# Purify me ... I will be clean ... wash me ... I will be whiter than snow

Being acceptable to God is spoken of as being clean or white. God makes people acceptable by forgiving their sins. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor]])

# Purify me with hyssop

The writer speaks of God as if God were a priest who would sprinkle water on him to make him acceptable to God. AT: "Make me acceptable by sprinkling water on me with hyssop" or "Forgive me for my sins so that I will be acceptable to you" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor]])

# hyssop

This is a plant that the priests used to sprinkle water or blood on people or things to make them ceremonially clean, that is, acceptable to God. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/translate-unknown]])

# whiter than snow

Not having sin is spoken of as being white. AT: "very, very white" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-simile]])

# joy and gladness

These two words mean basically the same thing and emphasize his desire to hear joyful things. (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-doublet]])

# so that the bones that you have broken may rejoice

Feeling terrible sadness is spoken of as if his bones were broken. AT: "for you have caused me terrible sadness in my inner being. Let me rejoice again" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor]])

# Hide your face from my sins

Thinking about someone's sins is spoken of as seeing them. Forgiving or refusing to think about the sins is spoken of as choosing not to see them. AT: "Do not look at my sins" or "Do not remember my sins" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor]])

# blot out all my iniquities

Forgiving or refusing to think about someone's sins is spoken of as either 1) blotting them out or 2) erasing a written record of the sins. AT: 1) "forgive my sins like someone wiping something away" or "forget my sins like someone who erases a record of sins" (See: [[rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor]])

# translationWords

* [[rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/purify]]
* [[rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/clean]]
* [[rc://en/tw/dict/bible/other/joy]]
* [[rc://en/tw/dict/bible/other/joy]]
* [[rc://en/tw/dict/bible/other/face]]
* [[rc://en/tw/dict/bible/other/blotout]]