God’s glory should embolden us to seek out his forgiveness.

In Psalm 25:7, David makes a request of the Lord he says,

 

Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions

 

David asks the Lord to look past his former sins. To forget them. Let’s not rush the absolute boldness of this prayer. How can a perfectly holy and perfectly just God simply forget about unholy offenses against him and man? Where does David get such boldness? I think his boldness comes from him being consumed with desire for God’s glory. I think David has a particular scene in mind when he prays this prayer.

 

God’s Glory Descending as Goodness and Steadfast to Forgive on Mount Sinai
In Exodus 33, Moses is on Mount Sinai meeting with God. And there Moses also makes a bold request of God. In verse 18 Moses says, “Please show me your glory.” And God responds by saying, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord’” (Exodus 33:19). God tells Moses he will show him his goodness. And God makes clear that his goodness is bound up in his name.

So a few verses later, we see this unfold. God indeed passes by Moses and declares his name. And what does he say? We see the answer in Exodus 34:6–7,

 

The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin,

 

It’s like we’ve descended a ladder. God’s glory descends, manifesting as God’s goodness, which manifests as God proclaiming his name. And the essence of God’s name is his steadfast love to forgive sins and transgressions. This is who God is. This is the glory of God, the goodness of God revealed to us as steadfast love to forgive.

 

David’s Boldness and God’s Glory
So when David prays the bold prayer, “Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions,” he does not boldly pray this because of who he is. He deserves judgment. He boldly prays this because he is thinking of who God revealed himself to be on Mount Sinai. If we look to see what surrounds David’s prayer in Psalm 25, we see this is indeed the case. Consider what hems in David’s bold request before it and behind it.

First, before he ever makes his bold request in verse 7, David makes a prior request in verse 6,

 

Remember your mercy, O Lord, and your steadfast love, for they have been from of old.

 

David says, “God! Remember who you revealed yourself to be all those years ago on Mount Sinai! You revealed yourself to be the LORD of steadfast love, who forgives sins and transgressions!” The foundation for David’s boldness is God and his steadfast love to forgive.

And after David makes his bold request in verse 7, what does he follow it up with? Read on,

 

according to your steadfast love remember me,

 

David boldly requests God to not remember him according to his sins that would demand judgment. Rather, David requests God to remember him according to his [God’s] steadfast love that forgives. David hems his request in before and behind with the steel doors of God’s steadfast love to forgive and preserve his covenant people.

But why should God do this? David supports his bold request with one final reason,

 

for the sake of your goodness, O Lord!

 

David sinks his bold request to rest in the unshakeable foundation, the bedrock of the goodness of God. The goodness of God, which David knows passed before Moses as the glory of God.

Let’s climb back up the ladder. David boldly requests forgiveness by grabbing hold of the rung of God’s steadfast love. And David uses the rung of God’s steadfast love to reach and grab tightly to the rung of the goodness of God. And David climbs this ladder boldly, because he wants to see what awaits at the top. He wants to see God’s glory. David is emboldened to make such an audacious request of God because he desires the glory of God.

 

Jesus, the Glory of God to Forgive
The only way we can ascend the ladder to God’s glory, is because God descended from his glory to us first in order to offer us forgiveness in Jesus. God by the pattern set on Sinai, by the faith displayed in David’s, and by words of OT prophecy pointed to the day of fulfilment in Christ, when his glory and goodness would provide forgiveness. Jeremiah 31:14 anticipated the day of Christ,

 

“I will feast the soul of the priests with abundance, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, declares the Lord.”

 

God promised to satisfy his people with his goodness, that is, his glory. And how did that glory and goodness come to satisfy? Jesus tells us,

 

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”

 

In Jesus we find steadfast love to forgive every sin. Thus, in Jesus we see and are satisfied with the goodness of God. Thus, in Jesus we see and are satisfied with the glory of God. If you desire to see the glory of God, boldly seek forgiveness in Jesus, the glory of God to forgive.