Psalms 51:17 (ASV)

Passage

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: A broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

Nearby Context

Psalms 51:15 O Lord, open thou my lips; And my mouth shall show forth thy praise.

Psalms 51:16 For thou delightest not in sacrifice; else would I give it: Thou hast no pleasure in burnt-offering.

Psalms 51:17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: A broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

Psalms 51:18 Do good in thy good pleasure unto Zion: Build thou the walls of Jerusalem.

Psalms 51:19 Then will thou delight in the sacrifices of righteousness, In burnt-offering and in whole burnt-offering: Then will they offer bullocks upon thine altar. Psalm 52 For the Chief Musician. Maschil of David; when Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul, and said unto him, David is come to the house of Abimelech.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "Spirit", "sacrifices", "broken", "contrite", "heart", "thou", and "wilt". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "Spirit" and "sacrifices", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 16's "For thou delightest not in sacrifice else..." into verse 18's "Do good in thy good pleasure unto...", so "Spirit" and "sacrifices" belong inside that flow. In Psalms context, the local focus is worship, trust, the LORD's kingship, and covenant mercy.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "Spirit" and "sacrifices" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.