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John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Psalms 51:9

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... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 51:1

Have mercy upon me, O God - Without mercy I am totally, finally ruined and undone. According to thy loving-kindness - Mark the gradation in the sense of these three words, Have Mercy on me, חנני chonneni ; thy Loving-Kindness, חסדך chasdecha ; - thy Tender Mercies, רחמיך rachameycha , here used to express the Divine compassion. The propriety of the order in which they are placed deserves particular observation. The first, rendered have mercy or pity, denotes that kind of... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 51:2

Wash me throughly - כבסני הרבה harbeh cabbeseni , "Wash me again and again, - cause my washings to be multiplied." My stain is deep; ordinary purgation will not be sufficient. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 51:3

For I acknowledge my transgressions - I know, I feel, I confess that I have sinned. My sin is ever before me - A true, deep, and unsophisticated mark of a genuine penitent. Wherever he turns his face, he sees his sin, and through it the eye of an angry God. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 51:4

Against thee, thee only, have I sinned - This verse is supposed to show the impropriety of affixing the above title to this Psalm. It could not have been composed on account of the matter with Bath-sheba and the murder of Uriah; for, surely, these sins could not be said to have been committed against God Only, if we take the words of this verse in their common acceptation. That was a public sin, grievous, and against society at large, as well as against the peace, honor, comfort, and life of... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 51:5

Behold, I was shapen in iniquity - A genuine penitent will hide nothing of his state; he sees and bewails, not only the acts of sin which he has committed, but the disposition that led to those acts. He deplores, not only the transgression, but the carnal mind which is enmity against God. The light that shines into his soul shows him the very source whence transgression proceeds; he sees his fallen nature, as well as his sinful life; he asks pardon for his transgressions, and he asks washing... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 51:6

Behold, thou desirest truth - I am the very reverse of what I should be. Those desirest truth in the heart, but in me there is nothing but sin and falsity. Thou shalt make one to know wisdom - Thou wilt teach me to restrain every inordinate propensity, and to act according to the dictates of sound wisdom, the rest of my life. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 51:7

Purge me with hyssop - תחטאני techatteeni , "thou shalt make a sin-offering for me;" probably alluding to the cleansing of the leper: Leviticus 14:1 , etc. The priest took two clean birds, cedar-wood, scarlet, and hyssop; one of the birds was killed; and the living bird, with the scarlet, cedar, and hyssop, dipped in the blood of the bird that had been killed, and then sprinkled over the person who had been infected. But it is worthy of remark that this ceremony was not performed till... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 51:8

Make me to hear joy - Let me have a full testimony of my reconciliation to thee; that the soul, which is so deeply distressed by a sense of thy displeasure, may be healed by a sense of thy pardoning mercy. read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Psalms 51:9

Hide thy face from my sins - The sentiment here is nearly the same as that in Psalm 51:3 ; : His sin was ever before his own face; and he knew that the eye of God was constantly upon him, and that his purity and justice must be highly incensed on the account. He therefore, with a just horror of his transgressions, begs God to turn away his face from them, and to blot them out, so that they may never more be seen. See the note on Psalm 51:1 ; (note). read more

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