“Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity, And in whose spirit there is no deceit” (Psalm 32:1-2). Freedom is such a beautiful word. The appeal of the Word lies in the fact that we aren’t restrained by anything. In this psalm David explores the blessings of freedom from sin.
He finished the thought in the psalm by writing, “When I kept silent, my bones grew old Through my groaning all the day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was turned into the drought of summer. Selah I acknowledged my sin to You, And my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,’ And You forgave the iniquity of my sin” (Psalm 32:3-5). No one can be free when they have unconfessed sins. To the stricken conscience, unresolved iniquities eat away at the mind. For someone to find relief, they have to appease the conscience and appease the one offended.
Paul quoted the first two verses of the psalm in Romans 4:7-8. Abraham needed the forgiveness of his sins, yet that wouldn’t come by perfect law-keeping. He needed mercy, and he found it when he believed God’s promises (Genesis 15:1-6). When we have faith in Jesus, our sins can be “blotted out” (John 1:12; Acts 3:19). True, strong faith will lead someone to repent (Luke 13:3, 5), confess (Romans 10:10), and be baptized (1 Peter 3:21).
Kyle Campbell