For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is always before me.
Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
and justified when you judge.-Psalm 51:3-4, NIV
King David allegedly penned this Psalm after being confronted by the Prophet Nathan over his sexual assault of Bathsheba and murder of her husband Uriah (see 2 Samuel 11-12).
Some will call his relationship with Bathsheba an “affair,” but it is not. “Affair” implies mutual consent. Bathsheba had no power to refuse King David’s requests. So, she had no consent in this matter. Scripture does not condemn her, but rather King David.
Back to this psalm, I am struck by how public it is.
King David stops hiding his sins. He exposes it for all eternity in the Bible.
When seeking God’s forgiveness and mercy, King David does not shift blame but rather acknowledges he is fully to blame for such sins. He accepts that the just thing is full punishment.
The psalm is an appeal to God for mercy.
Yet the doorway to forgiveness and mercy is only open when someone acknowledges their need for forgiveness and mercy. This step is often missed in Christian circles.
People are often too quick to “restore” without a public exposure of the sins and acknowledgement of them. That goes against this model here.
Ironically, some will invoke King David’s failures and restoration as an argument to restore a leader without actually taking this important steps. They also ignore the dear price King David still paid for his sins, which included losing a son and later humiliation by another son. Sin still came with consequences even after King David was forgiven.
Most of us will never experience seeing our Cheater publicly repent. Some will go to their graves blaming us for their infidelity and discard of us. Such behavior is the opposite of repentance.
However, how healing would it be if our Cheater actually publicly came out about their sin and sought forgiveness like King David?!
I believe many of us would appreciate such efforts. I would. But I do not expect it will ever happen regarding my Cheater.
