SIN – TRESPASS – INIQUITY

In Psalm 32:5, the psalmist says, “I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD.’” This one verse uses three words: “sin,” “iniquity,” and “transgression.” At a basic level, they communicate the same idea: evil and lawlessness, as defined by God (see 1 John 3:4). On closer examination, however, each word carries a slightly different meaning.

SIN

Sin means “to miss the mark.” It can refer to doing something against God or against a person (Exodus 10:16), doing the opposite of what is right (Galatians 5:17), doing something that will have negative results (Proverbs 24:33–34), or failing to do something you know is right (James 4:17). In the Old Testament, God even instituted sacrifices for unintentional sins (Numbers 15:27). Sin is the general term for anything that “falls short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).

Without the restoring power of the Holy Spirit, sin leads us into a downward progression. The sin nature is present in every human being born since the Fall of Adam (Genesis 3:6–7; Romans 5:12), and if left unchecked, continual sin leads to the “reprobate mind” spoken of in Romans 1:24. Our sin nature draws us toward selfishness, envy, and pride, even when we are trying to do good. The apostle Paul acknowledged his own propensity to sin when he wrote, “For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out” (Romans 7:18).

TRESPASS AND TRANSGRESSION

The sinful nature leads to trespassing. A trespasser is someone who crosses a line or climbs a fence he should not cross or climb. A trespass may be intentional or unintentional, and the word can also mean “to fall away after being close beside.” Peter trespassed when he denied Jesus (Luke 22:34, 56–62). We all “cross the line” in thought, word, or attitude many times a day, and we should be quick to forgive others who do the same (Matthew 6:15).

Transgression refers to presumptuous sin. To transgress is to choose to disobey intentionally; transgression is willful trespassing. Samson committed a transgression when he intentionally broke his Nazirite vow by touching a dead lion (Numbers 6:1–5; Judges 14:8–9) and by allowing his hair to be cut (Judges 16:17). David had this kind of sin in mind when he wrote, “Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered” (Psalm 32:1). When we knowingly run a stop sign, tell a lie, or blatantly disregard an authority, we are transgressing.

INIQUITY

Iniquity is more deeply rooted. It refers to a premeditated choice; to commit iniquity is to continue in sin without repentance. David’s sin with Bathsheba, which led to the killing of her husband, Uriah, was iniquity (2 Samuel 11:3–4; 2 Samuel 12:9). Micah 2:1 says, “Woe to those who plan iniquity, to those who plot evil on their beds! At morning’s light they carry it out because it is in their power to do it.” In his psalm of repentance, David cries out to God, “Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin” (Psalm 51:2).

God forgives iniquity, as He does every type of sin, when we repent (Jeremiah 33:8; Hebrews 8:12). Left unchecked, however, iniquity leads to a state of willful sin with no fear of God. The build-up of unrepentant sin is sometimes pictured as a “cup of iniquity” filling to the brim (Revelation 17:4; Genesis 15:16), an image that often applies to nations that have forsaken God completely. Continued iniquity leads to unnatural affections, which lead to a reprobate mind, and Romans 1:28–32 describes this decline in vivid detail. The sons of Eli are biblical examples of reprobates whom God judged for their iniquities (1 Samuel 3:13–14). Rather than repent, they continued in their abominations until repentance was no longer possible.

CONCLUSION

The biblical writers used different words to refer to sin in its many forms. Yet no matter how depraved a human heart may become, Jesus’ death on the cross was sufficient to cover all sin (John 1:29; Romans 5:18). Psalm 32:5 ends with these words: “And you forgave the guilt of my sin.” The only sin God cannot forgive is the final rejection of the Holy Spirit’s drawing to repentance, the ultimate fruit of a reprobate mind (Matthew 12:32; Luke 12:10).