Psalm 32 - Theology You Can Feel In Your Bones
- Chad Werkhoven
- 4 days ago
- 4 min read
Sin is an ongoing struggle, but you can be free from its bone crushing guilt.
Psalm 32
Of David. A maskil.
1 Blessed is the one
whose transgressions are forgiven,
whose sins are covered.
2 Blessed is the one
whose sin the LORD does not count against them
and in whose spirit is no deceit.
3 When I kept silent,
my bones wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
4 For day and night
your hand was heavy on me;
my strength was sapped
as in the heat of summer.
5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you
and did not cover up my iniquity.
I said, “I will confess
my transgressions to the LORD.”
And you forgave
the guilt of my sin.
6 Therefore let all the faithful pray to you
while you may be found;
surely the rising of the mighty waters
will not reach them.
7 You are my hiding place;
you will protect me from trouble
8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go;
9 Do not be like the horse or the mule,
which have no understanding
but must be controlled by bit and bridle
or they will not come to you.
10 Many are the woes of the wicked,
but the Lord’s unfailing love (ḥěʹ·sěḏ)
surrounds the one who trusts in him.
11 Rejoice in the LORD and be glad, you righteous;
sing, all you who are upright in heart!
Canons of Dordt
Point 5 - Perseverance of the Saints
Article 1: The Regenerate Not Entirely Free from Sin
Those people whom God according to his purpose
calls into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord
and regenerates by the Holy Spirit,
God also sets free from
the dominion and slavery of sin,
though not entirely from the flesh and from the body of sin as long as they are in this life.
Summary
Today's Summary section is reposted from November 2, 2023
"The Bible just isn't very relevant in this day and age..." What a lousy excuse so many people give for not digging into God's Word! As if the Bible is nothing more than page after page of ancient history, obscure laws, and meaningless religious rituals!
Quite the opposite is true! So many passages - especially psalms - give us pointed, specific and actionable instruction as to how you can live a blessed life; that is, a life filled with happiness, joy and shalom. What could possibly be more practical and relevant?
Like the other Psalms we've looked at this year, Psalm 32 is divided up into strophes (stanzas / verses). Notice how these strophes progress:
STROPHE | THEME |
1 (v1-2) | The key to happiness is having sins forgiven. |
2 (v3-4) | Not confessing sin crushes people (bones waste away under God's heavy hand, strength sapped) |
3 (v5) | Acknowledging / confessing sin leads to immediate forgiveness of sin & guilt |
4 (v6-7) | God's heavy hand is transformed into a hand of protection and songs of deliverance |
5 (v8-10) | God instructs the repentant in the way they should go. The Lord's ḥěʹ·sěḏ (unfailing) love surrounds the one who trusts in Him |
6 (v11) | People who repent of their sin and follow God's commands rejoice and are glad in life! |
Dig Deeper
Whether or not you consider yourself a theologian, you likely know well the theological tension that the Bible describes your relationship to sin with. On the one hand, as a Christian you've been set free from it (Romans 6:22), but on the other, as the Canons have reminded us all week, at this point you've only been freed from sin's dominion and slavery; you're not yet entirely freed in the flesh and from the body of sin as long as you are in this life.
You know this well because at points in your life - maybe even now - you've felt your bones wasting away, crushed by guilt and regret stemming from sins you've committed. Theology isn't just far out theoretical musings - it has real life physiological effects! David here describes this crushing as the LORD's heavy, strength sapping hand bearing down on those who keep silent about their sin.
But you can find relief from this guilt, even here and now on this side of eternity! You can do this by acknowledging your sin to the LORD and no longer covering up your iniquity. David finishes this poetic thought with a beautiful parallelism:
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD.”
And you forgave the guilt of my sin.
David describes well what we will be unpacking as we study this final, and most comforting doctrine in the Canons of Dordt - that you will always persevere in God's strong grace:
The LORD's unfailing love (ḥěʹ·sěḏ) surrounds the one who trusts in Him.
ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who invites all of the faithful to pray to Him;
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Confess your transgressions to the LORD and He will forgive the guilt of your sin;
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:
Read the New Testament in a year! Today: 1 John 5
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