Micah 7:19–The Pardon of Sin He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea. You and I are sinners. There can be no doubt about that. It does not matter our background, temperament, status or even religion. The apostle Paul wrote: “we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin....all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Rom.3:9,23). Sin is simply an inescapable fact. The pardon of our sin is something that every soul should be concerned with and something that every awakened soul is concerned with. To them sin becomes a burden. An impossible burden. Is there hope for us? This verse reveals that there is! The prophet Micah is living in barren times spiritually. Israel’s politicians and priests have departed from God’s standard for government and authority. There is violence, fraud and deceit. Faithful Micah tells his people that God has a controversy with them and that He will bring judgment upon them. But there is also the hope of future forgiveness. He highlights the character of God, that He “delighteth in mercy” (7:18). We should never doubt God’s readiness to be reconciled to us. The question is, are we ready to be reconciled to Him? In our text Micah encourages us to believe that God will pardon our sins if we turn to Him. Let us consider this pardon. Firstly it is a gracious pardon. When man sinned God in righteous anger turned from him as though determined to punish him. But, to use our language, He ‘repented’. He laid aside His wrath and turned again to man to be reconciled to him. Like the father towards his prodigal son, God “had compassion” (Luke 15:20). He sent His dear Son, giving Him up to die on the cross in the place of sinners. “In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins” (Col.1:14). Friend, you cannot buy God’s pardon. You can never deserve it. Even as a believer that pardon must be renewed to you daily as you confess your sins to God. How sweet a pardon it is – because it is all of grace! Secondly it is a full pardon. What does God do with the sins of His people? He “subdues” them or “treads them down.” Jesus did this when He received at His Father’s hand the penalty sinners should have paid. For Christ’s sake God will pardon the guilt of those who believe. But there is more. The power of sin in our lives needs to be broken if we are ever to be holy and fit to enter heaven. Sanctification is required as well as justification. “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace” (Rom.6:14). Guilt must be removed from our persons and grace must be at work in our hearts. Finally it is an everlasting pardon. The prophet uses a vivid image to convey this blessed truth. He speaks of the sea in all the vastness of its depth. He says this is where God puts the sins of His people. There is something very precious about what he says. Imagine a vessel afloat in the middle of the ocean. The crew cast all their refuse overboard. It floats away and is soon out of sight as the wind, wave and tide carry it this way and that. It seems to be gone forever but, in the fulness of time, the jetsam is washed up on a distant shore. It is possible that the rubbish could traced to the ship from which it came. The crew might even be fined for fouling the ocean! Now it is not like this with a believer and his sins. They will never return to him to find him out. See what Micah says: “thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.” We might think of the sacrifice of Christ as like a ‘ballast’ that prevents our sins from ever surfacing again. Such is the satisfaction He rendered to divine justice that it is impossible that a Christian should have to answer for his sins at the day of judgment. The Bible emphasises this fact repeatedly. “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us” (Psa.103:12). “I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and, as a cloud, thy sins” (Isa.44:22). “And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more” (Heb.10:17). Could there be a greater blessing than this perfect pardon of all your sins? Will you not seek the Lord for it with all your heart?