Open Thou My Lips

Psalm 51:15 (KJV)
O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise.

This Psalm is numbered 51 in the Masoretic Text (the text most Protestant bibles are translated from) and 50 in the greek Septuagint and latin Vulgate (the texts that most Orthodox and Roman Catholic bibles are translated from respectively). The immediate context of this Psalm is that it is King David's prayer of repentence after being confronted by the prophet Nathan concerning the murder and adultery that David had committed. King David had committed adultery with Bathsheba and, in an attempt to cover up his sin when she became pregnant, ordered her husband into a battle where the soldier was sure to die. David then took her to be his own wife after she had mourned the loss of her husband.

The immediate context of this verse can be found in the verse before it. Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness. O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise. These words seem to imply that David is incapable of properly offering God the praise and worship that is due to God because of the gravity of this sin. It is only through seeking God with a broken and contrite heart, that healing and reconciliation can be obtained. Only then, after finding salvation in the Lord from the oppression of sin, can David be truly free to sing of God's righteousness and be able to please Him with offerings as a sacrifice of righteousness.

Liturgically speaking, this Psalm is probably the most used of all the Psalms in the Orthodox Church and other churches that worship according to the eastern rite. It is included in matins (morning prayer service), the third hour prayers, and in compline (late evening prayer service). The priest recites it while censing the church in preparation for the liturgy (the main worship service including Holy Communion), and then again when censing during the liturgy. After the preparation for the liturgy, this verse in particular is the last words to come out of a priest's mouth before giving the opening benediction to begin the liturgy. This Psalm is also typically included in the daily prayers that you will find in an Orthodox prayer book. This Psalm (although a different verse) is also quoted in the beginning of most traditional Roman Catholic and Western Rite Orthodox masses.

May we all cry out in imitation of King David, "Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions." and "Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me." with the hope of hearing those glorious words that were told to him from the prohet Nathan, "The LORD also hath put away thy sin" so that we may sing aloud of God's righteousness and in good conscience offer a "sacrifice of righteousness".