Aug 30th, 2021: Psalm 51: verse 1
This psalm describes King David's spiritual brokenness and hope for restoration after he committed adultery with Bathsheba and premeditated murder of her husband, Uriah. Remember that he was a chosen King to lead Israel. Today we are going to look at the first verse:
Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
He was crying out for God's mercy because there was absolutely nothing he could do to restore Bathsheba's purity and to bring Uriah back to life. It is one of the most horrific realizations in life when we are convicted of our wrongdoings.
He was asking for God's compassion. He knew that God's heart was broken because of his action. Compassion in Hebrew is Rakham. It is the image of a mother's womb protecting her infant from all external harm. When we cry out for God's compassion, we believe that He wants to be with us in our misery and shield us from both self-destruction and external damnation.