Psalm 6

The superscription of Psalm 6 identifies David as the author and instructs the psalm be sung “according to sheminith,” which the New Living Translation identifies as an eight-stringed instrument. This psalm is the first of seven penitential psalms (Pss. 6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130, 143) where the author confesses his sin and seeks God’s forgiveness and mercy. David wrote it at the time of a prolonged illness (6:2–3). He acknowledged that his sickness was a consequence of specific sins, and that God was disciplining him (v. 1). His plight had emboldened his enemies to launch a personal attack against him (vv. 7–8, 10). Exhausted by his sorrowing over his sins, David, in repentance and on the basis of God’s mercy (vv. 2, 4), asks for forgiveness, favor, and restoration. He concludes his prayer with the assurance that those who truly repent will receive God’s mercy (vv. 9–10).

K. T. Sim

Source: Our Daily Bread Devotional for January 30, 2022