Psalm 24 (25) is an acrostic psalm; its principle of unity are the letters of the alphabet. The psalmist however composed the psalm sufficiently well making it a vehicle through which one can express one's need of forgiveness. Except for the last line which perhaps was added later on when the psalm was incorporated into Israel's worship (post exile?), the whole psalm can be used by anyone (individual or group) in a prayer for the forgiveness of sins.
Remember your compassion Lord
and your mercy
Indeed they are from of old
The sins of my youth and my guilt, do not remember
O Lord, remember me for the sake of your goodness (vv.6-7)
Memory is valued among covenantal partners. Here, the appeal to remember is grounded on the awareness that the Lord whose name is "Compassionate and Merciful" knows the one who prays. When Israel began using this psalm in worship, it recognized itself in the "I" of the psalm. Conscious that it has not been faithful to its covenant with the Lord, and most of the time unashamed in its infidelities, it now approaches the Lord from the midst of its afflictions. The covenant forged in the past is the string by which Israel pulls at God's heart.
All the paths of the Lord
are mercy and truth
His covenant and His statutes are with His faithful
For the sake of your Name, O Lord,
forgive my guilt for it is great. (vv. 10-11)
"I shall be your God; you shall be my people." The covenant that was forged with Israel raised it to the status of God's household. The word Me ('am) normally translated "people" is a nomad's term for those who sleep in one's tent; in other words, it means "family." The Lord who is the stronger covenant partner vows protection to Israel "the worm" (cf. Is. 41:14) and make it prosper while the latter will make its own the former's dreams, aspirations and ideals.
Who is the man who fears the Lord
He teaches him on the way He chose for him
His life dwells in security
and his posterity will inherit the earth
The Lord shares his secrets with those who fear Him
His covenant He makes known to them (vv. 12-14)
The man who fears the Lord is not one who cowers before Him in fright. The Hebrew word ary (yare') is not the aversion that makes people avoid someone dangerous. It is awe at the majesty of God mixed with the respectful affection of an infant for its father. I think it was St. Therese of Lisieux who once wrote that if you have a father who loves you and cares for you, you would never want to cause him sadness in any way. This is the Hebrew yare'; it is not the Lord who is feared so much but the possibility of causing Him grief.
God's love is designated by three words in this psalm: Mxr racham and dox hesed in v. 6 and Nnx chanan in v. 16.
Racham which I have translated as "compassion" is based on the word for the mother's womb, "rechem". It is God's maternal love, ready to forgive. Chesed on the other hand is translated in the latin Vulgate by "misericordia" and therefore the english "mercy". In reality, however, the word has so many nuances that no translation can render it faithfully. We know however that when referred to God, all its nuances of meaning are based in the concept's relationship to the covenant. Chesed is Yahweh's covenant-love and His will to keep that covenant. John Paul II calls it the paternal love of God: it is based on His Word of promise. Lastly, we have Chanan which in the New Testament is rendered as charizomai a verb related to "grace" (charis). It is the favor shown to the poor, the weak and the needy; it is unconditional love that seeks nothing back in return, freely given, freely withheld.
Israel has had a long experience of this three-dimensional love of God, and it is an experience that the psalmist expresses in the confidence of his prayer (v. 2.5.20), his hope (v.3.5.21), and his need
Turn to me and have mercy (wechanuni)
For alone am I and troubled
My heart's pain relieve
From my distress, rescue me
Put an end to my anguish
and take away all my guilt (vv.16-18)
Who is the father who, if he truly loves his child, would not run to the succour of the little one when it cries out in pain? Sin is not really an offense against God, since what can man do to Him? Sin is not even breaking the Law of God since the Law of God is like the law of gravity; the one who defies it gets broken instead. Sin is the damage that we do to ourselves; it breaks the image and likeness of God in us. it was for this reason that in the fullness of time God sent His Son so as to refashion broken man and restore him to wholeness, in the image and likeness of the Son of God.
