Psalm 103:11-12

Context

Psalm 103 is a hymn of praise whose superscription reads "A Psalm of David." It opens with the psalmist calling on his own soul to praise: "Bless the LORD, O my soul" (v. 1). Beginning in verse 6, the focus widens from the grace the psalmist has received personally to the grace received by the community of Israel. Verses 7-8 restate the character God made known to Moses, repeating the confession of Exodus 34:6.

Verses 11-12 unfold this character through two images: God's mercy is as great as the heavens are high above the earth, and He has removed our transgressions as far as the east is from the west. Verse 13 goes on to describe a father who pities his children, and verses 14-16 speak of human life as frail as grass.

The Hebrew word hesed, rendered "mercy" or "lovingkindness," denotes steadfast love and faithfulness grounded in the covenant (the relationship of promise between God and His people). The word pesha, rendered "transgressions," is understood to refer not merely to mistakes but to rebellion or betrayal.

Interpretation

• Historical reading: The passage is read as a confession of the forgiveness God extended to His covenant people Israel. Many interpreters see its background in the account of Exodus 34, where God restores the covenant after the golden calf incident.
• Christ-centered reading: Many Protestant interpreters read this forgiveness as fulfilled in the atonement of Jesus Christ. In the Reformed tradition, the passage is often explained as showing the completeness of justification, in which God declares sinners righteous.
• Wesleyan reading: Methodist, Holiness, and other traditions that follow Wesleyan theology tend to emphasize the passage as the starting point from which the forgiven person, fearing God, moves forward into a holy life, that is, sanctification.
• Pastoral reading: The passage is used to offer assurance of salvation and comfort to believers troubled by guilt over sins that have already been forgiven.

Questions of Application

Major doctrinal controversy over this passage is rare. In applying it, however, the following questions arise:

• The condition "toward them that fear him": To "fear" here means to revere God with awe. The emphasis differs depending on whether this fear is regarded as a condition for receiving grace or as a response to grace. Most denominations broadly agree that the phrase refers to those who turn to God and trust in Him.
• Interpreting the east-west image: Sermons sometimes use the illustration that "north and south meet at the poles, but east and west extend endlessly and never meet." This explanation draws on modern geographical knowledge. The text itself is generally understood as an expression of the greatest distance the ancients could imagine.

Related Passages

• Exodus 34:6
• Micah 7:19
• Isaiah 38:17
• Jeremiah 31:34
• 1 John 1:7-10