Psalm 51: A Spade

Psalm 51:2, 3 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity And cleanse me from my sin. 3 For I know my transgressions, And my sin is ever before me.

Last time (Psalm 51: The Beginning) we examined David's plea for forgiveness. We follow that with verses 2 and 3. A remarkable thing here, is that David did not excuse, minimize, or rationalize what he had done. He did not call it a goof, an indiscretion, minor or otherwise, a mistake in judgment, an error, an oopsy, or a slip up. (Can you think of any more?) He called it by its right name. A spade is a spade. He used "iniquity, sin, transgression." We will not define those in detail, but suffice it to say, they are admissions of guilt. (Iniquity relates to our inner nature. Sin is the outward manifestation of the nature. And transgression is identifying the offended party, God.)

He did not even rationalize it. "Why was she taking a bath on the roof of her house?" Didn't she know that the king's house was next door, and taller? And the king, excuse the candor, is somewhat of a womanizer. Surely she knew that. He had a bunch of wives already and probably had a reputation for a "roving eye."

Some commentators place the "bath" on the ground level discretely hidden from view by a fence or shrub. It would be easily visible from a taller building, however, like the palace. It might have been on a lower roof with the water set out earlier in the day to take advantage of "solar heating" before the bath. The reason is not critical. Whether Bathsheba intended to "seduce" the king or not is also not an issue. David hit it on the head. "...my iniquity...my sin...my transgression." It was me. There was no Flip Wilson to teach him, "The devil made me do it."

But let's look at what Paul Harvey used to call, "The rest of the story." What, or better, who is behind this whole episode? We do not have to look far in the Scripture to find the prime mover in most, if not all, of the adverse events recorded. It goes back to Genesis 3:15 when the Lord promised a Seed to crush Satan's head.

During the Viet Nam war we learned a new phrase: preemptive strike. That meant to take out the enemy before they could launch an attack on us or on our allied forces. Satan launched a preemptive strike immediately. First Cain killed Abel. That took out two candidates for the "seed" in one stroke. God countered with Seth.

And the battle has continued throughout the ages. Another notable chapter was when the entire earth had been so polluted with sin that Satan was certain that he had won. Either God would have to relent and compromise His holiness in order to avoid killing the entirety of mankind, or let Satan have a second chance.

Actually, he did not want a "second chance." His motivation was to actually claim the prize that he had originally sought, to be above God. His reasoning was flawed, which is why either option was a disaster for the creation. Satan, then Lucifer, sought worship. He inferred this same base motivation to God. He reasoned that if God did not get the worship He desired or needed from man, that the Lord would have to let Satan have his way. Or God would be forever denied the adoration of man.

He did not, nor can he understand the Divine Mind. God did not create man so that He, God, would receive worship. Man was created so that man could participate in the wonder of being able to worship and adore the Divine Majesty. We join with the Trinity in the fellowship of adoration. So the "loser," in Satan's plan, was man. Either we would worship Lucifer or nobody. Neither was or is a good choice.

God's intervention at the flood and later the tower of Babel (Genesis 11) was to preserve the legacy for man to worship Him. And when the world was completely wicked, "Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord." (Genesis 6 and following) Doesn't that give you goose bumps?

The attack on the godly line of the seed touched David. Satan had already "postponed" the Messiah for ten generations by Judah having fathered his offspring with his daughter-in-law. The law required a ten generation hiatus before an illegitimate child could enter the sanctuary. So any "seed" would be disqualified from participating in the corporate worship with the people.

David was, himself, the tenth generation, so God's plan was "back on track." By introducing another illegitimacy, Satan was attempting to further delay and thwart God's redemption of man. (Aside: David's older sons were pretty unsuited for the task. One, Amnon, raped his sister,  and in response his brother, Absalom, murdered him. (2 Samuel 13) Another "twofer.")

Again Satan had eliminated two candidates for the Seed. He was attempting to eliminate the third. God intervened and stopped David before any "more damage" could be done.

"Wash me...and cleanse me." David's plea was uncluttered by excuses or explanations. He was truly repentant. And God responds. I have to jump head a little here. "A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise." (Verse 17) And He didn't.

We can learn a lot from David. "Wash and cleanse me."