Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
so that sinners will turn back to you.
Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God,
you who are God my Savior,
and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.
Open my lips, LORD,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.
My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart
you, God, will not despise. (Psalm 51:10–17 NIV)
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me (51:10).
David’s grief is palpable as he agonizes over this psalm; it’s the wrenching cry of an anguished heart from beginning to end. God’s prophet Nathan has confronted the king’s unconscionable actions with Bathsheba and her husband. David may have experienced twinges of guilt during these episodes, but Nathan’s rebuke draws a stark picture of the ungodliness of the debauchery. The king’s actions became darker still as the “man after God’s own heart” made them. He’s stung by the reproval, as Nathan rehearsed the litany of covenant-breaking sin of which he was guilty. David’s admission is simple: “I have sinned against the LORD.” To this, Nathan responds with the penalty that cut right to the heart of his kingdom – the Lord forgives you, but the penalty will be borne by your child.
The darkness that obscured his once-tight union with God multiplied the pain of this curse. If it had not occurred to him before, David must have realized that grace and mercy were the only things that enabled a descendant of Adam to be in the presence of the Almighty, or even more, to be the king stewarding God’s people. He had damaged that; he had corrupted the relationship. What could repair this breach? Only a purity of heart, a singular devotion to holiness, would permit him to pursue the restoration of the relationship David longed for.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me (51:12).
As we pause in this season of reflection and look toward the cross, the unease we feel in the narrative of David’s failure is softened by the great answer to his prayer – God’s incredible grace. We may feel similar guilt to a greater or lesser degree, but we, too, know the grace of God magnified by Jesus. As we are united with him in faith, the great promise of the new covenant becomes our hope. We are born again with a new heart, a heart made righteous by the atonement of the cross, a heart in which the Holy Spirit of Christ can dwell.
My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise (51:17).
Treasure the Spirit-filled heart at the center of your life. Devote yourself to a deepening sensitivity to the signals and the Nathan-like voice of the Holy Spirit who warns when we veer too close to the guardrails, who pushes us when our steps are edging to the side of the path. He corrects us, he moves us to repentance, and he reminds us of the peace and joy that is ours when holiness marks our lives. Cry out daily the words of the one who found favor with God – “Create in me a pure heart” – and find joy in submitting to the Spirit of Christ as he works his transformation.
Warren Rachele is the pastor of Hope Community Church in Paul, Idaho.