entsündigen – to purge
von Sünde befreien [Source: Universal-Lexikon]; absolvieren
to free from sin, to absolve
Psalm 51,7 Entsündige mich mit Ysop, und ich werde rein sein; wasche mich, und ich werde weißer sein als Schnee.
Psalm 51:7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
This time, it’s a verb.
This was a word that was used by Luther in his translation of the Bible.
The site above says that this word was a very specific term used in Luther’s time only in the context of religion and the church.
I enjoy learning and studying new words.
It’s fascinating how we constantly invent new words to convey specific meaning.
The verse says that the purging, or washing, is done with hyssop.
I must confess that I really had no idea what hyssop was before this, and had to go look it up.
It’s a plant that was used for (literal) cleaning in the biblical era, found in the Middle East and its surroundings.
It was also used by the priests in rituals for cleansing and atonement. The significance of using the hyssop is to make something pure.
In this context, then, the cleansing is not a literal cleaning of the physical, but a spiritual cleansing of the heart.
Similarly, the second part of the verse talks about washing. Again, this isn’t a literal bath, but a spiritual one.
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