Prayers of Repentance
Have mercy on us and forgive us, O Lord.
Psalm 50
Have mercy on me, O God, according to Thy great mercy; and according to the multitude of Thy compassions blot out my transgression. Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I know mine iniquity, and my sin is ever before me. Against Thee only have I sinned and done this evil before Thee, that Thou mightest be justified in Thy words, and prevail when Thou art judged. For behold, I was conceived in iniquities, and in sins did my mother bear me. For behold, Thou hast loved truth; the hidden and secret things of Thy wisdom hast Thou made manifest unto me. Thou shalt sprinkle me with hyssop, and I shall be made clean; Thou shalt wash me, and I shall be made whiter than snow. Thou shalt make me to hear joy and gladness; the bones that be humbled, they shall rejoice. Turn Thy face away from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from Thy presence, and take not Thy Holy Spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation, and with Thy governing Spirit establish me. I shall teach transgressors Thy ways, and the ungodly shall turn back unto Thee. Deliver me from blood-guiltiness, O God, Thou God of my salvation; my tongue shall rejoice in Thy righteousness. O Lord, Thou shalt open my lips, and my mouth shall declare Thy praise. For if Thou hadst desired sacrifice, I had given it; with whole-burnt offerings Thou shalt not be pleased. A sacrifice unto God is a broken spirit; a heart that is broken and humbled God will not despise. Do good, O Lord, in Thy good pleasure unto Sion, and let the walls of Jerusalem be builded. Then shalt Thou be pleased with a sacrifice of righteousness, with oblation and whole-burnt offerings. Then shall they offer bullocks upon Thine altar.
O Lord Almighty,
God of our fathers,
of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob
and of their righteous offspring;
you who made heaven and earth
with all their order;
who shackled the sea
by your word of command,
who confined the deep
and sealed it with your terrible
and glorious name;
at whom all things shudder,
and tremble before your power,
for your glorious splendour
cannot be borne,
and the wrath of your threat
to sinners is unendurable;
yet immeasurable and unsearchable
is your promised mercy,
for you are the Lord Most High,
of great compassion, long-suffering,
and very merciful,
and you relent at human suffering.
O Lord, according to your great goodness
you have promised repentance
and forgiveness
to those who have sinned against you,
and in the multitude of your mercies
you have appointed repentance for sinners,
so that they may be saved.
Therefore you, O Lord, God of the righteous,
have not appointed repentance
for the righteous,
for Abraham and Isaac and Jacob,
who did not sin against you,
but you have appointed repentance for me,
who am a sinner.
For the sins I have committed are more
in number than the sand of the sea;
my transgressions are multiplied,
O Lord, they are multiplied!
I am not worthy to look up
and see the height of heaven
because of the multitude
of my iniquities.
I am weighted down with many
an iron fetter,
so that I am rejected because of my sins,
and I have no relief;
for I have provoked your wrath
and have done what is evil in your sight,
setting up abominations
and multiplying offences.
And now I bend the knee of my heart,
imploring you for your kindness.
I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned,
and I acknowledge my transgressions.
I earnestly implore you,
forgive me, O Lord, forgive me!
Do not destroy me with my transgressions!
Do not be angry with me for ever
or store up evil for me;
do not condemn me to the depths
of the earth.
For you, O Lord, are the God
of those who repent,
and in me you will manifest your goodness;
for, unworthy as I am, you will save me
according to your great mercy,
and I will praise you continually
all the days of my life.
For all the host of heaven sings your praise,
and yours is the glory for ever. Amen.
How many times have I promised, yet every time I failed to keep my word. But disregard this according to Your grace.
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Grant forgiveness, O Lord, send also strength. Convert me that I might live in sanctity, according to Your holy will. Sanctify my heart that has become a den and dwelling-place of demons.
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I am unworthy to ask forgiveness for myself, O Lord, for many times have I promised to repent and proved myself a liar by not fulfilling my promise. You have picked me up many times already, but every time I freely chose to fall again.
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Therefore I condemn myself and admit that I deserve all manner of punishment and torture. How many times have You enlightened my darkened mind; yet every time I return again to my evil thoughts! My whole body trembles when I contemplate on this; yet every time sinful sensuality re-conquers me.
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How shall I recount all the gifts of Your grace, O Lord, that I the pitiful one have received? Yet I have reduced them all to nothing by my lack of concern, and I continue on in this manner. You have bestowed upon me thousands of gifts, yet miserable me, I offer in return things repulsive to you.
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Yet You, O Lord, inasmuch as You contain a sea of longsuffering and an abyss of kindness, do not allow me to be felled as a fruitless fig tree; and do not let me be burned without having ripened on the field of life. Snatch me not away unprepared; seize not me for I have not yet lit my lamp; take not away me who has no wedding garment; but, because You are good and the lover of mankind, have mercy on me. Give me time to repent, and place not my soul stripped naked before Your terrible and unwavering throne as a pitiful spectacle of infamy.
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If a righteous man can barely be saved, then where will I end up, I who am lawless and sinful? If the path that leads to life is straight and narrow, then how can I be guaranteed of such good things, I who live a life of luxury, indulging in my own pleasures and indulgences? But You, O Lord, my Saviour, Son of the true God, as You know and desire it, by Your grace alone, freely turn me away from the sin that abides in me and save me from ruin.