The Tupelo journal., 1903-10-23
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
Lesson in the International Series
for October IS, 09~3--B1essed-
ness of Forgiveness.
THE LESSON TEXT.

THE LESSON TEXT.
Cps. S2.)
!. Blessed Is he whose transgression is
forgiven. whose sin is covered.
z. Blessed Is the man unto whom the
Lord imputeth not inlquity, and in whose
spirit there is no guile.
8. When l kept silence. my bones waxed
old through my roaring all the day long.
4. For day and night Thy hand was heavy
upon me; my moisture is turned into the
drought of summer.
5. l acknowledged my sin unto Thee. and
mine iniquity have l not hid. / said, l Will
confess my transgressions unto the Lord;
and Thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin.
6. For this shall everyone that is cody
pray unto Thee in a time when Thou
mayest be found; surely in the floods of
great waters they shall not come nigh
unto Him.
Z. Thou art my hiding place; Thou shalt
preserve me from trouble; Thou shalt
compass me about with songs of deliver
ance.
s. I will instruct thee and teach thee in
the way which thou shalt go; l will guide
thee with mine eye.
8. Be ye not as the horse. or as the mule,
which have no understandings; whose
mouth must be held in with bit and bride,
lest they come near unto thee.
10. Many sorrows shall be to the wicked;
but he that trusteth In the Lord, mercy
shal compass him about.
II. Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye
righteous: and shout for JOY, all ye that
are upright in heart.
GOLDEN TEXT.-Blessed fs he whose
transgression is forgiven, whose sin
is cOvered.-Ps. 32:1.
OUTLINE OF SCRIPTURE SECTION.
The Blessed of Forgiveness......Ps. S2:1,2.
IT, p,n &c Inx- DC pp.C1
Hope for All in the Psalmist's Expert
enceS 5-.t-AL
NOTES AND COMMENTS.
The connection between this Lesson
and those that have preceded it is plain,
though it is one of thought rather than
of historical incident. Our last lesson
included the story of David's sin and
repentance, and to impress its lessons
more strongly upon us, the marvellous
prayer of the broken heart in the Fifty
first psalm. From that study of the ex-
perience of one who had sinned and re-
pented we go on to this study of the
blessedness of forgiveness and the way
in which one may find it.
Cps. 32:1, 81 There are three words
ooCu hCiC " oih, LIN, "hAAS II SShSAU
synonymous, each adds a shade OF mean
ing not in the others. "Transgression."
"a breaking loose from Cod" disregard
ing His will. Sin" This word in the
original suggests a missing of the mark
for sin is a terrible blunder and failure
as we'll as a terrible wrong. "Iniquity."
A distortion or perversion. A fine face,
l;ct Ov+oJ h%4O~ooc LtIonyc orI n n0nd
thing perverted NAV become the worst
of bad things. Whose sin is covered"
The figure suggests that sin is something
horrible to look upon, and that God
mercifully draws the veil over it. I'm
puteth not iniquity." Does not charge
his sin against him. mo guile" No
insincerity; no pretending.
(Vs. 3-5.) when l kept silence"
S~ullenly trying to ignore his sin. my
bones wasted away" No man can defy
his conscience with impunity. This is
a leaf from the personal experience of the
psalmist, and we know what he means
from our own personal experience. "Thy
hand was heavy upon me-" The hand
of conscience is the hand of God. 1t is
laid upon the sinner not primarily to
make him suffer, but to make him re-
form. THE drought Of summer" A
guilty conscience checks all soul growth
and contracts and shrivels and dries up
life as the blasts of the hot south winds
dry up all vegetation in a midsummer
drought. Note that the psalmist speaks
of having had regret and sorrow all this
time. but it was not repentance. What
was the difference?
Alexander Maclaren has said hat this
psalm is "a chat of n mans path
from the depths to the heights, and avails
to guide ALL" The change comes in
verse 5. 1t was the breaking down of the
stubborn, defiant spirit, the dropping Of
the fiction of goodness when there was
no goodness, and the humble opening
of the heart to the Father in confession.
Thou forgavest the iniquity." God Is
ever ready to forgive and to consider a
man as separated from his sin when He
sees that the man has with all his heart
put his sin away. God cannot consider
q mans sin put away until it is. He
cannot deal in fictions. Recall here
Christ's teaching in the parable of the
prodigal son.
(Vs. 6-11.) For this" Because of
this; therefore. Every one that is
godly." Those who are true to God and
strive to do His will-for the best Chris
tians need still to pray for forgiveness.
when thou mayest be found" The
r. v. marginal reading is in the time Of
finding out (sin). This is possible. The
preferred reading suggests that there is
a time when it is too late-not because
God is not ready to forgive. but because
mar has lost the capacity to become "a
new man" II will instruct thee, etc.,
'Tt is usual to suppose that the psalmist
still speaks. but surely I will counsel
thee with mine eye upon thee does not
fit human lips."-Alexander Maclaren.
The psalmist represents Jehovah as;
speaking the reassuring words of verse
8. Verse 9 suggests the reason why
many sorrows shall be to the wicked"
The psalm ends with a shout OF Joy.
every tear sparkles like a diamond in
the sunshine Of pardon, and he who be-
gins with the lowly cry for forgiveness
will end with lofty songs of JOY, and bel
made, by Gods guidance and Spirit,
righteous and upright in heart"
PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS. 4:
The one whom God has forgiven is in
deed blessed. His is the peace which,
passeth understanding.
Hidden sin is hidden pain. There is
no comfort for those who transgress
Gods holy laws.