Psalm 38: “I Confess My Iniquity”
In Psalm 38 David cries out in his sinfulness to the Lord. David knows who he is—a sinner—and he knows who God is—a perfect and holy God. David’s petition reminds me of the first Beatitude that Jesus gave in his sermon on the mount: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God.” David understands that he is spiritually bankrupt, and fully aware of his sinfulness. Before the wrath of God he feels as if arrows are piercing him, and that the hand of God has come down upon him. “My guilt has overwhelmed me,” he says, “like a burden to heavy to bear.”
Jesus invites all sinners to come to him, for he will lift our burdens, the burden of sin. “Come unto me, says the Lord, “and I will give you rest.” It is David’s trust in God that allows him, even in his despair and pain, to cry out to heaven for mercy and relief, for redemption and salvation. His words are simple: “Come quickly to help me, O Lord my Savior.”
David confesses fully to God. One question every soul might ask of itself, is “Have I confessed fully?” David is ashamed, plagued by the wounds of sin that fester and literally make him sick. “There is no health in my body.” But David’s petition is that of one who knows God. He knows that God sees him fully in the depths of his heart, but he also knows that he can come to God in his shame because he knows who God is.
David’s psalm is a heart-wrenching cry. But when one recognizes one’s sinfulness, one’s poverty of spirit, and lays that all before the Lord, God is swift in his mercy, grace, and forgiveness. One looks down one moment in despair over one’s life, and the next instant is brought by God into the kingdom of heaven. Confession, as they say, is good for the soul.
David’s psalm, though it seems to be about his misery, is also a portrait of God. God has placed David in a refiner’s fire to make David fully aware of his mournful condition. And David sees that God is the one, the only one, who can “answer” his petition for mercy. He promises, “I will wait for you, O Lord.” For David knows that God will not forsake him. David’s trust is such that he ends his prayer with the simple cry of faith and trust, “Come quickly to help me, O Lord my Savior.”
For that is who God is : our Savior. God will redeem us from all unrighteousness, all sin, all the messy little failures that can ruin our lives if we let them. Yet God will forgive, and more, he promises to forgive, to remove sins as “far as east is from the west.” The old will pass away, and we will be a new creation.
Believe the words of our Lord, as modeled by his servant David: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
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