17The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit.
You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.
Each one of us has found ourselves deceived or misled by our hearts at certain points in our lives. We have given in to the desires of our hearts that led us to compromise our integrity, hurt other people, and disobey God, and found ourselves filled with regret and disappointment as a result. Simply put, our hearts are not trustworthy. We cannot live our lives following our hearts and chasing all our hearts' desires if we want to make the most of the one life God has given each of us. Instead of following our hearts, Scripture calls us to love God with our heart and soul by fully leaning on Him and confessing any sin.
One of the best examples from Scripture of someone who leaned on God and confessed His sinful, broken heart before God was David. He wrote Psalm 51 after being confronted with his wicked sin. Broken and devastated by the sin he had committed, David turned to God in confession, hoping and believing that restoration was possible. He wrote in this passage of Scripture, “Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me and I will be whiter than snow” (verse 7). Do you see the confidence in David’s words? David knew that forgiveness lay on the other side of leaning on God and turning to Him for forgiveness and help. He continued writing in this Psalm, “The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit. You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God” (verse 17). God is honored by our broken spirits and repentant hearts as we lean on Him rather than our deceitful hearts. We love Him with our heart and soul by being truly broken and distraught over the sins we have committed, knowing that our sins break His own heart.
To this day, God desires broken spirits and contrite hearts over our sin and brokenness. His desire is for us to turn to Him for help and healing amidst our sin and struggles. When we lean on Him, He will offer the hope and forgiveness that we are in desperate need of. Will you lean on Him today?
Moving toward action
Take time today to follow David’s example in Psalm 51. Pray to God with a “broken and repentant heart” over your own sin. Confess any sin in your life that needs to be confessed and ask God to help you let go of sin and obey and honor Him instead.
Prayer Prompt: Use this prompt to guide you as you pray.
“God, break my heart over my own sin. I confess…”
Going deeper
1Have mercy on me, O God,
because of your unfailing love.
Because of your great compassion,
blot out the stain of my sins.
2Wash me clean from my guilt.
Purify me from my sin.
3For I recognize my rebellion;
it haunts me day and night.
4Against you, and you alone, have I sinned;
I have done what is evil in your sight.
You will be proved right in what you say,
and your judgment against me is just.[1]
5For I was born a sinner—
yes, from the moment my mother conceived me.
6But you desire honesty from the womb,[2]
teaching me wisdom even there.
7Purify me from my sins,[3] and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
8Oh, give me back my joy again;
you have broken me—
now let me rejoice.
9Don’t keep looking at my sins.
Remove the stain of my guilt.
10Create in me a clean heart, O God.
Renew a loyal spirit within me.
11Do not banish me from your presence,
and don’t take your Holy Spirit[4] from me.
12Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and make me willing to obey you.
13Then I will teach your ways to rebels,
and they will return to you.
14Forgive me for shedding blood, O God who saves;
then I will joyfully sing of your forgiveness.
15Unseal my lips, O Lord,
that my mouth may praise you.
16You do not desire a sacrifice, or I would offer one.
You do not want a burnt offering.
17The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit.
You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.
18Look with favor on Zion and help her;
rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.
19Then you will be pleased with sacrifices offered in the right spirit—
with burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings.
Then bulls will again be sacrificed on your altar.
Translation notes (4)
- 51:4 Greek version reads and you will win your case in court. Compare Rom 3:4.
- 51:6 Or from the heart; Hebrew reads in the inward parts.
- 51:7 Hebrew Purify me with the hyssop branch.
- 51:11 Or your spirit of holiness.
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