Amidah 5 – Repentance

“If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1:8)

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23)

” There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins.” (Ecclesiastes 7:20)

“When they sin against you–for there is no one who does not sin–and you become angry with them and give them over to the enemy, who takes them captive to his own land, far away or near; and if they have a change of heart in the land where they are held captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their conquerors and say, `We have sinned, we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly’; and if they turn back to you with all their heart and soul in the land of their enemies who took them captive, and pray to you toward the land you gave their fathers, toward the city you have chosen and the temple I have built for your Name; then from heaven, your dwelling place, hear their prayer and their plea, and uphold their cause.” (1 Kings 8:46-49)

Because we all sin, we need to understand the prayer of repentance. God desires for us to recognize our sins. The Lord wants us to desire His righteous, to despise or sin, to forsake our sin, to bring to an end the things that are causing the sin, to chart a course away from our sin, to set boundaries so we do not repeat the sin, to restore losses to those who have been harmed by our sin, and to step out in faith to a new life beyond our sin.

Repentance means “the action or process of repenting especially for misdeeds or moral shortcomings.” (Webster) In other words, repentance is not just a prayer to say to God we are sorry. Repentance is a process of understanding what we have done wrong and turning so we do not repeat the wrong. As we seek God, we seek understanding (Amidah 4), forgiveness (Amidah 6), Deliverance (Amidah 7) and healing (Amidah 8). If successful we will return to the years of prosperity (Amidah 9).

During our prayer of repentance we allow our heart to break before God (Psalm 51) so He can help us understand the wrong and point us to the action needed by us in order to turn from the sin and to return to God and His people.

According to 2 Chronicles 7:14, the prayer for repentance begins by humbling ourselves (the brokenness), seeking God’s wisdom, and turning from our wickedness. Repentance is a process and an action.

It is through proper repentance that we set the stage for God to forgive. That is the next benediction in the Amidah. “To the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ.” (Ephesians 1:6-9)