A Psalm of Grace

Blessed Are the Forgiven; A Maskil of David.

1 Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.

2 Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no 

  iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

3 For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through 

  my groaning all day long.

4 For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;

    my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah

5 I acknowledged my sin to You, and I did not cover my 

  iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,”

  and You forgave the iniquity of my sin.”

A maskil is a penitential psalm of confession and absolution. David does an excellent job of framing the impact of sin in a figurative sense, “… when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning … ”

In his letter to the church, the apostle John writes, “8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:8-9).

Thanks be to God for hearing our confession and forgiving our sins.

We pray: Heavenly Father, You know my comings and goings. I cannot hide from You. You know what is on my heart. I cannot lie to you. Forgive me when I fail to confess the truth of my sin in my life. My actions and lack of action are known by You. Forgive me, and create a clean heart in me, O God. In Christ’s name, Amen.