In Romans 3, Paul cites six Old Testament passages in making this point: everyone is sinful.
One of those passages he uses is from Psalm 5.
It might appear the Psalmist is touting his own righteousness, saying ‘Everybody else is evil Lord, but not me. I am faithful.’ But read it again. It’s not the writer’s absence of guilt that gives him confidence before the Lord. It is his abiding trust in God.
The Psalmist says he begins his day with prayer, and he waits on the Lord to answer. In the next Psalm he acknowledges God doesn’t always immediately reply, but still, the writer waits on God. He knows God is not happy with the wicked, and he doesn’t deny his own sin, so he knows God is often displeased with him. And yet, the Psalmist, whatever his sins, knows what it is to be sinful, and chooses not to identify himself with those people – he regards them as enemies. And whatever his sin, he places his trust solely in God, asking God to guide his steps.
At the waking moment of each day, let us first be mindful of God, ask for His guidance, keep our behavioral distance from the wicked (remembering that their influence can destroy us), and ask for God’s guiding hand.