The initial verb Have mercy (verse 1a) is often used in the Psalms; it means to show favor, to be kindly disposed (see 4.1c, where the same verb is translated “Be gracious”). Have mercy on me is sometimes rendered in idiomatic language; for example, “Have a white heart for me” or “Be pained for me.”

The two qualities of God on which the psalmist depends for forgiveness are his steadfast love (verse 1a; see comments at 5.7) and his mercy (verse 1b). The Hebrew word translated mercy is plural in form, and when it has this sense it is always plural. In some contexts it means “bowels,” and the singular form means “womb.” The word carries a sense of intense emotion, of deep-seated feelings, which one has for a person who is especially near and dear.

In the opening prayer for forgiveness, three different words for sin are used: transgressions (verse 1b) are primarily acts of disobedience, of rebellion; iniquity (verse 2a) is guilt, fault, a deliberate act of misconduct; and sin (verse 2b) is the most general word used in the Old Testament; it has basically the idea of going astray, of missing the mark.

The request to forgive is expressed by three verbs: blot out (verse 1b) is to wipe out, like rubbing out an item on a list (see 9.5); Wash represents sin as a stain that has to be washed out; the verb expresses the way in which clothes were washed by being beaten against rocks to remove the dirt; and cleanse means to purify; here sin is thought of as a defilement which renders a person ritually unclean and which must be removed so that he or she can be pronounced clean and rejoin the community.

The figures used of removing sin through wiping and washing may require some adjustments in some languages where these figures are not clear. One may use a simile; for example, “Wipe away my sins like a person wipes up water” and “Wash away my evil like a person washes away dirt.”

The two lines of verse 2 form a chiastic structure in Hebrew, with the nouns bracketed by the verbs: wash iniquity: sins cleanse. The parallelism is static, with no heightening effect between the lines. Although the meaning is the same, the word order is different in the two lines, indicating the psalmist’s desire to express a totality of action in regard to being relieved of his sins. A chiastic structure in the receptor language may be syntactically impossible or stylistically awkward. The translator should, however, attempt to retain both lines, unless there are very good reasons for reducing them to one.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Reyburn, William D. A Handbook on the Book of Psalms. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1991. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .