Exposition on the Seven Psalms of Repentance, Exposition 51 · Verse 3
Verſe 3. For I know mine iniquitie, and my ſinne is euer before me.
THe firſt argument which he vſed to moue God to pardon his ſins, was taken from God himſelfe, and that great merciemercy whereto he is inclined. The next, from his great filthineſſe & vncleanneſſe, whoſe miſery was an obiect of Gods merciemercy, deſiring God to purge and cleanſe him from the ſame. Now followeth the third argument, taken from …is acknowledgement of his ſin, and true confeſſion thereof. As though he would ſay: Lord, I know I hauehave ſinned, I confeſſe my ſin to thee, therefore pardon me. What force, thinke ye, this argument would hauehave in a guiltie mans mouth, if he came before an earthly Iudge, and would ſay: I hauehave committed murder and adulterie, I confeſſe it? Surely the Iudge would anſwer, Ex ore tuo te iudico, I iudge thee according to thine owne confeſſion; as Dauid commanded him to be killed,2. Sa. 1.16. An humble acknowledgement of ſinne, a good argument to obtain pardon from God. who reported that he had killed Saul. But before the heauenly Tribunall, ſuch an argument hath onelyonly force. There is no meane to acquit vsus from Gods iuſtice, vnleſſe we come to him, humbly confeſſing our ſin, and accuſing our ſelues, for then he will pardon and excuſe vsus. Our condemning of our ſelues, maketh him to abſolue vsus: our remembrance of our ſins, maketh him to forget them; and our repentance bringeth his pardon.
But how cometh it to paſſe, that thus he lamenteth, Obiect. ſeeing before Nathan had aſſured him that his ſins were forgotten and pardoned? I anſwer, the godly, Solut. albeit they be perſwaded of merciemercy, yet for the louelove they beare to God, they cannot but be diſpleaſed with themſelues, ſo often as they remember how vnhappily they hauehave offended ſo gracious a maieſtie:The wicked forget the euils which they do, & remember the good which they hauehave done, if they hauehave done any; whereas the godly remember alwayes their ſins. 1. Cor. 15.9 1. Tim 1.13 but the wicked forget their ſins moſt …aſi…y, and if they hauehave done any ſhew of good, they remember it continually. The godly by the contrary forget their good, and remember their ſins, and the euill which they hauehave done, as the Apoſtle Paul ſaith, I am the leaſt of all the Apoſtles, and not meete to be called an Apoſtle, becauſe I perſecuted the Church. And againe, When before I was a blaſphemer, a perſecuter and oppreſſor, but I was received to merciemercy. And againe, Chriſt died for ſinners, among whom I am the chiefe. They account themſelues the leaſt among the godly, the greateſt among ſinners. So it is good to vsus to nouriſh a continuall remembrance of our owne ſins, that it may humble vsus before God, & make God ſo much the more pitie vsus, that he ſeeth vsus vnfainedly diſpleaſed with our ſelues that we hauehave offen…ed him by our many many ſin….
For I know my ſinne. The knowledge of his ſin (doubtleſſe) came by Gods word out of the mouth of Nathan For albeit by a generall notice hee knew hee had done wrong, and the particular punctions of his conſcience forced him to thinke ſo, yet the true knowledge came neuer vntounto him, vntil God ſaid by his Prophet, Thou art the man, So the word of God ſerueth vsus to this vſe, that it openeth our blinde eyes to ſee what is euill in vsus. And therefore wo to that people who hauehave not the word, and faithfull Preachers, who may let them ſee their ſins. For when they know not ſin to be ſin, they die in their ſins. By the law▪ ſaith the Apoſtle, is the knowledge of ſin: Rom. 7.7.for if the law had not ſaid, Thou ſhalt not luſt, I would not think concupiſcence to be ſin. Ye may ſee how great an euill is ignorance, when mens eyes are blinded, whom the god of this world hath blinded in ſo great a light.
The moſt part of the world couers their ſin, by tranſlating the cauſe ouer vntounto others, as Adam vponupon Euah, Euah vponupon the Serpent. But the Scripture ſaith,Gen. 3. Pro. 28.13. He that hideth his ſin ſhall not proſper. Non medio…re eſt (ſaith Ambroſe) vt agnoſcat peccatum ſuum vnuſquiſque: It is not a ſmall thing to eueryevery one to know and acknowledge his ſin. So ſaith Dauid, Delicta quis intelligit, Who vnderſtandeth his ſin? He who knoweth them, may the ſooner auoide them. If any knew a danger, he could eaſily flie from it, and go by it. Our Sauiour wept, becauſe they knew not the day of their viſitation.
That a man may know his ſin, it is neceſſary he be admoniſhed and rebuked; and he who deſireth to attaine this knowledge, muſt be content to receiue rebukes kindly.How to attaine to an acknowledgement of ſinne. He muſt reſolue before God to ſhun the occaſions of ſin, and ſuch euill companie as allureth him to folly; that he do call to mind what a gracious God he hath offended, what good things he hath loſt, how many he hath offended by his example; and to addreſſe himſelfe henceforth to leade a holy and religious life according to Gods word.
The Philoſophers thought it moſt neceſſary for eueryevery man to know himſelfe; and in their precepts had this euer,He who knoweth not himſelfe, can neuer know God Noſce teipſum, Know thy ſelfe. Then much more it becometh a Chriſtian to know himſelfe; for otherwiſe he can neuer know God in any of his properties. For if we know not our ſin, how ſhall we either know Gods iuſtice purſuing vsus, or his merciemercy pardoning vsus. Oh that we knew our ſelues.
But Satan doth with vsus, as the Rauen doth with the Lambe, Simil. it firſt pulleth forth the eyes, then deuoureth it: firſt he blindeth vsus, then we follow him. Therefore we ſhould labour vponupon our ſoules, that the darkned eye thereof may be cleare, the dimneſſe remoued,Acts 9. the ſcales which lie vponupon them (as vponupon Saint Paul) may fall to the ground; that ſeeing our ſelues and our nakedneſſe, we may craue to be couered; ſeeing our wounds, we may deſire to be cured. As alſo it is the principall part and duty of Paſtors to deale in their Sermons with people, that they may ſee their ſins. Sonne of man (ſaith the Lord to Ezekiel) make knowne to Ieruſalem their abhominations. Paſtors ought to exhort the people to a ſight of their ſin.We flatter the people in their ſin, and vſe conniuence to their wickedneſſe. We are afraid, and belike dare not light the candle of the word and bring it to them being lying in darkneſſe, leſt they put forth the candle or ſmite vsus, who by the light thereof let them ſee their misbehauiour.
And my ſinne is euer before me. When Satan doth preſent his baited hooke of ſin to vsus,Satans policy in preſenting the greatnes of our ſins, after we hauehave ſinned, to vsus he neuer letteth vsus ſee the hooke of Gods iudgements but euer the bait of ple… ſure: but when we hauehave ſwallowed the baite, he neuer letteth vsus ſee any comfort of Gods mercies, but propoſeth to vsus a troubled conſcience, the flames of Gods wrath, and the terrors of his iudgements; as the Prophet ſaith, Our iniquities are multiplied before vsus.
And yet we muſt take heed of the diuels craft, who obſcureth from many their ſin, ſo that they can neuer repent, for that which they neuer ſee or feele. And yet on the other hand, he letteth ſome ſee the mountains of their ſins, and hugeneſſe of them, that they ſee nothing elſe in God but his iuſtice, thereby to leade them to deſpaire, as he did with Iudas. But we muſt not looke with ſuch fixed eyes vponupon our ſins, that we lift not vp our eyes to Gods merciemercy, which is ready to pardon, and to apply to-our heart all the ſweete promiſes which we reade in the Scriptures; ſo that as feare beareth vsus downe, faith may vphold vsus that we fall not. They muſt euer be before vsus in this world, and be purged by vnfained repentance, not that our repentance can expiate them, or pacifie Gods wrath, or (as the fooliſh Papiſts thinke) that we can do penance for them. For what ſatisfaction can thy humiliation do, which is imperfect, to ſatisfie the wrath of an infinite God? Vnleſſe his Son had intervened by his ſatisfaction, Gods wrath could not hauehave bin appeaſed.The more we repent for ſin, the more we are eaſed. The more we remember our ſin, and lament for the ſame, the more eaſe get we to our afflicted minds and conſciences, and the more ſenſibly ſhall we feele the merciemercy of God pardoning our offences. Therefore we cannot be better exerciſed then in an humble confeſſion of our ſin, and by bitter teares with Peter weepe for our offences; which I pray God the Lord may worke in our hearts, that we may find that bleſſing vponupon vsus, which Chriſt pronounced,Math. 5. Bleſſed are they who now mourne, for they ſhall be comforted.