Ver. 13.-(THE PALACE.) The forgiveness of sin. "And No.than said unto David, The Lord also bath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die." •• The absolver saw the mighty grief, And hastened with relief;- ' The Lord forgives ; thou shalt not die: 'Twe.s gently spoke, yet heard on high, And all tlie band of angels, ns'd to sing In hearnn, accordant to his re.ptured string, Who many a month had turned away With veiled eyes, nor own'd bis lo.y, "Now spread their wings o.nd throng around To the glad mournful sound, • • And welcome with bright, open face • The broken heart to love's embrace, The rook is smitten, and to future years Springs ever fresh the tide of holy tears And holy music, whispering peace Till time and sin together cease." (Keble; • Sirlh Sunday after Trh1ity.') Jn the interview of Nathan with David much may have passed which is not recorded. But it is improbable that (as some have supposed) there was a long interval_ between the confession of sin and the assurance of forgiveness, or that the latter was given at a 11econd interview (ver. 15). Perceiving the sincerity of the king's repentance, th~ prophet forthwith declared that Jehovah also put away (literally," caused~ pass over, eh. xxiv. 10; Zech. iiL 4) his sin, remitting the penalty of death, which the Law appointed and himself had pronounced (ver. 5); 3:nd became a meseeng~r of mercy, "one of a thousand" (Job :nxiii. 23), e.e well_ e.s_ of Judgment. ~• Where s~ abounded, grace did much more abound." Consider rem1Se10n, pardon, forgiveness of sin, as-. J. NEEDED BY A SINFUL MAR. ForgiveD.el!B of sin is a chan11:e of ~rso'?-al relrit1on hetween God and man; in which there is: 1. Rele.ase from condewmz:tion mcurred by tLe latter, throuah C, l1ill violation of lJivine Law; the removal of the d1Bpleasure (eh. x • cl!. Xlr, 1-81.] THE SECOND BOOK OF SAMtJEt. 311
27) and wrath (Ps. xxxviii. 1) of God; the blotting out of transgressions (Ps. Ii. 1; xxxll. 1, 2; Isa. xliii. 26; Hom. viii. 1); deliverance from death (Ezek. xviii. 21). Since" nil have sinned," all have need of it; but only those who a.re convinced of sin value, desire, and seek it, It also"involves: 2. Res/oration of comm,union with God; which is hindered by sin, as the light of the sun is intercepted by e. cloud. " It is th" foundation of a.II our communion with God here, e.nd of a.II undeceivin~ expectations of our enjoyment of him hereafter" (Owen, in Ps. cxxx.). 3. Renewal of the heart in l'ighteousness; which, though separate from it in thought, is never so in reality, and which was longed for by De.vid with the ea.me intensity and prayed for in the same breath (Ps. li. 9, 10). How lamentable is the condition of that man on whom the wrath of eternal, ·holy love "abideth" (John iii. 86) I II. GRANTED BY A MERCIFUL GoD. Forgiveness of sin is an act or gift, which : l. God alone can perform or bestow; the prerogative of the supreme Ruler, against whom it has been committed (Dan. ix. 9; Mark ii. 7). " The Lord hath put away thy sin." "To pardon sin is one ofthefuraregalia, the flowers of God's crown" (T. Watson). 2. Proceeds from his abounding mercy and;grace (Exod. xxxiv. 7). "It is impossible this flower shoufd spring from any other root" (Ps; li. l}. 3. Re8ts upon an adequate ground or moral ea.use; which, although little known to David, was always present to the mind of God (1 Pot. i. 20), shadowed forth in the "mediatorial sovereignty" of former ages and manifested in Jesus Christ, "in whom we have forgiveness of sins" (Acts xiii. 38; Eph. i. 7), "Here is the might, And here the wisdom, which did open lay The path, that had been yearned for so long, Betwixt the heaven and es.l'th." (Dante, 'Par.,' xxiii.)
III. ANNOUNCED BY A FAITHFlJL MINISTER. The prophet said not, "I forgive;" he simply declared what God had done or purposed to do (1 Sam. xv. 28); and in this sense only can there be absolution by man. " To forgive sins is the part and inalienable prerogative of God. To absolve is to dispense and convey forgiveness to those who have the right dispositions of heart for receiving it; and this is the part of God's messengers and repl'esentatives, whether under the Old or New dispensations" (E. M. Goulbum). 'rhe claim of any other power is a groundless assumption. The language employed in the New Testament refers either to cases of discipline in the Church, or to the declaration of the forgiving love of God, the reconciliation of God in Christ, and the assurance of its reality (Matt. xviii. 15-20; John xx. 23; 2 Cor. ii. 10); this assurance depending, for its beneficial influence, on: 1. Its accordance with the revealed Word of God (Jer. xxiii. 28; Gal. i. 8). 2, Its utterance by a faithful, holy, merciful servant of God, in his ministerial and representative character. "The power of absolution belonged to the Church, and to the apostle through the Church. It was a power belonging to all Christians: to the apostle, because he was a ChrisLian, not because he was an apostle. A priestly power, no doubt, because Christ has made all Christians kings and priests" (F. W. Robertson, vol. iii.). 3. Its communication to and reception by such as are truly penitent. "The poet said with a great deal of justice, that no sinner is absolved by himself; yet, in another sense, the !!inner is absolved by that very' self-accusation ; and, sorrowing for his sins, is freed from the guilt of them" (Leighton). • IV. APPROPRIATED BY A BELIEVING HEART. The inward assurance of the blessing of forgiveness : L Is usually gained through many struggles and fervent prayers. David prayed for pardon ILfter the prophet's assurance of it. "Ps. Ii. shows us how David struggles to gain an inward and conscious certainty of tbe forgiveness of sin, which was announced to him by Nathan" (Delitzsch). "Under the Old Testament noue loved God more than he, none was loved by God more than he. 'l'he paths of faith and love wherein he walked are uuto the most of us like the way of an eagle in the air-too high and hard for us. Yet to this day do the cries of this man after God's own heart sound in our ears" (Owen). 2. Is personally realized through faith in the Word inRpired by God and declaring his mercy. "They that really believe forgiveness in God do thereby ol>tain forgiveness." 3. Is commouly attended with 312 TilE 5EOOND BOOK OF SAMUEL. [en. :xm 1-31,