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Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
    wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Psalm 51:7

There are two aspects to cleanliness here. Let me unpack both:

1. Clean from all filth and dirtiness.

The first line declares that we shall be clean when God purges us with hyssop. The herb was used in the Old testament to cleanse from an actual impurity, and as an ingredient used for ceremonial cleansing. (Leviticus 14) One cleans a surface, the other is part of a religious cleansing ritual that was commanded of the Israelites. This gives us a picture of surface cleanness and cleanness before God. 

Here, the Psalmist is emphasizing the later state of purity instead of the physical state. The preceding verses set the context:

For I know my transgressions,
    and my sin is ever before me.
Against you, you only, have I sinned
    and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you may be justified in your words
    and blameless in your judgment. Psalm 51:3-4

If we go through this life looking like Pigpen from the Peanuts cartoon, but are ushered into God's presence after this life has passed, then we have chosen the better state of cleanness. My mother used to tell me that, "cleanliness is next to godliness." However, if you are physically clean alone, then that state of "next to godliness," does not make you actually godly -- it just brings you close. 

Close doesn't count when we are talking about our relationship with our creator! This is one thing that he demans that we get right!

2. Whiter than snow.

It is hard to think of anything that displays cleanness to a gray and lifeless world, like the pure falling snow. 

I looked at my truck this morning, and I was shocked. Was this my truck?  It was gray, and my truck is supposed to be blue!  So I took it to my favorite car wash in town - you know the one, where real people spray your car going in and real people hand dry your vehicle as you exit. Well, this morning's trip was different: As the drying was done and I held out my hand with tip money, the drying tech told me to "run 'er through again!"  

"What? Run it through the entire car wash again?"

"Yep."

Apparently, I let my truck get too gray for only one trip through the wash!  But here's the rub:  When my truck was completely cleaned, it was blue. It wasn't white. No amount of cleaning could turn my blue truck white!

The Psalmist shows the miracle that takes place when we repent of our sin and earnestly ask God for a new life - he changes us! We are no longer blue, or gray. He clothes us into robes of white.

Of the martyrs in Revelation 6, it is written, "Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer."  (v.11)

There is something particularl about white. Sure, it is void of any type of pretty color (I prefer my blue truck), but it shows every little speck of dirt or impurity. That is why, when God cleans us up, he makes us in a way that any stain is clearly seen. A lifetime of repentence has begun from the moment we become born again!

Only God can clean you, and only God can change you. Seek him while he may still be found - and where he may be found: In the pages of your Bible!