Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven,
whose sin is covered.
Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity,
and in whose spirit there is no deceit.
For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away
through my groaning all day long.
For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;
my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer...
...I acknowledged my sin to you,
and I did not cover my iniquity;
I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,"
and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Therefore let everyone who is godly offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found; surely in the rush of great waters, they shall not reach him. You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance.
When we sin, we often fear the ire of God, and try to hide ourselves from Him, like our ancestors in Eden once did. In repentence, we no longer love our sin, but we know that an unblemished, perfect God cannot tolerate sin, and we know His wrath towards unrighteousness. So we leave the secure hiding place of God and hide ourselves from Him. Psalm 139 tells us this is a fruitless endeavor:
O Lord, you have searched me and known me!
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.
You search out my path and my lying down
and are acquainted with all my ways...
...Where shall I go from your Spirit?
Or where shall I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me.
If I say, "Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and the light about me be night,"
even the darkness is not dark to you;
the night is bright as the day,
for darkness is as light with you.
Just like in the garden of Eden, God will find us. To flee Him only increases our sin, it cannot hide it.
But like in Eden, if we return to our Father, humbled and penitent, and confess our sin, while there will be discipline (because the Lord disciplines the one He loves), there is promised reconciliation and restoration in Christ Jesus. When we stop trying to cover our own sin, Christ can cover our sin with His atoning blood, and God will again be our hiding place, preserving us from trouble.