much blame. I have done many awful things, including some of the things David was guilty of in Psalm 51. I deserve nothing less than God's wrath. But, instead, when I confessed my sins, I felt God's forgiveness. For some reason, that broke me more than any amount of chastisement. When you deserve so much awfulness and God instead gives you grace, it's bewildering, humbling, and unforgettable. Those who have been forgiven much love God very much.

When David kept his mouth shut, refusing to admit his sin, God's hand was heavy on him. When David confessed his sin, he experienced freedom. He didn't confess his sin to everyone, though he was a highly-visible person. He confessed his sin to God in front of Nathan the prophet. The sins that I perpetrated on those I loved were confessed to them, as well as to God. It's not necessary to ask for forgiveness or to beg, only that sins are confessed. That's how far God comes to meet us where we are. We don't even have to ask for forgiveness; all we have to do is confess what we've done. 

It's clear the worst thing we can do when we've sinned is to not admit our sin. As David — like Saul before him — was confronted with his sin, we see the critical moment of confrontation (and then in David's case, confession). Unlike Saul before him, though, David's heart knew that nothing could be hidden from God. While Saul chose to lie and cover up his sin, David did the opposite, choosing God's forgiveness over his wrath — always a smart choice. 

Forgiveness is infinitely freeing. But I'm not just talking about us forgiving others. I'm talking about us forgiving OURSELVES, which is often the hardest part. Accepting God's forgiveness for our awful, stinking crimes is so humbling. But it's better than muddling about, trying to make a bad situation better but only making it worse (like Saul). When we've screwed up and can't fix our lives, the best thing to do is humble ourselves and take it to God. And that's something I'm getting pretty good at.

Thank you for following my journey. I know some of the things I've said here have not been pretty. The message in this post, however, is beautiful.