'Create in Me a Clean Heart, O God' (Psalm 51:1-12)
Psalms 51:1-12 · Berean Standard Bible
Psalm 51:1-12 is David's prayer of repentance after his sin with Bathsheba: 'Have mercy on me, O God... Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.' He pleads not to be cast from God's presence and asks for the joy of salvation to be restored. It is the definitive prayer for anyone seeking a fresh start and a cleansed conscience before God.
1Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your loving devotion; according to Your great compassion, blot out my transgressions.
2Wash me clean of my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.
3For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.
4Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You may be proved right when You speak and blameless when You judge.
5Surely I was brought forth in iniquity; I was sinful when my mother conceived me.
6Surely You desire truth in the inmost being; You teach me wisdom in the inmost place.
7Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
8Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones You have crushed rejoice.
9Hide Your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquities.
10Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
11Cast me not away from Your presence; take not Your Holy Spirit from me.
12Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and sustain me with a willing spirit.
Read the wider context: Psalms 51.
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Related passages
- What the Bible Says About Guilt (Psalm 32:1-5) — Psalms 32:1-5
- What the Bible Says About Repentance (Acts 3:19-20) — Acts 3:19-20
- 'If We Confess Our Sins' (1 John 1:8-10) — 1 John 1:8-10
- The Parable of the Prodigal Son — Luke 15:11-32