Chapter 50

Ps.50:1. In the end, a psalm of song to David, always bring to him Nathan the prophet, Ps.50:2. always go to Bathsheba. David sings this psalm, which contains a confession of two crimes: the murder of Uriah and adultery with Bathsheba. He shows all people the saving path of repentance, as a kind of art of constantly winning victory over the enemy. For the one who always cares about repentance and commits it turns out to be the winner of the incessantly attacking (enemy). He introduces into the psalm a prophecy about the future general deliverance from sins in holy baptism, saying: “sprinkle me,” and the teaching about serving in the spirit. Finally, he shows that he has retained the gift of prophecy, because he does not ask to give it to him, as he has already been deprived of the gift, but begs only not to take the gift away, saying: “don’t take it away from Me” *****. Ps.50:3. Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your great mercy. Since the sin is great, he asks God for great mercy. And according to the multitude of Your mercies, cleanse my iniquity. Only God's bounty can wash hands defiled by murder. But to further clarify what has been said, he says: Ps.50:4. especially washed me. And here he asks for complete purification, so that the importance of the sin can be seen from everything. Or: since Nathan had already told him about the forgiveness of sin, and various disasters had greatly reduced it, he now says: I need cleansing and washing, so that the deeply rooted filth may be completely destroyed. “Wash me above all from my iniquity,” that is, from the lawlessness of murder, “and cleanse me from my sin,” that is, from the sin of adultery. One must know that sin is a falling away from goodness, and lawlessness is a sin against the Divine law. This is the beginning of both sin and lawlessness. This is where they are similar to each other. For the one who sins deviates from the goal, which is in his nature and in accordance with it, and the goal of human nature is to live according to reason, avoiding foolishness. But the lawless person also, by living incontinently, sins against the law that was given to him in nature. And therefore, Christ’s disciple, the Apostle John, rightly brings sin and lawlessness into one, saying: “Everyone who commits sin also commits lawlessness” (1 John 3:4). In other words: sin is similar to lawlessness, because everyone who acts lawlessly sins. Ps.50:5. For I know my iniquity. And he said this about murder. “And I will take away my sin before me.” Everywhere he carries with him the remembrance of the sin of adultery, because this sin does not leave him and does not depart from him, but always remains with him and torments him. Ps.50:6. I have sinned against You alone, and I have done evil before You. That is, having hidden himself from the eyes of every man in iniquity, he was not hidden from Your eyes only. That is why he says: “I have created evil in Your sight.” Having taken advantage of many things from You, I rewarded them with the opposite. However, he does not mean that he did not do injustice to Uriah: for was it possible to say this? But he says that he dared to commit the greatest iniquity before God, Who chose him and made him a King from a shepherd, or, because, having hidden himself from the eyes of everyone, he did not hide from the eyes of God, but, on the contrary, was convicted by a prophet, or, because, as a King, he was not subject to human law, but, as a godly one, was guilty of the one God, or, since none of the people convicted him, but the only God has enlightened him, then he says: “To you alone have we sinned.” for you may be justified in all Your words. You, who transgressed the law, convicted me through the prophet. You are righteous, You have always delivered me from enemies, You have honored me with the kingship and the gift of prophecy, but I am vile and a murderer. And win and never judge Ti. This is a confession or confession of sins. Ps.50:7. Behold, I was conceived in iniquity, and my mother gave birth to me in sins. God’s original intention was that we should not be born through marriage and corruption, but the transgression of the commandment introduced marriage as a result of Adam’s iniquity, that is, as a result of deviating from the law given to him by God. So, everyone born from Adam is conceived in sins, subject to the condemnation of the progenitor. And what was said: and in sins gave birth to me, my mother means that the mother common to all of us - Eve - was the first to give birth to sin, as she desired pleasure. That is why it is said about us, who fell under our mother’s condemnation, that we too are born in sins. David shows how human nature initially fell under sin in the crime of Eve, and how birth became subject to a curse. The word dates back to primitive times, wanting to show the greatness of God's gift. Ps.50:8. For you have loved the truth, you have revealed to me the unknown and secret wisdom of Yours. The meaning of the speech is this: You, Lord, You who are the truth, love the truth, and want us to remain in the truth, cleanse us from ancient sin, and cleanse us with hyssop, so that we will be whiter than snow. He likens hyssop to the effectiveness of the Holy Spirit, as warming us and cleansing all filth in us. And the cleansing will be accomplished by hyssop, that is, by the Holy Spirit; because hyssop is a cleansing plant. Finally, with the words: “You have revealed Your unknown and secret wisdom to me,” he makes it clear that God revealed to him through the Holy Spirit everything that would happen, and that He laid down in His wisdom. Ps.50:9. Sprinkle me with hyssop and I will be cleansed. Having said: You gave divine laws and statutes, he adds even more: You bestowed certain purifications in the laws and through the sprinkling of hyssop. For the same purpose, now grant us something similar, since You are the same God. Or, perhaps, he secretly talks about some kind of sacrament. Moses in Egypt was commanded to sprinkle the blood of a sheep with hyssop on the pragues (Ex. 12:22), and we were redeemed with the most “honest blood” (1 Pet. 1:19). So, since the sprinkling of blood served as a protection so that those living in the house would not suffer anything from the destroyer, then David rightly, making a mysterious reminder of that blood, says: “Sprinkle me with hyssop,” covertly meaning the future cleansing of all by the blood of the true lamb of Christ, desiring to be worthy of this cleansing, which alone can cleanse completely and make it whiter than snow. Ps.50:10. My ears hear joy and joy. By the Spirit you will prepare me again so that I can hear the joy and joy that will be in the last times. What is this if not the knowledge of the future resurrection, about which he taught, saying: Will the humble bones rejoice? When will our rotten bones rejoice? Is it not after the resurrection, when, as another prophet says, “our bones will languish like grass” (Is. 66:14)? Humble bones will rejoice. The strength of my soul will rejoice, because before it was weak under sins. Ps.50:11. Turn Your face away from my sins. Again he turns to confession. Ps.50:12. Create a pure heart in me, O God. Renew, he says, my worn-out soul, upset by sin. And renew the right spirit, that is, confirm it in my womb. This means the same as if to say: bring my mind into safety, so that it will no longer be easy for it to fall into sin. Ps.50:13. Do not cast me away from your presence and do not take your Holy Spirit from me. Again he prays for the Prophetic Spirit to come upon him. For He left him because of sin. Ps.50:14. Give me the joy of Your salvation. This applies to the entire human race. He calls the coming of the Lord the joy of salvation, according to what Simeon said: “as my eyes have seen Your salvation” (Luke 2:30). He prays that he too may be a partaker of it. And strengthen me with the Lord's Spirit. The Spirit, Whom he previously called “right,” is here called “sovereign.” Ps.50:15. I will teach the wicked your way. As soon as You deliver me from sin, and then give me Your Holy Spirit, I will again teach those who break the law to walk in Your ways. Ps.50:16. Deliver me from bloodshed, O God, God of my salvation. Again he offers a prayer to get rid of the defilement into which he fell by the murder of Uriah, or better to say, to get rid of “bloods,” that is, from bloody sacrifices, as shown by the subsequent words of the psalm, which say: Ps.50:18. As if you had wanted sacrifices, you would have given them, and so on. Ps.50:16. My tongue will rejoice in Your righteousness. Symmachus translated it this way: “my tongue shall speak of Thy alms.” Having received remission of sins, I will not remain silent, but I will not stop praising You and will tell Your mercies. since You have abolished the sacrifices under the law, which cannot grant remission of sins, then for this very reason I offered You the sacrifice that You loved; and this is a sacrifice made by repentance and a contrite heart. Ps.50:20. Bless Zion, O Lord, with Your favor. The Church here calls “Zion”. For when God the Father deigned to “rule over all things” concerning His Son (Eph. 1:10); then He gave His good promises to His Church. And may the walls of Jerusalem be built. He calls the holy clergy who protect His Church the Walls of Jerusalem. Ps.50:21. Then favor the sacrifice of truth. When, he says, you please Zion and the walls of Jerusalem are built, then sacrifices will be made, not bloody sacrifices, but sacrifices of righteousness, that is, praise. Offering and burnt offering, and by burnt offerings he means the offering of righteousness and bloodless sacrifice. Then they will place the bullocks on Your altar, that is, calves of righteousness, so that everything was from righteousness, there were sacrifices of righteousness, and offerings of righteousness, and burnt offerings of righteousness, and calves of righteousness. The last sentence of the interpretation of verses 1-2 is taken from Montfaucon's addition and turns out to be in some contradiction with the further interpretation of verse 13 that the interpretation of verse 13 does not belong to St. Afanasy. You might be interested in: