Psalm 51

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

³ For I know my transgressions,
    and my sin is ever before me.
⁴ Against thee, thee only, have I sinned,
    and done that which is evil in thy sight,
so that thou art justified in thy sentence
    and blameless in thy judgment.
⁵ Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
    and in sin did my mother conceive me.

⁶ Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward being;
    therefore teach me wisdom in my secret heart.
⁷ Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
    wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
⁸ Fill^[b] me with joy and gladness;
    let the bones which thou hast broken rejoice.
⁹ Hide thy face from my sins,
    and blot out all my iniquities.

¹⁰ Create in me a clean heart, O God,
    and put a new and right^[c] spirit within me.
¹¹ Cast me not away from thy presence,
    and take not thy holy Spirit from me.
¹² Restore to me the joy of thy salvation,
    and uphold me with a willing spirit.

¹³ Then I will teach transgressors thy ways,
    and sinners will return to thee.
¹⁴ Deliver me from bloodguiltiness,^[d] O God,
    thou God of my salvation,
    and my tongue will sing aloud of thy deliverance.

¹⁵ O Lord, open thou my lips,
    and my mouth shall show forth thy praise.
¹⁶ For thou hast no delight in sacrifice;
    were I to give a burnt offering, thou wouldst not be pleased.
¹⁷ The sacrifice acceptable to God^[e] is a broken spirit;
    a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

¹⁸ Do good to Zion in thy good pleasure;
    rebuild the walls of Jerusalem,
¹⁹ then wilt thou delight in right sacrifices,
    in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings;
    then bulls will be offered on thy altar.