Pastor, I Have a Question July-August 2013

QUESTION: How do we know that King David wrote Psalm 51 in repentance for his sin with Bathsheba?
ANSWER: The heading of the Psalm states that King David wrote the Psalm. Most English translations of Bible include the words, as in the New King James Version, “To the Chief Magician. A Psalm of David when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.”
There is some question about the authenticity of these superscriptions. Many modern scholars believe they were added later. The New English Bible does not include them at all. You may be taught that the original Hebrew and Greek Bibles do not contain everything we find in translations. Book titles, chapter headings, chapters, and verses were not part of the original writings.
And yet, the Psalm headings are very old. The Biblia Hebraica (the Hebrew Bible Masoretic text) used by this pastor includes the headings. Professor John Brug wrote, “The standard Hebrew text of Psalms, the psalms found among the Dead Sea manuscripts and the Septuagint translation of the psalms into Greek all include the headings” (Brug, J. Psalms, Vol. 1, p. 15). Professor Brug also points to the antiquity of the spelling of David’s name in the headings as authenticity. He concludes: “The headings were attached to the psalm by the authors or by the person to whom the author delivered the psalm. It is possible that some headings were added by the person who collected the psalms into a book, but in either case we are confident that they provide reliable information about the origin and purpose of the psalm and that they are part of God’s inspired word.”
Lutheran Christians treasure Psalm 51. Its words are included in our divine service. We know many of its verses by heart. We kneel with King David as we use it to confess our sins: Have mercy upon me, O God, According to Your lovingkindness; According to the multitude of Your tender mercies, Blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, And cleanse me from my sin (verses 1–2).
The Psalm affirms our understanding of original sin: Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me (verse 5). When our babies, conceived in sin, come into this world, we rush to bring them to the saving waters of Baptism. We give them rebirth in the washing of regeneration and the renewal of the Holy Spirit.
Our gracious God, through the public ministry, proclaims to us the good news of Jesus. His Son was born in this world to live a perfect life, to keep every aspect of God’s Law, and to resist temptation on our behalf. Jesus allowed sinful men to abuse, scourge, and execute Him. He took from us all our sins, suffering the anger of God we deserve. Dying, He endured hell’s fury in our place.
By His resurrection, God declared us to be innocent and holy by faith. Week after week, we hear this good news from the pulpit. Following the sermon, we rise with joyful hearts and sing heartily the words of the psalm: Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit (verses 10–12).
That adulterous and murderous king, David, confessed his sin to God before his prophet/pastor, Nathan, who then absolved David of his sin. Knowing this grace of God can fill our daily and weekly confession and absolution with greater meaning. God forgives all of us our terrible sins because of the ransom Jesus Christ paid and the grace God gives!
Rev. Charles Keeler
Resurrection Lutheran Church
Winter Haven, FL
cjohnk@aol.com