Hide thy face from my sins
In whose sight they were committed, being now ashamed of them
himself, and ashamed that any should see them, and especially his
God; and being filthy and nauseous, he knew they must be
abominable to him, who is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity;
and being breaches of his law, must be offensive to him, and
provoke the eyes of his glory; and were such that he knew would
not bear the examination of justice; and that if God was strict
to mark them, he could not stand before him: moreover, in this
petition the psalmist deprecates a severe chastisement of them,
which is sometimes expressed by setting sins before him, (
Psalms 90:8 )
; and entreats the pardon of them, or oblivion and
non-remembrance of them, that they might be cast behind his back,
and into the depths of the sea;
and blot out all mine iniquities;
as in ( Psalms
51:1 ) ; here repeated, to show his deep sense of them, and
his great importunity for the forgiveness of them; and adds the
word all, including all his other sins, with those he had lately
committed; for he knew that, if anyone, was left unpardoned, he
could never answer for it.
