John Calvin Commentary Psalms 32:1

"Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered." — Psalms 32:1 (ASV)

Blessed are they whose iniquity is forgiven. This exclamation springs from the fervent affection of the Psalmist’s heart as well as from serious consideration. Since almost the whole world, by turning away its thoughts from God’s judgment, brings upon itself a fatal forgetfulness and intoxicates itself with deceitful pleasures, David, as if he had been stricken with the fear of God’s wrath, so that he might turn to Divine mercy, also awakens others to the same endeavor by declaring distinctly and loudly that only those are blessed to whom God is reconciled, acknowledging as His children those whom He might justly treat as His enemies.

Some are so blinded with hypocrisy and pride, and some with such gross contempt of God, that they are not at all anxious about seeking forgiveness. Yet all acknowledge that they need forgiveness; nor is there a person in existence whose conscience does not accuse them at God’s judgment-seat and torment them with many stings.

Accordingly, nature itself extorts this confession even from wicked people: that all need forgiveness, because no one is perfect, and that it is well with us only then when God pardons our sins. But in the meantime, hypocrisy shuts the eyes of multitudes, while others are so deluded by a perverse worldly security that they are touched either with no feelings of Divine wrath, or with only a cold feeling of it.

From this arises a twofold error: first, that such people make light of their sins and do not reflect on even a hundredth part of their danger from God’s indignation; and, secondly, that they invent frivolous expiations to free themselves from guilt and to purchase the favor of God.

Thus, in all ages, it has been a prevailing opinion everywhere that although all people are infected with sin, they are at the same time adorned with merits intended to procure for them the favor of God. And although they provoke His wrath by their crimes, they have expiations and satisfactions ready to obtain their absolution.

This delusion of Satan is equally common among Roman Catholics, Muslims, Jews, and other nations. Therefore, everyone who is not carried away by the vehement errors of the Papal system will admit the truth of this statement: that people are in a wretched state unless God deals mercifully with them by not charging their sins against them.

But David goes further, declaring that all human life is subject to God’s wrath and curse, unless He graciously grants by His own free grace to receive people into His favor. The Spirit who spoke through David is an assured interpreter and witness of this to us by the mouth of Paul (Romans 4:6).

Had Paul not used this testimony, his readers would never have penetrated the real meaning of the prophet. For we see that Roman Catholics, although they chant in their temples, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, etc., yet pass over it as if it were some common saying and of little importance.

But with Paul, this is the full definition of the righteousness of faith, as if the prophet had said: People are blessed only then when they are freely reconciled to God and counted as righteous by Him. Accordingly, the blessedness that David celebrates utterly destroys the righteousness of works.

The device of a partial righteousness with which Roman Catholics and others delude themselves is mere folly. Even among those who are lacking the light of heavenly doctrine, no one will be found so foolish as to claim perfect righteousness for themselves, as appears from the expiations, washings, and other means of appeasing God, which have always been in use among all nations. Yet they do not hesitate to impose their virtues upon God, as if by them they had acquired for themselves a great part of their blessedness.

David, however, prescribes a very different order: namely, that in seeking happiness, all should begin with the principle that God cannot be reconciled to those who are worthy of eternal destruction in any other way than by freely pardoning them and bestowing His favor upon them. And he justly declares that if mercy is withheld from them, all people must be utterly wretched and accursed. For if all people are naturally prone only to evil until they are regenerated, it is obvious that their whole previous life must be hateful and loathsome in the sight of God.

Besides, since even after regeneration no work that people perform can please God unless He pardons the sin that is mixed with it, they must be excluded from the hope of salvation. Certainly, nothing will remain for them but cause for the greatest terror.

That the works of the saints are unworthy of reward because they are spotted with stains seems a hard saying to Roman Catholics. But in this, they betray their gross ignorance in estimating, according to their own conceptions, the judgment of God, in whose eyes even the brightness of the stars is but darkness.

Let this, therefore, remain an established doctrine: that as we are accounted righteous before God only by the free remission of sins, this is the gate of eternal salvation. Accordingly, only those are blessed who rely upon God’s mercy. We must bear in mind the contrast I have already mentioned between believers who, embracing the remission of sins, rely upon the grace of God alone, and all others who neglect to resort to the sanctuary of Divine grace.

Moreover, when David repeats the same thing three times, this is no pointless repetition. It is indeed sufficiently evident in itself that a person whose iniquity is forgiven must be blessed; but experience teaches us how difficult it is to become persuaded of this in such a manner as to have it thoroughly fixed in our hearts.

The great majority, as I have already shown, entangled by devices of their own, push away from themselves, as much as they can, the terrors of conscience and all fear of Divine wrath. They undoubtedly have a desire to be reconciled to God; yet they shun the sight of Him, rather than seek His grace sincerely and with all their hearts.

Those, on the other hand, whom God has truly awakened so as to be affected with a vivid sense of their misery, are so constantly agitated and disquieted that it is difficult to restore peace to their minds. They indeed taste God’s mercy and endeavor to lay hold of it, yet they are frequently confounded or made to stumble by the many assaults made against them.

The two reasons the Psalmist insists so much on the subject of the forgiveness of sins are these: on the one hand, that he may raise up those who have fallen asleep, inspire the careless with thoughtfulness, and enliven the dull; and on the other hand, that he may calm fearful and anxious minds with an assured and steady confidence.

To the former, the doctrine may be applied in this manner: “What do you mean, O unhappy people, that one or two stings of conscience do not disturb you? Suppose that a certain limited knowledge of your sins is not sufficient to strike you with terror, yet how preposterous it is to continue securely asleep while you are overwhelmed with an immense load of sins!” And this repetition provides considerable comfort and confirmation to the feeble and fearful.

As doubts often come upon them, one after another, it is not sufficient that they are victorious in only one conflict. Therefore, so that despair may not overwhelm them amidst the various perplexing thoughts with which they are agitated, the Holy Spirit confirms and ratifies the remission of sins with many declarations.

It is now proper to weigh the particular force of the expressions used here. Certainly, the remission discussed here does not agree with satisfactions. God, in lifting off or taking away sins, and likewise in covering and not imputing them, freely pardons them. On this account, Roman Catholics, by thrusting in their satisfactions and what they call works of supererogation, deprive themselves of this blessedness.

Besides, David applies these words to complete forgiveness. The distinction, therefore, which Roman Catholics make here between the remission of the punishment and of the fault—by which they offer only half a pardon—is entirely irrelevant. Now, it is necessary to consider to whom this happiness belongs, which may be easily inferred from the context of the time.

When David was taught that he was blessed through the mercy of God alone, he was not an outsider to the community of God; on the contrary, he had advanced beyond many in the fear and service of God, and in holiness of life, and had exercised himself in all the duties of godliness.

And even after making these advances in religion, God so disciplined him that he placed the alpha and omega of his salvation in his free reconciliation to God. Nor is it without reason that Zacharias, in his song, represents “the knowledge of salvation” as consisting in knowing “the remission of sins” (Luke 1:77). The more eminently anyone excels in holiness, the farther they feel themselves from perfect righteousness, and the more clearly they perceive that they can trust in nothing but the mercy of God alone.

Hence it appears that those are grossly mistaken who believe that the pardon of sin is necessary only for the beginning of righteousness. As believers are every day involved in many faults, it will benefit them nothing that they have once entered the way of righteousness, unless the same grace that brought them into it accompanies them to the last step of their life.

If anyone objects that they are elsewhere said to be blessed “who fear the Lord,” “who walk in his ways,” “who are upright in heart,” etc., the answer is easy: namely, that as the perfect fear of the Lord, the perfect observance of His law, and perfect uprightness of heart are nowhere to be found, all that Scripture anywhere says concerning blessedness is founded upon the free favor of God, by which He reconciles us to Himself.