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Gustave Doré’s engraving of David standing crowned and bowed as he mourns Absalom

Psalm 32

What St Athanasius said to pray when you see someone baptised and made new, in a letter from the 300s.

  • 11Verses
  • 1Situation

St Athanasius, Letter to Marcellinus

When to pray it

In the 300s, St Athanasius of Alexandria wrote a letter to his friend Marcellinus about praying the Psalms. In it he matched psalms to what people go through. This is what he gave this one for.

You've seen someone made new, maybe yourself, and you're amazed at how much God loves us.

When you see people being baptised and set free from the corruption we are born into, and you marvel at God's love for mankind, sing Psalm 32 over them.

Letter to Marcellinus

11 verses, Berean Standard Bible

The whole psalm

Psalm 32

Its own heading Of David. A Maskil.

  1. 1Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.
  2. 2Blessed is the man whose iniquity the LORD does not count against him, in whose spirit there is no deceit.
  3. 3When I kept silent, my bones became brittle from my groaning all day long.
  4. 4For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was drained as in the summer heat. Selah
  5. 5Then I acknowledged my sin to You and did not hide my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” and You forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah
  6. 6Therefore let all the godly pray to You while You may be found. Surely when great waters rise, they will not come near.
  7. 7You are my hiding place. You protect me from trouble; You surround me with songs of deliverance. Selah
  8. 8I will instruct you and teach you the way you should go; I will give you counsel and watch over you.
  9. 9Do not be like the horse or mule, which have no understanding; they must be controlled with bit and bridle to make them come to you.
  10. 10Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but loving devotion surrounds him who trusts in the LORD.
  11. 11Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, O righteous ones; shout for joy, all you upright in heart.

Psalm 32 is 31 in the Greek numbering Athanasius used, which Orthodox Bibles and some older Catholic ones still follow.

When life is good, and you want to thank Him and grow

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Which Psalm are you living right now?

A few honest taps about your life right now, and the psalm an early Church Father gave for exactly that.

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Bible text: Berean Standard Bible, public domain. Athanasius’s advice is paraphrased from his Greek.