Psalmów 51:12 Midrasz: Ein Yaakov (Glick Edition) & Midrash Tehillim

R. Avira, and according to others, R. Joshua b. Levi, expounded: "There are seven names for the evil inclination. The Holy One, praised be He I calls him evil, as it is said (Gen. 8, 21) The imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; Moses calls him obduracy, as it is said (Deut. 10, 17) Remove the obduracy of your heart; and when he says a clean heart, it must be an unclean one. Solomon calls him enemy, as it is said (Prov. 25, 21) If thy enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat, and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink; for though thou gatherest coals of fire upon his head, yet will the Lord repay it unto thee. Do not read Yeshalem L'cha (repay thee), but read it Yashlimenu L'cha (he will make him peaceful toward thee ). Isaiah calls him stumbling block, as it is said (Is. 57, 14) And he will say. Cast ye up, cast ye up, clear out of the way, lift up every stumbling-block out of the way of my people. Ezekiel names him stone, as it is said (Ex. 36, 26) I will remove the heart of stone out of your body. Joel calls him Z'phoni, as it is said (Joel 2, 20) And the host of the (Z'phoni) north will I remove.

"And He lifted me out of the pit of destruction, etc." Did David really descend into a pit? Rather, David said, "I was already on my way down to the pit, and God did not let me fall." And so it says (Psalm 16:11), "You make known to me the path of life." Therefore it is said, "He lifted me out of the pit of destruction," and not only that, but He lifted me up to a high place, as it says (Psalm 18:34), "He made my feet like the feet of deer and set me secure on the heights." Why did He do this for me? Because of my hope in Him. He did not desire sacrifices or offerings, but rather hope. They asked him, "How do we know that He did this for you?" He said to them, "From the song that I sing." And He put a new song in my mouth. But aren't all the songs old? Rather, he said to them, "I was already going down to the pit of destruction, and I said to Him, 'Since You have brought me here, give me Your spirit.' And so it says (Psalm 51:12), 'Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and sustain me with a willing spirit.' For the holy spirit had been taken from him." He said to Him, "You give me Your spirit," and therefore it is said, "a new song."

"Let the wicked be ashamed, for they have lied against me, etc." David said, "Even though the wicked may oppress me, I have not forsaken the Torah." Similarly, it is written (2 Samuel 21:22), "These four were born to the giant in Gath, etc." Even though they came upon me, I did not forsake the Torah, but rather (2 Samuel 22:1), "David spoke to the Lord the words of this song, etc." "Let those who fear You return to me and those who know Your testimonies." "Let my heart be sincere in Your statutes, etc." A pot in which I ate non-sacred food, I did not eat sacred food in it so that I would not be embarrassed. Therefore it is said (Psalms 119:80), "My heart is breached within me." And it is written (Psalms 119:80), "Let my heart be sincere in Your statutes." And it is written (Psalms 51:12), "Create in me a pure heart, O God." The heart is what causes a person to be ashamed of what he knows he has done and is ashamed of himself. Therefore it is said (Proverbs 14:10), "The heart knows its own bitterness, and a stranger does not share its joy." And the heart is what brings joy. And so David said, "Let my heart be sincere in Your statutes." And just as David asked for it, so did the Lord give him, as it is said (2 Samuel 22:36), "And You have given me Your shield of salvation, etc." Therefore it is said, "So that I will not be ashamed."