Nathan said to David, ‘The Lord the God of Israel says this, “I anointed you king over Israel; I delivered you from the hands of Saul; I gave your master’s house to you, his wives into your arms; I gave you the House of Israel and of Judah; and if this were not enough, I would add as much again for you. Why have you shown contempt for the Lord, doing what displeases him? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword, taken his wife for your own, and killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. So now the sword will never be far from your House, since you have shown contempt for me and taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.”’

David said to Nathan, ‘I have sinned against the Lord.’ Then Nathan said to David, ‘The Lord, for his part, forgives your sin; you are not to die.’

Forgive, Lord, the guilt of my sin.

Happy the man whose offence is forgiven,
  whose sin is remitted.
O happy the man to whom the Lord
  imputes no guilt,
  in whose spirit is no guile.

Forgive, Lord, the guilt of my sin.

But now I have acknowledged my sins;
  my guilt I did not hide.
I said: ‘I will confess
  my offence to the Lord.’
And you, Lord, have forgiven
  the guilt of my sin.

Forgive, Lord, the guilt of my sin.

You are my hiding place, O Lord;
  you save me from distress.
  You surround me with cries of deliverance.

Forgive, Lord, the guilt of my sin.

Rejoice, rejoice in the Lord,
  exult, you just!
O come, ring out your joy,
  all you upright of heart.

Forgive, Lord, the guilt of my sin.

We acknowledge that what makes a man righteous is not obedience to the Law, but faith in Jesus Christ. We had to become believers in Christ Jesus no less than you had, and now we hold that faith in Christ rather than fidelity to the Law is what justifies us, and that no one can be justified by keeping the Law. In other words, through the Law I am dead to the Law, so that now I can live for God. I have been crucified with Christ, and I live now not with my own life but with the life of Christ who lives in me. The life I now live in this body I live in faith: faith in the Son of God who loved me and who sacrificed himself for my sake. I cannot bring myself to give up God’s gift: if the Law can justify us, there is no point in the death of Christ.

Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, says the Lord;
No one can come to the Father except through me.
Alleluia!