Psalm 32 is the 32nd psalm of the

Book of Psalms The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...

, beginning in English in the

King James Version The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and published in 1611, by sponsorship of K ...

: "Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven". The Book of Psalms is part of the

third section The Third Section of His Imperial Majesty's Own Chancellery (russian: Tretiye Otdeleniye, or ''III otdeleniye sobstvennoy E.I.V. kantselyarii'' - in full: Третье отделение Собственной Его Императорского � ...

of the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
'' Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

. In the slightly different numbering system used in the Greek

Septuagint The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond t ...

and Latin

Vulgate The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...

translations of the Bible, this psalm is Psalm 31. In Latin, it is known by the

incipit The incipit () of a text is the first few words of the text, employed as an identifying label. In a musical composition, an incipit is an initial sequence of notes, having the same purpose. The word ''incipit'' comes from Latin and means "it b ...

, "". The psalmist (traditionally, King

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

) expresses the joy of being released from great suffering. Psalm 32 is used in both Jewish and Christian liturgies. It has often been set to music.

Text

Hebrew Bible version

The following is the Hebrew text of Psalm 32:

King James Version

# Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. # Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile. # When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long. # For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer. Selah. # I acknowledge 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. # For this shall every one that is godly 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. # Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah. # I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye. # Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee. # Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the Lord, mercy shall compass him about. # Be glad in the Lord, and rejoice, ye righteous: and shout for joy, all ye that are upright in heart.

Theme and structure

The psalmist (traditionally, King

) expresses the joy of being released from great suffering. The psalm is divided into two parts: in verses 1–5, the psalmist proclaims the joy of seeing his fault remitted by God, and in verse 6 to verse 11, he shows his confidence in the conviction that God is the guide on the right path. The harm suffered by the psalmist is very hard to bear, although we can not know precisely its nature. The psalmist seeks to understand where it comes from, because at the time, misfortune was understood as a consequence of the sins one has committed. But far from being an opportunity to revolt, this event leads him to experience God's

forgiveness Forgiveness, in a psychological sense, is the intentional and voluntary process by which one who may initially feel victimized or wronged, goes through a change in feelings and attitude regarding a given offender, and overcomes the impact of t ...

. This Psalm is one of the seven

penitential psalms The Penitential Psalms or Psalms of Confession, so named in Cassiodorus's commentary of the 6th century AD, are the Psalms 6, 31, 37, 50, 101, 129, and 142 (6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130, and 143 in the Hebrew numbering). *Psalm 6 – Domine, ne ...

,Jerusalem Bible (1966), footnote a at Psalm 32 as its focus is on the former sins of the psalmist. It is one of the psalms known as a ''maschil'', meaning "enlightened" or "wise", and the

Jerusalem Bible ''The Jerusalem Bible'' (JB or TJB) is an English translation of the Bible published in 1966 by Darton, Longman & Todd. As a Catholic Bible, it includes 73 books: the 39 books shared with the Hebrew Bible, along with the seven deuterocanonica ...

describes it as a "didactic psalm". The psalm itself is not a prayer of

repentance Repentance is reviewing one's actions and feeling contrition or regret for past wrongs, which is accompanied by commitment to and actual actions that show and prove a change for the better. In modern times, it is generally seen as involving a co ...

, but a confession of sin is consummated. It also touches on themes of wisdom poetry, and belongs to the series of psalms of thanksgiving of an individual. According to James Luther Mays, the Psalmist, in the exercise of repentance teaches others of his experience and gives therefore instructions. It is divided into the following segments: :1. Verse 1: Commitment to repentance :2. Verse 3-5: The psalmist's distress :3. Verse 6: Forgiveness and admonition to others :4. Verse 8: Wisdom speech :5. Verse 10: Summary of experience :6. Verse 11: Rejoicing over the forgiveness of sins.

Uses

Judaism

*The psalm is recited on

Yom Kippur Yom Kippur (; he, יוֹם כִּפּוּר, , , ) is the holiest day in Judaism and Samaritanism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, the first month of the Hebrew calendar. Primarily centered on atonement and repentance, the day' ...

in some traditions. *Psalm 32 is one of the ten Psalms of the Tikkun HaKlali of Rebbe

Nachman of Breslov Nachman of Breslov ( he, רַבִּי נַחְמָן מִבְּרֶסְלֶב ''Rabbī'' ''Naḥmān mīBreslev''), also known as Reb Nachman of Bratslav, Reb Nachman Breslover ( yi, רבי נחמן ברעסלאווער ''Rebe Nakhmen Breslover'' ...

. *Verse 8 is found in the "Foundation of Repentance" recited on the eve of

Rosh Hashanah Rosh HaShanah ( he, רֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה, , literally "head of the year") is the Jewish New Year. The biblical name for this holiday is Yom Teruah (, , lit. "day of shouting/blasting") It is the first of the Jewish High Holy Days (, , ...

New Testament

Paul the Apostle Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

references verses 1 and 2 of the Psalm in

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

, in his explanation of salvation by faith, not works.

Catholic Church

Following St.

Benedict of Nursia Benedict of Nursia ( la, Benedictus Nursiae; it, Benedetto da Norcia; 2 March AD 480 – 21 March AD 548) was an Christianity in Italy, Italian Christian monk, writer, and theologian who is venerated in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Ortho ...

, the practice in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

was for monasteries to recite or sing this Psalm at

matins Matins (also Mattins) is a canonical hour in Christian liturgy, originally sung during the darkness of early morning. The earliest use of the term was in reference to the canonical hour, also called the vigil, which was originally celebrated ...

on Sundays. Today, Psalm 31 is sung or recited at

Vespers Vespers is a service of evening prayer, one of the canonical hours in Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholic (both Latin and Eastern), Lutheran, and Anglican liturgies. The word for this fixed prayer time comes from the Latin , mea ...

on the Thursday of the first week of the main four-weekly cycle of liturgical prayers.

Book of Common Prayer

In the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Brit ...

's ''

Book of Common Prayer The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the name given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The original book, published in 1549 in the reign ...

'', this psalm is appointed to be read on the evening of the sixth day of the month.Church of England
Book of Common Prayer: The Psalter
as printed by

John Baskerville John Baskerville (baptised 28 January 1707 – 8 January 1775) was an English businessman, in areas including japanning and papier-mâché, but he is best remembered as a printer and type designer. He was also responsible for inventing "w ...

in 1762, pp. 196ff

Musical settings

Heinrich Schütz Heinrich Schütz (; 6 November 1672) was a German early Baroque composer and organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach, as well as one of the most important composers of the 17th century. He ...

wrote a setting of a paraphrase of the psalm in German, "Der Mensch vor Gott wohl selig ist", SWV 129, for the '' Becker Psalter'', published first in 1628.

References

External links

* * * in Hebrew and English - Mechon-mamre * Text of Psalm 28 according to th
1928 Psalter

Of David. A maskil. / Blessed is the one whose fault is removed, whose sin is forgiven.
text and footnotes, usccb.org United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

introduction and text, biblestudytools.com
Psalm 32 – The Blessings of Forgiveness, Protection, and Guidance
enduringword.com
Psalm 32 / Refrain: Be glad, you righteous, and rejoice in the Lord.

Psalm 32
at biblegateway.com
Hymns for Psalm 32
hymnary.org {{Psalms 032 Works attributed to David