Psalms 32:5

I acknowledged my sin unto thee,.... The sin of Adam, in which he was concerned; original sin, the corruption of his nature, the sin that dwelt in him, his private and secret sins, which none knew

I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.

At last I took up a full resolution, that I would no longer daily nor deal deceitfully with God, nor vainly seek to hide my sins from the all-seeing God, but that I would openly and candidly confess and bewail all my sins with all their aggravations, and humbly implore the pardon of them. The iniquity of my sin, i.e. the guilt of my sin. Or, Thou didst take away the punishment (as this Hebrew word oft signifies) of my sin; or, my exceeding sinful sin; two words signifying the same thing, being here put together by way of aggravation, according to the manner of the Hebrews.

Psalms 32:5 I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.Ver. 5. I acknowledged my sin unto thee] Though it were long first, yet thou broughtest me to it. The soul is ready to hang her comforts on every hedge, to shift and shirk in every bycorner for comfort, rather than to repair to the right fountain. Lot should have escaped to the mountains at first; but he would needs go to Zoar; which yet was soon too hot to hold him: David should have acknowledged his sin ere this time; he should speedily have cast up the poison he had swallowed down, before it got to the vitals; but he had no mind to it till he had tasted of the whip, and then he agonized his sin unto the Lord, he put himself into the hands of justice, in hope of mercy. The properties or conditions of sound confession are these, say the schoolmen in this four lines of verse: Sit simplex, humilis confessio, pura, fidelis, Atque frequens, nuda et discreta, lubens, verecunda, Integra, secreta, et lachrymabilis, accelerata, Fortis, et accusans, et se punire parata. And mine iniquity have I not hid] In confession we must show the Lord the iniquity of our sin, the filthiness of our lewdness, the abomination of our provocations, Romans 7:13. We must bring out our sins (as they took the vessels of the sanctuary, Ezra 8:34) by number and by weight; laying open how many transgressions are wrapped up in our sins, and their circumstances. See for this Leviticus 16:21. I said, I will confess, &c.] i.e. I resolved and purposed so to do; but ere that could be done "thou forgavest," &c. God’ s ear was in David’ s heart before his confession could be in his tongue. So, at another time, he did but conceive a purpose to build God a house, and God rewarded it with the building and establishing of David’ s house, 2 Samuel 7:12-13; 2 Samuel 7:16 And thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin] The sting and stain of it, the criminal and penal part of it, the worst thing that was in it; not the fire only, but the filth that was in it; reserving still to thyself a power of fatherly corrections and medicinal miseries. Vel peccatum peccati. Utitur duobus vocabulis ad aggravandum peccatum suum (Kimchi). As we say, terra pulveris, or caenum luti. But the iniquity of sin is wiped off by the sponge of true confession. Homo agnoscit, Dens ignoscit. Man no sooner acknowledgeth the debt but God crosseth the book. It is, therefore, good counsel that a father giveth, Fac confitendo propitium, quem tacendo non facis nescium, Confess and find mercy; since by a senseless silence thou canst not keep thy sins from God’ s knowledge of them. Let out that bad blood by opening a vein, that good health may enter.

(5) I acknowledged.—The fact that this verb is future, as also “I will confess” in the next clause, as well as the requirements of the passage, uphold Hupfeld’s suggestion that “I said” has changed its place, and should be replaced at the beginning of the verse. (Comp. Psalms 73:15, and Note.) The sense is, “I said, ‘I will acknowledge my sin unto thee, And I did not hide mine iniquity. (I said) ‘I will confess my transgression unto Jehovah, And thou forgavest the guilt of my sin.”

Verse 5. I acknowledged my sin] When this confession was made thoroughly and sincerely, and I ceased to cover and extenuate my offence, then thou didst forgive the iniquity of my sin. I felt the hardness of heart: I felt the deep distress of soul; I felt power to confess and abhor my sin; I felt confidence in the mercy of the Lord; and I felt the forgiveness of the iniquity of my sin. Selah.] This is all true; I know it; I felt it; I feel it.

5. The way of restoration. Lit. I began to make known to thee my sin, and mine iniquity did I not cover. The tense of the first verb graphically represents the confession being made (Psalms 25:8, note): the second verb is the same as that in Psalms 32:1. Not until man ceases to hide his sin will it be hidden from God. “Quantum tibi non peperceris,” says Tertullian, quoted by Abp. Leighton, “tantum tibi parcet Deus.” “The less you spare yourself, the more will God spare you.” and thou forgavest] Thou is emphatic, and the form of the sentence expresses the immediateness of the pardon. “Vox nondum est in ore et vulnus sanatur.” St Augustine. The musical interlude may have expressed the joy of forgiveness, and served to separate this record of experience from the application which follows.

I acknowledged my sin unto thee - That is, then I confessed my guilt. I had borne the dreadful pressure as long as I could. I had endeavored to conceal and suppress my conviction, but I found no relief.

5. I acknowledged my sin—This evidently dates from the faithful reproof of the prophet Nathan. 2 Samuel 12:13.