Proverbs 28:13: “He who covers his sins will not prosper, / But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.”

July 2nd, 2024 by Pastor Ed in devotional

The Living Bible translates this verse: “A man who refuses to admit his mistakes can never be successful. But if he confesses and forsakes them, he gets another chance.” When we fall into sin (which, in its simplest form, is failing to do the things we should do and doing the things we shouldn’t do), we have 2 options before us: try and cover it or be honest and confess it. Augustine said, “In failing to confess, Lord, I would only hide You from myself, not myself from You.” Trying to cover our sin, only leads to a life filled with guilt.

When we confess and forsake our sins, we are seeing our actions from God’s point of view and agreeing with Him about their wrongness. God then immediately accepts us, giving us mercy, which is good for the soul. King David said, “Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, / Whose sin is covered. / Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity” (Psalm 32:1–2).

“LORD, we thank You for Your forgiveness, freely given to us when we confess and forsake our sins before Your throne of grace.”