Psalm 103:3 - Printer Friendly

ESV: who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases,

NIV: who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,

NASB: Who pardons all your guilt, Who heals all your diseases;

CSB: He forgives all your iniquity; he heals all your diseases.

NLT: He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.

KJV: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;

NKJV: Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases,

In this verse David begins to list some of the Lord's benefits for which He is worthy of praise. The first is forgiveness of all iniquity. The Hebrew word translated "iniquity" identifies something twisted and distorted. Lust, including lust for power or wealth, tries to convince us that sin is desirable, with a corrupted, warped perspective (James 1:14–15).

Iniquity brings conviction and judgment. Paul described a self-indulgent person as "dead even while she lives" (1 Timothy 5:6). David saw the sinful act of adultery as something desirable at first, but later his iniquity gnawed at him until he confessed it to the Lord and received forgiveness (Psalm 51:1, 8–12). In Psalm 103:3 David also praises the Lord for healing. Some illness comes by nature, not by sin, and God sometimes heals those (John 9:1–7). Often, however, it is sinning which brings sickness upon the sinner. Sometimes, but not always, when the Lord forgives sin He heals the sickness. Psalm 51:6 and Psalm 32:3–4 depict physical suffering that David's sin had brought upon him, but the Lord restored him spiritually and physically (Psalm 32:5–7).

Psalm 103:1–5 records David commanding his entire inner being to praise the Lord and to remember all the Lord's benefits. He credits the Lord with forgiveness of sin and healing of diseases. He says the Lord redeems the believer's life from the realm of the dead and bestows on him steadfast love, mercy, satisfaction, and renewal.

Psalm 103 praises God for what He has done. This includes celebration of His personal influence, as well as the way God has blessed the nation of Israel. David encourages praises from himself, from the people in general, and even from the angels and hosts of heaven.

Psalm 103 is one of four psalms which complete the fourth division of the book of Psalms (Psalms 90—106). These four psalms ascribe praise to the Lord. Psalm 103 was written by David and expresses his gratitude to the Lord for all His benefits. First Thessalonians 5:18 conveys the same theme of thanksgiving by exhorting believers to ''give thanks in all circumstances.''

The book of Psalms is composed of individual songs, hymns, or poems, each of which is a ''Psalm'' in and of itself. These works contain a wide variety of themes. Some Psalms focus on praising and worshipping God. Others cry out in anguish over the pain of life. Still other Psalms look forward to the coming of the Messiah. While some Psalms are related, each has its own historical and biblical context.