Psalms 51:1

For the director of music. A psalm of David. When the prophet Nathan came to him after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba.

1 [a]Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.

Psalms 51:1 in Other Translations

King James Version (KJV)
1 Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.
English Standard Version (ESV)
1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.
New Living Translation (NLT)
1 Have mercy on me, O God, because of your unfailing love. Because of your great compassion, blot out the stain of my sins.
The Message Bible (MSG)
1 Generous in love - God, give grace! Huge in mercy - wipe out my bad record.
American Standard Version (ASV)
1 Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: According to the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions.
GOD'S WORD Translation (GW)
1 Have pity on me, O God, in keeping with your mercy. In keeping with your unlimited compassion, wipe out my rebellious acts.
Holman Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
1 Be gracious to me, God, according to Your faithful love; according to Your abundant compassion, blot out my rebellion.
New International Reader's Version (NIRV)
1 God, show me your favor in keeping with your faithful love. Because your love is so tender and kind, wipe out my lawless acts.

Psalms 51:1 Meaning and Commentary

Psalms 51:1

Have mercy upon me, O God
David, under a sense of sin, does not run away from God, but applies unto him, and casts himself at his feet, and upon his mercy; which shows the view he had of his miserable condition, and that he saw there was mercy in God, which gave him hope; and upon his bended knees, and in the exercise of faith, he asks for it;

according to thy lovingkindness;
not according to his merits, nor according to the general mercy of God, which carnal men rely upon; but according to his everlasting and unchangeable love in Christ; from which as the source, and through whom as the medium, special mercy comes to the children of men. The acts of special mercy are according to the sovereign will of God: he is not moved to mercy neither by the merits nor misery of men, but by his free grace and favour; it is love that sets mercy to work: this is a most glaring gleam of Gospel light, which none of the inspired writers besides, except the Apostle Paul, saw, ( Ephesians 2:4 ) ( Titus 3:4 Titus 3:5 ) ;

according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my
transgressions;
for his sin was complicated, attended with many others; and, besides, upon a view of this, he was led to observe all his other sins; and particularly the corruption of his nature, his original sin, which he mentions, ( Psalms 51:5 ) . These he desires might be "blotted out"; out of the book of account, out of God's debt book; that they might not stand against him, being debts he was not able to pay or make satisfaction for; and out of the table of his own heart and conscience, where they were ever before him, and seemed to be engraven; that they might be caused to pass from him, and he might have no more conscience of them; or that they might be blotted out, as a cloud by the clear shining of the sun of righteousness, with the healing of pardoning grace in his wings; or that they might be wiped away, as any faith is wiped from any person or thing: and all this "according to the multitude of [his] tender mercies". The mercy of God is plenteous and abundant; he is rich in it, and various are the instances of it; and it is exceeding tender, like that of a father to his children, or like that of a mother to the son of her womb; and from this abundant and tender mercy springs the forgiveness of sin, ( Luke 1:77 Luke 1:78 ) . The psalmist makes mention of the multitude of the mercies of God, because of the multitude of his sins, which required a multitude of mercy to forgive, and to encourage his hope of it.

Psalms 51:1 In-Context

1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.
2 Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.
3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.
4 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.
5 Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.

Cross References 5

  • 1. S 2 Samuel 24:14; S Psalms 9:13
  • 2. S Psalms 25:7; S Psalms 119:88
  • 3. S Nehemiah 9:27; Psalms 86:15; Isaiah 63:7
  • 4. S 2 Samuel 12:13; S 2 Chronicles 6:21; S Nehemiah 4:5; Acts 3:19
  • 5. S Psalms 39:8; Isaiah 43:25; Colossians 2:14

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. In Hebrew texts 51:1-19 is numbered 51:3-21.
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