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
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