Psalm 51:1-19
To the director. A melody of David. When Nathan the prophet came in to him after he had had relations with Bath-sheʹba.+
51 Show me favor, O God,* according to your loving-kindness.*+According to the abundance of your mercies wipe out my transgressions.+
2 Thoroughly wash me from my error,+And cleanse me even from my sin.+
3 For my transgressions I myself know,+And my sin is in front of me constantly.+
4 Against you, you alone, I have sinned,+And what is bad in your eyes I have done,+In order that you may prove to be righteous when you speak,+That you may be in the clear when you judge.+
5 Look! With error I was brought forth with birth pains,+And in sin my mother conceived me.+
6 Look! You have taken delight in truthfulness itself in the inward parts;+And in the secret self may you cause me to know sheer wisdom.+
7 May you purify me from sin with hyssop, that I may be clean;+May you wash me, that I may become whiter even than snow.+
8 May you cause me to hear exultation and rejoicing,+That the bones that you have crushed may be joyful.+
9 Conceal your face from my sins,+And wipe out even all my errors.+
10 Create in me even a pure heart, O God,+And put within me a new spirit, a steadfast one.+
11 Do not throw me away from before your face;+And your holy spirit O do not take away from me.+
12 Do restore to me the exultation of salvation by you,+And may you support me even with a willing spirit.+
13 I will teach transgressors your ways,+That sinners themselves may turn right back to you.+
14 Deliver me from bloodguiltiness,*+ O God the God of my salvation,+That my tongue may joyfully tell about your righteousness.+
15 O Jehovah,* may you open these lips of mine,+That my own mouth may tell forth your praise.+
16 For you do not take delight in sacrifice—otherwise I would give [it];+In whole burnt offering you do not find pleasure.+
17 The sacrifices to God are a broken spirit;+A heart broken and crushed, O God, you will not despise.+
18 In your goodwill do deal well with Zion;+May you build the walls of Jerusalem.+
19 In that case you will be delighted with sacrifices of righteousness,+With burnt sacrifice and whole offering;+In that case bulls will be offered up on your very own altar.+
Footnotes
^ “God.” Heb., ʼElo·himʹ.
^ Or, “loyal love.”
^ Lit., “bloods.”
^ One of 134 scribal changes from YHWH to ʼAdho·naiʹ. See App 1B.
