Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Congratulations with the feast of the Resurrection of the Lord, as well as with the After-feast of the Dormition of the Most-Holy Mother of God!

During the All-Night Vigil, after the reading of the Holy Gospel, the 50th (51) psalm “Have mercy upon me, O God” is read. This psalm is very familiar to all of us, since we all read it daily during our morning prayers. Probably many of you know the words of this psalm by heart. Apart from the All-night Vigil and morning prayers, “Have mercy upon me, O God” is read at the 6th hour (before Liturgy), at Midnight Office, and at Compline, as well as by the deacon at the Divine Liturgy while he censes the altar during the Cherubic Hymn. It is understandable why this prayer is repeated so often, for it is permeated with the deepest feelings of repentance. Today let us briefly discuss this wonderful psalm.

Remember that King David composed the repentant words of the 50th psalm when the Holy Prophet of God Nathan came to him after David had sinned with Bathsheba and arranged everything so that her husband, Uriah, was killed at war. As strange as it may seem to us, David did not see any sin in these actions until Nathan rebuked him. As soon as David realized his sin, the process of repentance began, which continued throughout the rest of his life. Part of this process of repentance was the composition of the 50th psalm. Saint Andrew of Crete, in his Great Penitential Canon, beautifully describes this, saying: “David once composed a hymn, setting forth, as in an icon, all the evils he had done; and he condemned them, crying, ‘Have mercy on me, for against Thee only have I sinned, O God of all, cleanse me!’” (6th troparion of the 7th Ode).

Some might ask, how could such terrible sins be forgiven and how we can honour such a sinner as a prophet and a saint? We find the answer in the psalm itself where David writes: “Cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.” The Lord God in His great mercy and according to His lovingkindness forgave these sins because David chastened himself, realized his transgressions, and always with meekness and a spirit of repentance remembered them. Blessed Augustine, in his explanation of this psalm, emphasizes that the Lord is not only merciful but also just, and that although sinners are forgiven, they are also subject to punishment. According to Augustine, David, constantly having his sins before him, was as if saying: I myself am continually punishing myself with the memory of that which transpired and through constant repentance; therefore, do not punish me according to your justice, but be merciful toward me according to your great mercy and according to the multitude of your tender mercies blot out my transgressions.

Let us, dear brothers and sisters, strive to delve into the words of the 50th psalm daily and remember our sins so that the Lord will cleanse us, make us whiter than snow, and grant us the Kingdom of Heaven, as He did with David.

Priest Alexis