THE PSALMIST BEGINS this prayer with a beatitude, "Blessed is the one" who is forgiven. In verse 3 he takes us to the notion that as long as he kept silent and did not repent, he wasted away. When we continue in sin, we waste away; but when we repent, how blessed we are to walk in the knowledge that God forgives us.

Psalm 32 is a good place to recognize that the voice of the Psalms often changes. We begin with the penitent's voice in verses 1 to 5 telling us about the reasons to repent. In verse 6 he transitions to a teacher, instructing that "...everyone who is godly (should) offer prayer to you (to God) at a time when you (God) may be found."

In verse 8 and 9, God is actually the speaker and tells us that he will instruct us and teach us how to live.

Please read this Psalm in its entirety with the idea of watching for the change of "voice." When you become comfortable with voice changes in the Psalms, it will diminish some of the confusion we sometimes have as to who is speaking in any given psalm.