Psalms 32:5

Then I acknowledged my sin to You and did not hide my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” and You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah

Berean Standard Bible

Follow its threads on the canvas →

Study note

Setting — David, speaking to the LORD, at the moment the weight of hidden sin (v. 4) has broken him and he has finally stopped covering it.

The words — כִסִּיתִי (khi.Si.ti), "I covered," is the same root used for the sacrificial covering of sin; the image is not dramatic confession but a man lifting a lid off something he'd been keeping shut.

The thread — Proverbs 28:13 states the principle (concealment vs. confession); 2 Samuel 12:13 is the historical instance (David to Nathan); Psalms 51:3 is the ongoing awareness that precedes the act.

Why it lands — The verse asks the reader to stop covering and say the thing to God; the "Selah" at the end is the text's own pause, a command to let the weight of that act settle before moving on.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Hebrew words

חַטָּאתִ֨יcha.ta.T/isin/ my אוֹדִ֪יעֲךָ֡'o.Di.'a./khaI made known to/ you וַעֲוֹ֘נִ֤יva./'a.Vo.N/iand/ iniquity/ my לֹֽא־lo'-not כִסִּ֗יתִיkhi.Si.tiI covered אָמַ֗רְתִּי'a.Mar.tiI said אוֹדֶ֤ה'o.DehI will confess עֲלֵ֣י'a.Leion פְ֭שָׁעַיFe.sha.'a/itransgressions/ my לַיהוָ֑הla./Yah.wehto/ Yahweh וְאַתָּ֨הve./'a.Tahand/ you נָ֘שָׂ֤אתָna.Sa.tayou forgave עֲוֹ֖ן'a.Von[the] guilt of חַטָּאתִ֣יcha.ta.T/isin/ my סֶֽלָה׃Se.lahSelah

King James Version

I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin. Selah.

Cross-references

Proverbs 28:13 He who conceals his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them will find mercy.
2 Samuel 12:13 Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.” “The LORD has taken away your sin,” Nathan replied. “You will not die.
Psalms 51:3 For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.
Psalms 38:18 Yes, I confess my iniquity; I am troubled by my sin.
Psalms 30:5 For His anger is fleeting, but His favor lasts a lifetime. Weeping may stay the night, but joy comes in the morning.
Isaiah 65:24 Even before they call, I will answer, and while they are still speaking, I will hear.
Psalms 103:12 As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us.
Hosea 6:1 Come, let us return to the LORD. For He has torn us to pieces, but He will heal us; He has wounded us, but He will bind up our wounds.
1 John 1:8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
2 Samuel 24:10 After David had numbered the troops, his conscience was stricken and he said to the LORD, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. Now, O LORD, I beg You to take away the iniquity of Your servant, for I have acted very foolishly.”