Psalm 51 – Have Mercy
In Psalm 51 – have mercy, the author asks God for mercy because of God’s steadfast, unfailing love. Some translations say God’s merciful love. What is the nature of this mercy? How do we receive it?
Psalm 51
This psalm, attributed to David, begins with a heartfelt cry:
“Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.
Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.” (1-3)
This is a beautiful example of true contrition. There is no casting blame on others; rather David is aware of his sins. He even says that God is justified in judging him.
“For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.
Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict and justified when you judge.” (3-4)
He goes so far as to say he was sinful in the womb. This is not meant as disparaging his mother, just acknowledging his sinful nature.
“Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb; you taught me wisdom in that secret place.” (5-6)
He asks God to cleanse him and blot out his sins.
“Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.” (7)
Forgiveness is not enough. He asks for a clean heart, to be transformed.
“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.” (10-12)
He ends by offering God his contrite heart.
“My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.” (17)
What is this Mercy?
Mercy is a common theme throughout Scripture. I’ve written about it many times. (What Can We Learn About Mercy in the Psalms – Patricia M Robertson; Psalm 118: What is the Quality of Mercy? – Patricia M Robertson; Psalm 136: God’s Crazy Love and Mercy! Biblical Economics 101 – Patricia M Robertson) Still it is worth repeating. We can never hear enough about God’s love and mercy.
Jesus looked at Jerusalem and wept. He wept over the sins of the city and the sufferings they would bring. St. Dominic’s compassion for sinners was such that he would spend nights in tears, praying for them. “His compassion for sinners would often result in him spending nights before the Cross, weeping and crying out to the Lord to have mercy on sinners and he was often heard beseeching the Lord, ‘What will become of sinners?’” (St Dominic and the Preaching of Mercy – The Dominican Friars in Britain) Dominic was known to seek out a high point in order to look at a city and weep for the sinners there.
God’s Crazy Love and Mercy
God doesn’t just forgive us; God wipes the slate clean. It’s as if you are standing before God at the last judgment expecting to hear all of your many failings as God reads from the book of your life. “However, none of your sins have been read to the assembly. Jesus shows you the pages containing your deeds, and there are many gaps in the written record of your life. He says, “Each time you repented, I cast your sins into the depths of the see.” (One Bread, One Body, reflection for Friday, November 29, 2024) Who does that? Only our God who loves us with a crazy, steadfast love.
In Micah 7:18-19 we hear:
“Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance?
You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy.
You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.”
(Other references to this are found in Jer 31:34 and Psalm 103:12)
What do we have to do to get this mercy? Psalm 51 – have mercy, tells us. We need to have a contrite heart. This is not because God demands it of us, but because we have to be open to it before we can receive God’s mercy. God won’t force anything on us, not even God’s mercy. We can’t fool God. Unless we are truly sorry for our sins, we can’t experience God’s mercy.
Psalm 51 – Have Mercy
The Jesus Prayer is as early as the church itself. Its roots are found in the prayer of the publican from Luke 18:13, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” These roots are also in this psalm.
The words, “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner,” are easy to remember and use. But if that is too long, Lord, have mercy, will suffice. Or even just have mercy, or mercy. God isn’t impressed by an abundance of words, but the sincerity of our hearts. Early Christians were encouraged to repeat this prayer hundreds of times a day.
In Psalm 51 – have mercy, we have all we need to embrace and experience God’s great love and mercy. Pray it every day.
What has been your experience of God’s mercy? I would love to hear from you.
(For another take on this psalm, see Psalm 51: Seeking Forgiveness – Patricia M Robertson; and Psalm 51: A Contrite Heart – Patricia M Robertson)
One Third of the Way and Counting
It occurred to me as I finished my post on Psalm 50, that I was already one third of the way through the Psalms. Doesn’t seem possible. It feels like I only just started this daunting task. Yet it was a year ago on the first week of Advent, that I once again took up pen to write a weekly reflection on the Psalms, starting with Psalm 1.
This time I chose to focus on the first line of each psalm. I figured this was a little crazy. How would I be able to come up with 150 different opening phrases or words to focus on? But I decided to start and see where it led me. Here I am at Psalm 51, and I haven’t had to repeat a phrase yet. And so, I will continue, trusting in the Spirit’s leadings.
Advent Resources
As we begin a new church year, here are two Advent offerings you might enjoy from trusted friends.
Rev. Clare and Rev. Scott Loughrige invite you to join a free Advent Pause for Enneagram Styles, Dec. 1, from 3p.m. to 3:45. Learn a simple spiritual practice that you can utilize at the dinner table or in line at your least favorite place to wait. For more information go to A New Year of Happiness and Harmony.
Or how about pay what you like? Join Dr. Lori Tate for an Advent retreat on Tuesday, Dec. 3 from 7-8:30p.m. For more information go to Advent – Take a Closer Look, Tuesday, December 3, 7pm (EST) – Soul Dig.
Other Freebies? Check out my articles page for “The Thankful Mysteries” and a Christmas story, “Follow that Star,” from my Christmas book.
Or, my seasonal booklets, Season of Gratitude, Season of Hope, and Season of Promise, are available for 99 cents at Amazon or other ebook distributors, or free from your local library through Hoopla.
This post is part of a series of blog posts on the Psalms. Sign up to follow this blog and receive a free copy of Still Dancing, the second book in my Dancing through Life Series. click here to sign up
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