Psalm 19:13 Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright… I. WHAT THESE PRESUMPTUOUS SINS ARE. Three parts go to make up such a sin — 1. That a man undertake an action known by him to be unlawful or at least doubtful. 2. That, notwithstanding, he promise to himself security from the punishment due to it. 3. That he do this upon motives utterly groundless and unreasonable. He cannot plead ignorance nor surprise, II. INSTANCES OF SUCH SINS. Of the most notable kind are — 1. To sin against the goodness of God manifesting itself to a man in great prosperity. What ingratitude this. 2. To sin when God is judging and afflicting us. When He is trying to hold us back from our sins. What is this but to wage war with God? 3. To sin when the sin is clearly discovered to us in the Word of God, and when God has wrought in us conviction concerning it. 4. To sin when God's providence is seeking to thwart it and, as it were, lies cross to the commission of it. As when Pharaoh would go after the Israelites notwithstanding God made him know He would not have him do so. 5. When conscience has checked, warned, and remonstrated against such sin. It is to resist God's Spirit. 6. When we know that by such sin we destroy all our joy in God, and all our happiness and power in serving Him. 7. When we go back again and again to the same sin. Flies are accounted bold creatures, for drive them off from a place as often as you will, yet presently they will be there again. But for a man who has by God's grace been rescued from some gross sin to go back to it — what hope is there of that man's being saved? III. CONSIDER SOME REMEDIES AGAINST THESE SINS. 1. Try to get deep apprehension and persuasion of the evil of sin generally. To this end see what evil sin hath wrought. 2. Then let a man reflect seriously upon God's justice. 3. Think how men would be exasperated if we were to deal with them so. IV. WHY DOES DAVID THUS EARNESTLY PRAY? He prays against them as so many pests, so many direful causes of God's wrath, so many devourers of souls. And he thus prayed because — 1. Of the danger of falling into these sins. Our nature so prone to them. Men measure their beliefs by their desires. Most men are of a debonair, sanguine, jolly disposition, so that where despair has slain its thousands presumption has slain its ten thousands. And the greatness of the mercy of God leads men to presume, for it is more manifest than His anger, and Satan is ever busy to put men in such sins (1 Chronicles 21:1; Luke 22:3; Acts 5:8). 2. The sad consequences of them. They grow by indulgence. They waste conscience and so are hard to cure. They bring down greater judgments than any others. They are big with confusion, disaster, and curse. God must thus confound an audacious sinner in his course. (Robert South, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression. |
    |