Psalm 38:3-18
3 There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation; there is no health in my bones because of my sin. 4 For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me. 5 My wounds stink and fester because of my foolishness, 6 I am utterly bowed down and prostrate; all the day I go about mourning. 7 For my sides are filled with burning, and there is no soundness in my flesh. 8 I am feeble and crushed; I groan because of the tumult of my heart. 9 O Lord, all my longing is before you; my sighing is not hidden from you. 10 My heart throbs; my strength fails me, and the light of my eyes—it also has gone from me. 11 My friends and companions stand aloof from my plague, and my nearest kin stand far off. 12 Those who seek my life lay their snares; those who seek my hurt speak of ruin and meditate treachery all day long. 13 But I am like a deaf man; I do not hear, like a mute man who does not open his mouth. 14 I have become like a man who does not hear, and in whose mouth are no rebukes. 15 But for you, O Lord, do I wait; it is you, O Lord my God, who will answer. 16 For I said, "Only let them not rejoice over me, who boast against me when my foot slips!" 17 For I am ready to fall, and my pain is ever before me. 18 I confess my iniquity; I am sorry for my sin.
In this Psalm David is very much aware of his sin. He doesn't minimize his sin, instead he is acutely aware of how negatively it affects him. As he says in verse 3, "there is no health in my bones because of my sin". As our spirit becomes alive to God, it also becomes more aware of the ugly effects of our sin. Whereas before we may not have realized how badly it affected us, now we begin to see what it is truly doing to us. This is a healthy though painful thing, for it motivates us toward healing. Because the psalmist is so aware of his sin, which is "ever before me" (verse 17), he is anxious to confess and repent (verse 18). Are we truly sorry for our sin? Do we see how much it has hurt others and ourselves? Or are we just sorry when we get caught?
Lord, help me to see the ugliness of my sin.
3 There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation; there is no health in my bones because of my sin. 4 For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me. 5 My wounds stink and fester because of my foolishness, 6 I am utterly bowed down and prostrate; all the day I go about mourning. 7 For my sides are filled with burning, and there is no soundness in my flesh. 8 I am feeble and crushed; I groan because of the tumult of my heart. 9 O Lord, all my longing is before you; my sighing is not hidden from you. 10 My heart throbs; my strength fails me, and the light of my eyes—it also has gone from me. 11 My friends and companions stand aloof from my plague, and my nearest kin stand far off. 12 Those who seek my life lay their snares; those who seek my hurt speak of ruin and meditate treachery all day long. 13 But I am like a deaf man; I do not hear, like a mute man who does not open his mouth. 14 I have become like a man who does not hear, and in whose mouth are no rebukes. 15 But for you, O Lord, do I wait; it is you, O Lord my God, who will answer. 16 For I said, "Only let them not rejoice over me, who boast against me when my foot slips!" 17 For I am ready to fall, and my pain is ever before me. 18 I confess my iniquity; I am sorry for my sin.
In this Psalm David is very much aware of his sin. He doesn't minimize his sin, instead he is acutely aware of how negatively it affects him. As he says in verse 3, "there is no health in my bones because of my sin". As our spirit becomes alive to God, it also becomes more aware of the ugly effects of our sin. Whereas before we may not have realized how badly it affected us, now we begin to see what it is truly doing to us. This is a healthy though painful thing, for it motivates us toward healing. Because the psalmist is so aware of his sin, which is "ever before me" (verse 17), he is anxious to confess and repent (verse 18). Are we truly sorry for our sin? Do we see how much it has hurt others and ourselves? Or are we just sorry when we get caught?
Lord, help me to see the ugliness of my sin.