Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
— Psalm 51:5-10
Iniquities prevail against me: as for our transgressions, thou shalt purge them away.
— Psalm 65:3
Thou hast set our iniquities before thee, our secret sins in the light of thy countenance.
— Psalm 90:8
Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.
— Psalm 139:2
Of Sins of Ignorance, Presumption and Reigning in a Man, Is Also the Mitigations and Aggravations of Sin, by Anthony Burgess. The following contains an excerpt from his collection of sermons, “A Treatise of Sin: The Deceitfulness of the Heart, Unmasked.” 1654.
Of sins of ignorance and how it comes about that a godly man may live in sin and not know it.
Cleanse thou me from secret faults.
— Psalm 19:12b
David desired to be cleansed from secret sins. In the Hebrew it’s only secret, and is for the explication of errors which he had mentioned before, namely such sins that through ignorance or any other way I cannot discern. Therefore, our translators do well add sins, though in a different character to show it is not in the original.
Now, a sin may be said to be secret or hidden in two ways.
First, in respect of others—that others do not know it. And so many men commit gross and vile sins, which their own consciences accuse and condemn—only they labor to conceal them from others. Thus, the Apostle said it was a shame to speak what was done by some in secret, Ephesians 5:12. And they are called in 2 Corinthians 4:14, the hidden things of dishonesty. Because it is the property of every man like Adam to hide and cover his sin from others, but impossible from God Himself.
Now David does not mean such secret sins here. For howsoever it be true that a godly man dare not allow himself in any secret known sin, as we see in Joseph, “how can I do this sin and sin against God?” Yet David reaches to a higher degree of grace in this text. He is so far from conniving in any sin known to himself, though secret to others, that he is afraid and prays against even those sins that may be in him, and yet he may not know them.
Secondly, a sin may be said to be secret or hidden, not only in respect of the knowledge of others, but also to our own knowledge. So that the man who does such a thing, yet does not at all think he sins in it. And this David prays against it, in the text. Now it may be objected how anything that comes merely through ignorance can be a sin, if it be holy from ignorance. It’s involuntary. And if it be involuntary, how can it be a sin? Seeing there is no consent of the will. Hence an axiom of Augustine is urged by the Papists, Who would not have that lust rising up in us against our consents? And antecedently to our reason and deliberation, to be truly and formally a sin. To answer this, the scripture makes a formal nature of a sin to lie in this.
That it be a transgression of the law, as appears by John’s definition in 1 John 3. Whether it be involuntary or come from ignorance, that does not take off from the sin. So we read that the Jews had their sacrifices for their sins of ignorance, Leviticus 4:12, and 13. Leviticus 5:15, and Paul in Romans 7 calls that sin, which yet he would not, yea he hated. And as for that of Augustine, he himself did not understand it of original sin, but of actual sins. And whether a thing may be said to be voluntary, either immediately, because directly and immediately willed by the will, or mediately and interpretively, because it is willed in the cause of it, and thus original sin, and all the sins that are committed out of ignorance, error, and inadvertency—they are voluntary in their remote cause. And self cannot be said to be committed without the will. And as for the other rule, that invincible ignorance does totally excuse. That may be true in some particular facts amongst men. But of the law of God there cannot be any excusable ignorance. For every man is bound to have a knowledge of God’s will, and so his ignorance, in which he sins, is a privation of rectitude that ought to be in every man’s understanding.
Thus, you see that sins are sins because of breach of God’s law, though many times we don’t know them to be so. And therefore, David, by a holy caution and godly jealousy, prays against such sins.
Observation
It is the duty of a godly man to be humbled for, and to desire pardon of not only the sins they know and are convinced of, but even of unknown sins. He has a…holy jealousy. That some unknown sin, some undiscovered sin, does not damn him. And maybe there may be more danger from these unknown sins, because when discovered, they are more easily withstood and striven against. But an unknown enemy, or an unknown disease, does easily kill. So an unknown sin may quickly destroy us. To open this doctrine, we shall first discover the grounds in which it may arise that our sins be hid from us. How it may come about that a man does not understand his sins?
1. It arises from that dangerous wound and disease which is upon a man’s mind by original sin. And although a godly man be renewed in his mind, and have this eye salve, yet the apostle says we know, but in part. If the philosopher could say that even in natural truths our understandings were but like the owl’s eyes to the sun. How much more is this true and divine and heavenly things? No wonder then if the godly lie in many sins of ignorance, sins they have knowledge, but in part. And the apostle in that comprehends his own self, though taken up into the third heaven and hearing things unutterable. Yea, and that in the time of the gospel also, when a great measure of knowledge is given, Paul thought his former time, a time of childhood. He spake and understood as a child. But yet when he comes to speak as a man, and childish things are done away, while he is in this life, Paul is not able to know all things by himself, and therefore he said, though he knew nothing by himself, yet therein he was not justified, because it was God that judged, 1 Corinthians 4:4. Well then, how humble and debased should God’s children be in their own eyes? For if they do and can understand such errors, and so much filthiness in themselves that they cannot endure and abide themselves. What would they do if they could behold all their deformities?
2. Therefore, the people of God cannot see all the spots and blemishes that are in themselves because of their self-love and self-flattery. The relics whereof are in the godly as well as other sins. Yea, sometimes they are too active. We see in David concerning the matter of Bathsheba. How severe he was in judging the supposed man that was so injurious in Nathan’s parable, and he was so blinded with self-love that he did not think he was the man. And so Judah also in the matter of Tamar, whom he had defiled, how zealous was he, bring her out to be burnt, not considering that he was guilty of adultery. Now then if in gross sins a godly man may so far love himself and indulge himself, that he shall not know his errors. How much rather in sins more difficultly found out. Many sad failings and a number of miscarriages the children of God may run into, and yet have such a mist before their eyes, that they don’t see anything. Others they wonder and say, How dare such if they fear God, if they have felt the bitterness of sin, if they know what godliness means, allow themselves in such ways? But though the godly see in many things, yet self-love puts a veil before their eyes and other particulars. When a cloud was upon Jonah’s spirit, when the Lord expostulated with him for his disobedience and discontent, he says to God himself, I do well to be angry. Here, Jonah did not see his froward disposition. If he had, he would have said the plain contrary. I do ill to be angry. I abhor myself because I have been like a beast before you, O God. You see then the people of God through self-love may be so far transported—as that they do not only not understand their errors, but they justify them. They plead for them. They say they do well. What need have we of David’s prayer to God that he would prove him and try him if there were any doubt or false way in him?
3. Sins are many times hid from the godly man’s eye, though he commits them, because he is not diligent and accurate in making a search of himself, and in an impartial studying of his own ways. If any sin be hid, as Saul was behind his stuff, or as Rahab had hid the spies, unless a man be very careful to search, he shall think no sin is there where it is. So it is, the bible so often command that duty of searching and trying, of examining and communing with our hearts. Now what needs were there of this duty but that it supposed many secret and subtle lusts lie lurking in our own breasts, which we don’t take notice of? If then the godly would find out their hidden lusts, know the sins they not yet know. They must more impartially judge themselves. They must take time to survey and examine themselves. They must not in an overly and slight manner, but really and industriously look up and down as they would searching for thieves. And they must again and again look into this dark corner and that dark corner of their hearts, as a woman sought for the lost groat (Luke 15:8). This self-scrutiny and self-judging, this winnowing and sifting of ourselves is the only way to see what is chaff and what is wheat. What is mere refuge and what is enduring?
4. The people of God sometimes do not understand their sins because of the great deceitfulness that is in sin. It steals in upon us unaware. Hence is that phrase, be not deceived. And it’s called the deceitfulness of sin, Hebrews 3:13. It has many secret ways of insinuating. It is like a Delilah. It’s like Jael and Sisera. Sin is a sweet poison, it tickles while it stabs. No wonder then that a godly man may commit sin and not know it. For the first thing sin does is to bewitch him, to put out his eyes, to take away his sense and feeling, to do to a man as Noah’s daughters did to their father, make him drunk. And then he doesn’t know what he does. So many kinds of sins come with such pleasures or profits or fair pretense as suitable to flesh and blood that the delight and content they bring with them make the godly for the present secure. And they apprehend no danger at all, as Joab came with a kind of salute to Abner and thrust him under the fifth rib, while Abner thought of nothing but kindness. Thus, it is with sin. It comes smiling. It comes pleasing and humoring you, while it gives you that deadly stab. The godly do not understand many of their sins, sometimes because of custom and education. They have been always brought up in such a way. They have always been accustomed to such usages. Now because they were never reproached, nor heard of the sinfulness of them, therefore it is that they do many things without scruple or fear with the godly. Of greater light and knowledge dare not do.
5. Thus, the apostle in Romans 15 speaks of some who were weak in faith, by reason of their education and custom to Jewish observances. They could not but make a difference between meats and meats, between days and days. This was their weakness, yet they could not presently be brought out of it. And our Savior supposes this, in that admirable and prudent rule He gives. No man puts new wine into old bottles, Matthew 9.17. The meaning is, as appears by the occasion, no minister that is wise will suddenly press high In more sublime duties to those that are yet weak. And through custom and education are not fit to receive such strong meat. But they must be prepared by degrees. It may fall out, then, that some godly men do build hay, and stumble upon the good foundation. And all the while they don’t think nor know it’s hay and stubble. And a great cause of this may be custom in education. They have not been brought up under better knowledge. And when better instruction was to be had.
6. Sins may be hid from the godly because they are of a more inward and immediate alliance with the heart of a man. They are the immediate issue and offspring of the soul. Such are the thoughts, the notions, the aims and intentions of our heart. Such sins as these, because they are of a more subtle and close nature, a man does the less discover them. Whereas for gross actual sins, those a man may more easily be convinced of. If you ask then, what are those sins which a godly man takes the least notice of, you will find they are not gross and outward transgressions, but heart sins, the thoughts, the intentions, the motions of the soul. A world of these may pass through the soul and be never examined. So the Pharisees made the outside of the dish clean, but all the filth was within. They would strain at a gnat, but would swallow a camel. O, then how little do the godly understand of their heart pollutions, the thoughts and intentions of their hearts. These are very indiscernible. You see, the very thoughts and all other acts of the soul are hardly perceived. We hardly know when we think or will, much more than do we hardly discover the sinfulness of those actings of the soul.
7. Satan. He does very busily assault the people of God and tempt them to sin. Now he has no way sooner to overcome them than by casting a mist before their eyes or by his cunning devices to beguile the godly, so that they are not able to perceive the sin until it is committed. Some have had a terrible thought of Ananias and Sapphira, as if they might be saved for all that great sin of theirs. But how comes it about that they lie and disassemble so much? How is it that they do not perceive the sinfulness of it? It was because Satan had filled his heart, Acts 5.3. A learned critic compares it with the phrase of being filled with the Holy Ghost, or faith, that as a man feels so is strongly encouraged and does not consider the difficulty or dangers in his duty. So Ananias being filled with the devil’s suggestions did not feel or fear any remorse of conscience, any anger of God, but was fully bent to sin whatsoever come of it. We also have an example in David. He will have the people numbered, though Joab did never so much dissuade. Well, but when he is done, then says the text, his heart smote him, 1 Samuel 14:5. Then he began to consider that he had sinned, and that he was greatly afflicted because of it. But why did not David’s heart smite him before? That might have prevented much sin. It is said, Satan stirred him up to number his people, so that as jugglers and conjurers they delude the senses, and make the appearances of things to be when they are no realities. So the devil, through his wily and crafty temptations, knowing the godly man’s disposition, and a fit occasion for sin does so darken and becloud his judgment, that he is carried into the deep pit before he ever think of it. Lastly, one great cause why so much of the godly man’s sin may be hid from his eyes may be the lack of a sound and soul-searching ministry. That is the light which makes us see those toads and serpents that we could not discover before, 1 Corinthians 14:25. The unbeliever that comes into the congregation, while the word is open, has the thoughts of his heart manifested and he falls down and worships God. Those that lived under the Pharisees’ teaching would never have been convinced that the thoughts and affections of the heart were breaches of God’s law. They did not understand that their heart was full of adultery and murder, as their Savior instructed them. What a world of sins may a people live in for lack of a sound and powerful ministry. For if when the light shines, men for all that love darkness more than light, and they will presumptuously commit such sins, that they know to be so, how ready and active must they needs be in sins they do not know.
For exhortation to the godly, that they may be not confident in themselves, that they walk within holy and godly suspicion of themselves. If you do not find a multitude of heart-sins within you, even as the sea is full of creeping things, it’s not because they are not there, but because you do not perceive them. What Jacob said in another case, verily this is the house of God, and I knew it not (Genesis 28:16-17). You may, on the contrary, say, verily, my heart is a lodge of unclean thoughts, of proud earthly thoughts, and I did not know it. Use of terror to all those who live unknown and convince sins. What shall David so greatly bewail and so heartily beg to pardon of unknown sins? And are you so obstinate in sins your own heart condemns you for? Father, forgive them, said Christ, for they know not what they do. But how shall we pray? Forgive them, for they know not what they do?
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