Behold, I was shapen in iniquity and in sin did my mother conceive me.
(Psa 51:5)
Psa 51:5 is perhaps
the second most common “proof-text,” just behind Rom 5:12 in terms of
popularity, of proving a theology of Original Sin (there are many theologies of
the nature of Original Sin). Michael Saia offers some cogent and interesting
approaches to this verse:
There are good reasons not to interpret this verse as teaching that
people are born with an inherited sinful nature.
First, the actual words of the verse do not teach such a doctrine. If we
take the words in their proper chronological order, David said, “My Mother
conceived and brought me forth in sin.” The words themselves tell us something
about the conception and birth of David, but nothing about David’s essential
nature as a person. This verse teaches that the circumstances surrounding David’s
birth were sinful, but not that David was sinful by nature.
Second, this is more of a reference to David’s mother than to David. In
his anguish, David related his act of adultery with Bathsheba to his own conception
and birth, which were apparently the result of adultery on his mother’s part (and
his father’s too, though David does not mention him here. There are a couple of
reasons this might be so:
(A) Jesse did not present David as one of his sons when Samuel first
asked Jesse to bring his sons before him (1 Sam 16:1-11). Jesse evidently had
some reasons to keep Samuel from meeting David. Perhaps he was ashamed of David’s
origins.
(B) David is everywhere spoken of as the “son of Jesse,” but his sister,
Abigail (1 Chron 2:13-16) was the daughter of a man named Nahash (2 Sam 17:25).
Abigail is also called the sister of the other sons of Jesse, whom we assume
were the children of Jesse and his wife. It appears as if sexual immorality was
a part of David’s family background and David’s mother was probably not the
mother of the other sons of Jesse.
All these family relationships become very complex, but the main point
that should not be lost here, is that David’s mother was in sin when she
conceived and bore David. David is speaking of his mother’s actions—not his
own nature.
(C) David’s brothers seemed embarrassed by David when he came to the
battle with the Philistines. This could be an indication that David was a half
brother rather than a full brother.
In any case, David’s comments about his mother are related to his own
sexual sin in order to emphasise his guilt. Davis is only saying he has
followed the example of his mother in his sin, but that his mother’s actions
made him a sinner from birth, or that he was a sinner just because he was born.
Third, the emotional nature of David’s repentance makes it necessary not
to press too literal an interpretation of his words. If we were to do that,
then David would be teaching all sin against other people is only committed
against God and not against the people. David said, “Against Thee, Thee only,
I have sinned.” But are we to take this to mean that David did not sin against
his wives, against whom he committed adultery, against Bathsheba, with whom he
committed adultery, or against Uriah, against whom he committed adultery and
murder? David’s outburst that he was “conceived and born in sin” was an
emotional hyperbole similar to his claim that he had only sinned against God. (Michael R. Saia, Understanding
the Cross [Xulon Press, 2007], 91-92, emphasis in original)
