Sin and Its Cure
A Sermon on Psalm 51
Reading Psalm 51 in parallel with the account of David’s sin with Bathsheba, Dr. John Oswalt traces what the passage says about the nature of sin, the cost of sin, and the cure for sin. Sin is both transgression and iniquity. It is this that David finally sees when he turns from it, acknowledging both his misdeeds and their cause. David moreover sees the dark costs of sin for his spirit. It is this twin recognition that allows David to respond with humility, and to call out to God for cleansing. It is only when when we come to the end of ourselves, rejecting pride, that God will say “get up my son, my daughter, you are clean.”
Biography
Dr. John Oswalt returned to Asbury Theological Seminary in 2009 as visiting distinguished professor of Old Testament. He was a member of the faculty of Trinity Evangelical Divinity School from 1986 to 1989. Oswalt received a M.A. and Ph.D. from Brandeis University. He has written more than eight books. His most recent book is Lectures in Old Testament Theology: Yahweh is God Alone with Dennis Kinlaw, 2010. He also served as consulting editor for the New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and Exegesis (Zondervan, 1997). He was a member of the New International Version translation team, and is currently one of a six-member editorial team that has revised the Living Bible (New Living Translation, 1996), and is continuing the revision process with Tyndale House Publishers.
