RR Psalm 51:3 Part 2

Shalom,

Psalm 51:3 Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your mercy. According to Your great compassion blot out my transgressions.

As verse 3 begins (the last part of verse 1 in most Christian Bibles), David is pleading with God for favor at three levels… for grace [Chen] (Be gracious to me, O God) … for mercy or lovingkindness [Chesed] (… according to Your undeserved mercy) … for compassion or tender mercies [Rachem] (… according to Your great compassion).  

David then ends verse 3 with a plea to God to “blot out my transgressions.”  First, David (and all of us s well) have many sins.  David committed adultery, but it led to other sins, even the murder of Uriah the Hittite.  When David says, “Blot out my transgressions,” the Hebrew word for “blot” is “M’cha” (Mem-Chet-Hey).  It comes from a word meaning to stroke or rub.  These “sins” are not easily removed with a little water.  These sins are stains on the fabric of our lives.  It is going to take the power of God to “scrub” them away.  

Isaiah 1:18 “Come now, let us reason together,” says Adonai. “Though your sins be like scarlet, they will be as white as snow. Though they be red like crimson, they will become like wool.” 

As Isaiah’s prophecy continues, he lays out a choice.  Isaiah 1:19a If you are willing and obey, (… good things will happen). 20a  But if you refuse and rebel, (bad things will happen).  This takes us back to the Passover Seder.  What will you have, the bitter herb (of slavery), or the sweetness of Charoset (freedom)?  

John 8:36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed!  

Lastly for today, we need a right understanding of what freedom in Yeshua means.  It means we are free to follow Him.  It does not mean we are free to live any way we want.  You can’t live like hell and expect to get to heaven.  1John 2:1a My children, I am writing these things to you so that you will not sin…. 6 whoever claims to abide in Him must walk just as He walked.  Is this optional, read it again.  Seems pretty clear.  

This is also consistent with Ephesians, where we read… Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not from yourselves—it is the gift of God. 9 It is not based on deeds, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are His workmanship—created in Messiah Yeshua for good deeds, which God prepared beforehand so we might walk in them.

Shalom shalom.

Day 10 of the Omer
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