Psalm 130:3














In pleading for her father's life before the first Napoleon, a poor girl said, "Sire, I do not ask for justice; I implore pardon." The inward sense of our sin will never permit us to make a claim for anything before God. His love of forgiving, and triumph over all hindrances in the way of forgiving, are our only pleas, and our only grounds of hope. The searching character of the Divine inspection is indicated in Psalm 139, and in Hebrews 4:12, 13. Conscience freely admits that the Divine examination of the life cannot be endured. "If thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?" There need be no difficulty in understanding what conscience is. Some, indeed, regard it as a separate and independent power, which acts in a man as a sort of sentinel, giving notice of the approach or presence of evil. But it is altogether simpler to regard it as the ordinary faculty of judgment exercised by a man concerning the quality of his own actions. That self-judgment inevitably brings a man into fears.

I. CONSCIENCE TESTIFIES BOTH THE GOOD AND THE BAD. This is often missed from view. Usually conscience is thought of as concerned only with the evil; and so its power and witness are only dreaded. Conscience ought to be the cheer of life. A man knows when he has done right. Appraising his life, he can sometimes approve. "Conscience makes cowards of us all;" but it is equally true that "Conscience can make brave men of us all."

II. CONSCIENCE TESTIFIES TO THE BAD IN THE GOOD. And that is the real ground of our fear. Self-esteem may see only good; conscience never does. It finds the sinister mark everywhere, and always has to qualify its approval and praise. "Nevertheless, I have somewhat against thee." A "bar sinister" on every escutcheon.

III. CONSCIENCE TESTIFIES TO THE GOOD IN THE BAD. And this keeps fear from becoming hopeless and despairing. The irretrievably bad is a conception that can only be associated with devils, not with man. And it is not a genuine conscience that judges in a blind, sectarian way, and makes a man accuse himself as hopelessly bad.

IV. CONSCIENCE PUTS BOTH BAD AND GOOD OUT OF THE SELF-LIGHT INTO THE DIVINE LIGHT. According to the sense a man has of God will be his conscience-judgment of his own conduct. Right sense of God will make conscience-estimates induce fear. The conscience of good will bring a reverent and humble fear; the conscience of evil will bring an humiliating and anxious fear. The self-estimate of iniquities is painful enough, but what shall we say of the Divine estimate of those same iniquities? - R.T.

If Thou, Lord, shouldst mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?
I want to cheer some of you who at present hardly dare to pray. Yet you are the very people who may pray; you who think that the Lord will never hear you are the people whom lie is certain to hear and answer. When you are cleaned right out, when even the last rusty counterfeit farthing has been emptied out of your pocket, and you stand before your God as a wretched, starving, and bankrupt beggar, your abject poverty and dire need will commend you to His mercy and love.

I. First, we have A CONFESSION, — a confession which it will be well for every one of us to make (ver. 3).

1. The psalmist may have felt that, if a human witness had been appointed to mark his sin, he might have been able to stand; but he says, "If Thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, who shall stand?" You have sometimes had a white pocket handkerchief, and you have admired its whiteness; but when the snow has fallen, and you have laid your handkerchief upon the newly-fallen snow, it has looked quite yellow instead of white; and so is it with the holiest life when it is placed by the side of the life of Christ, or looked at in the light of the perfect law of God; then we see how stained and defiled it really is. So, Lord, we might stand up before our fellow-men, and plead "Not guilty," when they belie and slander us, as they do; but, before Thy holy presence, "if Thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?"

2. The psalmist also speaks of a special form of guilt. He does not say, "If Thou shouldest mark open and overt transgression, — the breaking out of bounds, and going astray in the paths of evil"; but he says, "If Thou shouldest mark iniquities." Pull that word to pieces, and it becomes in-equities" — whatever is not right in the sight of God. If He were to mark those in-equities, who could stand before Him? Not one of us could do so.

3. Notice, next, how the psalmist inquires, "Who shall stand?" If there were any way of getting into heaven by a back door, or of hiding our sins from God's eye, we might have some ground of hope; but there will come a day when we shall stand before God like prisoners at the bar. David, who probably wrote this psalm, had known many good men in his time, and he was accustomed to associate with the excellent of the earth; yet he says, "O Lord, who shall stand?" And I may repeat his question now, since God has marked our iniquities, "Who among us can stand in His sight upon the footing of our own good works?" Echo answers, "Who?"

II. THE PSALMIST'S CONFIDENCE (ver. 4).

1. We know that there is forgiveness with God, because we have been informed by revelation concerning the character of God; and we find one prominent feature in the character of God is that "lie delighteth in mercy."

2. Moreover, this impression, conveyed to us by the general tenor of the Scriptures, is deepened by the direct teaching of the Gospel. Why did Jesus come into the world to be a Saviour if God does not delight to save the lost? Why did He offer an atonement if it were not that sin might be put away by that atonement?

3. Further, we are assured that God will forgive sin because we have so many definite promises to that effect. This blessed Book is as full of promises and proclamations of mercy as an egg is full of meat. It abounds in messages of love and grace; it tells us that God willeth not the death of the sinner, that He delighteth not in judgment, for that is His left-handed work, but that His compassion freely moves towards the blackest and vilest of sinners when they repent, and return unto Him.

III. THE CONSEQUENCE OF FORGIVENESS. "There is forgiveness with Thee, that Thou mayest be feared." Thus, you see, the doctrine of free forgiveness actually produces in man's mind a fear of God. You might have thought the psalmist would have said, "There is no forgiveness with Thee, that Thou mayest be feared"; but it is not so.

1. The opposite of our text is very manifest. When there is no forgiveness, or when a man thinks there is none, what is the consequence? He is driven to despair, and despair often leads to desperate living. If there is no hope of forgiveness, then there is no proper fear of God.

2. Many are abiding in a state of carelessness, because they really do not know whether there is any pardon to be had. When a man is in doubt as to whether he can be forgiven, he says, "I am afraid it would be a very long process, and I do not know whether I should get it even then. Perhaps, however, there is no pardon to be had, so I might become a religious man, and yet miss the forgiveness of sins." That is the thought of many, and therefore they become torpid and lethargic, careless and indifferent; but when the Holy Spirit teaches a man that there is forgiveness to be had, he would leap out of his very body rather than miss it.

3. How encouraging, too, is the belief that there is pardon to be had! But, more, how sanctifying is the actual reception of it! Walk carefully, prayerfully, humbly before God and men, putting your trust, not in yourselves, but in Christ alone, and you shall then find, in your experience, the best exposition of the text, "There is forgiveness with Thee, that Thou mayest be feared"; for you will prove, by your own fear of God, which is continually before your own eyes, that His free, rich, sovereign grace, manifested in your pardon, did not produce in you indulgence in sin, but gave you the sweet liberty of walking in holiness, and in the fear of the Lord.

( C. H. Spurgeon.)

I. EXPLAIN THE MEANING OF THE ASSERTION. If Thou, Lord, shouldst execute the decrees of justice, and punish everything that is done amiss, the holiest man on earth would not be able to abide the trial; how much less would such a sinner as I be able to stand?

II. CONFIRM THIS TRUTH FROM SCRIPTURE AND EXPERIENCE.

1. It is the constant doctrine of the Holy Scriptures; it is the uniform language of humility and penitence there (Psalm 143:2; Job 9:2-4; Job 40:4, 5; Job 42:5, 6; Psalm 19:12; Lamentations 3:22, 23).

2. I shall propose three general subjects of examination.(1) Hew many duties have you omitted which you must be sensible you ought to have performed?(2) How often have you been guilty of express transgressions of the law of God?(3) How many blemishes and imperfections cleave to those very duties which you endeavour to perform in obedience to his will?

III. PRACTICAL APPLICATION.

1. How great is the deceitfulness of sin! How astonishing the blindness of sinners!

2. If the holiest cannot stand before God, if no flesh living can be justified in His sight, how fearful must be the state of those who are lying under the guilt of atrocious, aggravated, and repeated crimes!

3. If any Christian desires to keep his ten-science tender and faithful, to have a deep, growing and humbling sense of his own sinfulness; if he would bar the gate against the entrance of pride, or banish it after it has obtained admission; if he desires to walk humbly and watchfully, let him live as in the presence of God, let him often sift himself at His awful tribunal.

(J. Witherspoon, D. D.)

People
David, Psalmist
Places
Jerusalem
Topics
Free, Iniquities, Jah, Kept, Mark, Note, O, Observe, Record, Shouldest, Shouldst, Sin, Sins, Stand, Yah
Outline
1. The psalmist professes his hope in prayer
5. And his patience in hope
7. He exhorts Israel to trust in God

Dictionary of Bible Themes
Psalm 130:3

     6023   sin, universality
     6200   imperfection, influence
     8774   legalism
     8825   self-righteousness, and gospel

Psalm 130:1-4

     6688   mercy, demonstration of God's

Psalm 130:1-6

     8613   prayer, persistence

Psalm 130:2-4

     1230   God, the Lord

Psalm 130:3-4

     5816   consciousness
     6653   forgiveness, divine
     8822   self-justification
     8844   unforgiveness

Library
November the Thirtieth the Spring and the River
"With the Lord there is mercy." --PSALM cxxx. That is the ultimate spring. All the pilgrims of the night may meet at that fountain. We have no other common meeting-place. If we make any other appointment we shall lose one another on the way. But we can meet one another at the fountain, men of all colours, and of all denominations, and of all creeds. "By Thy mercy, O deliver us, good Lord!" "There is forgiveness with Thee." That is the quickening river. Sin and guilt scorch the fair garden of
John Henry Jowett—My Daily Meditation for the Circling Year

Israel's Hope; Or, the Centre of the Target
WHEN HE PENNED this psalm, the writer, David, was in deep distress, if not of circumstances, yet of conscience. He constantly mentions iniquities, and begs forgiveness. He felt like a shipwrecked mariner, carried overboard into the raging sea. Thus he reviews the situation--"Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O Lord." Yet he lived to tell the tale of deliverance. His prayer from among the waves was a memory worth preserving, and he does preserve it. The mercy of God to him he weaves into a
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 37: 1891

'de Profundis'
PSALM cxxx. 1. Out of the deep have I cried unto thee, O Lord. Lord, hear my voice. What is this deep of which David speaks so often? He knew it well, for he had been in it often and long. He was just the sort of man to be in it often. A man with great good in him, and great evil; with very strong passions and feelings, dragging him down into the deep, and great light and understanding to show him the dark secrets of that horrible pit when he was in it; and with great love of God too, and of
Charles Kingsley—The Good News of God

My Savior, on the Word of Truth
"I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and in His word do I hope." -- Psalm 130:5. My Savior, on the word of truth In earnest hope I live; I ask for all the precious things Thy boundless love can give. I look for many a lesser light About my path to shine; But chiefly long to walk with Thee, And only trust in Thine. In holy expectation held, Thy strength my heart shall stay, For Thy right hand will never let My trust be cast away. Yea, Thou hast kept me near Thy feet, In many a deadly strife,
Miss A. L. Waring—Hymns and Meditations

The Night Watch
Heinrich Suso Ps. cxxx. 6 Oh when shall the fair day break, and the hour of gladness come, When I to my heart's Beloved, to Thee, O my Lord, go home? O Lord, the ages are long, and weary my heart for Thee, For Thee, O my one Beloved, whose Voice shall call for me. I would see Thee face to face, Thou Light of my weary eyes, I wait and I watch till morning shall open the gate of the skies; The morn when I rise aloft, to my one, my only bliss, To know the smile of Thy welcome, the mystery of Thy kiss.
Frances Bevan—Hymns of Ter Steegen, Suso, and Others

Fervent Supplication. --Ps. cxxx.
Fervent Supplication.--Ps. cxxx. Out of the depths of woe, To Thee, O Lord! I cry; Darkness surrounds me, but I know That Thou art ever nigh. Then hearken to my voice, Give ear to my complaint; Thou bidst the mourning soul rejoice, Thou comfortest the faint. I cast my hope on Thee, Thou canst, Thou wilt forgive; Wert Thou to mark iniquity, Who in thy sight could live? Humbly on Thee I wait, Confessing all my sin; Lord, I am knocking at thy gate, Open and take me in. Like them, whose longing
James Montgomery—Sacred Poems and Hymns

My Soul with Patience Waits
[1192]Festal Song: William H. Walter, 1894 [1193]Swabia: Johann M. Spiess, 1745 Psalm 130 Tate and Brady, 1698 DOXOLOGY My soul with patience waits For thee, the living Lord: My hopes are on thy promise built, Thy never-failing word. My longing eyes look out For thy enlivening ray, More duly than the morning watch To spy the dawning day. Let Israel trust in God; No bounds his mercy knows; The plenteous source and spring from whence Eternal succour flows; Whose friendly streams to us Supplies
Various—The Hymnal of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the USA

On Perfection
"Let us go on to perfection." Heb. 6:1. The whole sentence runs thus: "Therefore, leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection: Not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God;" which he had just before termed, "the first principles of the oracles of God," and "meat fit for babes," for such as have just tasted that the Lord is gracious. That the doing of this is a point of the utmost importance the Apostle intimates in the next
John Wesley—Sermons on Several Occasions

"There is Therefore Now no Condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus,
Rom. viii. 1.--"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, &c." All the promises are yea and amen in Christ Jesus; they meet all in him and from him are derived unto us. When man was in integrity, he was with God, and in God, and that immediately, without the intervention of a Mediator. But our falling from God hath made us without God, and the distance is so great, as Abraham speaks to the rich man, that neither can those above go down to him, nor he come up to them.
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

The Christian's Hope
Scripture references: 1 Timothy 1:1; Colossians 1:27; Psalm 130:5; 43:5; Proverbs 10:8; Acts 24:15; Psalm 71:5; Romans 5:1-5; 12:12; 15:4; 1 Corinthians 9:10; Galatians 5:5; Ephesians 1:18; Philippians 1:20; Colossians 1:5; 1 Thessalonians 1:3; 2:19; Titus 1:2; 2:13; 3:7; Psalm 31:24; 71:14,15. HOPE IN THE PRESENT LIFE That which a man ardently hopes for he strives to realize. If he desires fame, office or wealth he will seek to set forces in motion, here and now, which will bring him that which
Henry T. Sell—Studies in the Life of the Christian

Regeneration by Faith. Of Repentance.
1. Connection of this chapter with the previous one and the subsequent chapters. Repentance follows faith, and is produced by it. Reason. Error of those who take a contrary view. 2. Their First Objection. Answer. In what sense the origin of Repentance ascribed to Faith. Cause of the erroneous idea that faith is produced by repentance. Refutation of it. The hypocrisy of Monks and Anabaptists in assigning limits to repentance exposed. 3. A second opinion concerning repentance considered. 4. A third
John Calvin—The Institutes of the Christian Religion

Israel's Hope Encouraged;
OR, WHAT HOPE IS, AND HOW DISTINGUISHED FROM FAITH: WITH ENCOURAGEMENTS FOR A HOPING PEOPLE. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. 'Auspicious hope! in thy sweet garden grow Wreaths for each toil, a charm for every woe.' Christian hope is a firm expectation of all promised good, but especially of eternal salvation and happiness in heaven, where we shall be like the Son of God. This hope is founded on the grace, blood, righteousness, and intercession of Christ--the earnest of the Holy Spirit in our hearts,
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Out of the Deep of Sin.
Innumerable troubles are come about me. My sins have taken such hold upon me, that I am not able to look up; yea, they are more in number than the hairs of my head, and my heart hath failed me.--Ps. xl. 15. I acknowledge my faults, and my sin is ever before me. Against Thee only have I sinned, and done this evil in Thy sight.--Ps. li. 3. I said, I will confess my sins unto the Lord; and so Thou forgavest the wickedness of my sin.--Ps. xxxii. 6. Blessed is the man whose iniquity is forgiven, and
Charles Kingsley—Out of the Deep

"That the Righteousness of the Law Might be Fulfilled in Us,"
Rom. viii. 4.--"That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us," &c. "Think not," saith our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, "that I am come to destroy the law,--I am come to fulfil it," Matt. v. 17. It was a needful caveat, and a very timeous advertisement, because of the natural misapprehensions in men's minds of the gospel. When free forgiveness of sins, and life everlasting, is preached in Jesus Christ, without our works; when the mercy of God is proclaimed in its freedom and fulness,
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

The Essence of Prayer.
"Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints."--Ephes. vi. 18. In the last place we consider the work of the Holy Spirit in prayer. It appears from Scripture, more than has been emphasized, that in the holy act of prayer there is a manifestation of the Holy Spirit working both in us and with us. And yet this appears clearly from the apostolic word: "Likewise the Spirit helpeth also our infirmities: for
Abraham Kuyper—The Work of the Holy Spirit

Its Meaning
Deliverance from the condemning sentence of the Divine Law is the fundamental blessing in Divine salvation: so long as we continue under the curse, we can neither be holy nor happy. But as to the precise nature of that deliverance, as to exactly what it consists of, as to the ground on which it is obtained, and as to the means whereby it is secured, much confusion now obtains. Most of the errors which have been prevalent on this subject arose from the lack of a clear view of the thing itself, and
Arthur W. Pink—The Doctrine of Justification

Psalms
The piety of the Old Testament Church is reflected with more clearness and variety in the Psalter than in any other book of the Old Testament. It constitutes the response of the Church to the divine demands of prophecy, and, in a less degree, of law; or, rather, it expresses those emotions and aspirations of the universal heart which lie deeper than any formal demand. It is the speech of the soul face to face with God. Its words are as simple and unaffected as human words can be, for it is the genius
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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