Ringen mit Gott

In vv. 6 and 7, Ps 51 contains two of the most important theological statements in the discussion of sin and therefore also for the understanding of humans before God. These statements have rendered Ps 51 a central text for discussions of hamartiology, the doctrine of the human sin before God. This article examines the purpose of vv. 5–8 in Ps 51 and views them as an expression of the struggle of the humanness of humanity before the sovereign God. The article addresses text-critically relevant passages and different translation possibilities for vv. 5–8, the structure of the psalm, and its connections to other biblical texts.