Daniel 9:5

9:5 we have sinned! We have done what is wrong and wicked; we have rebelled by turning away from your commandments and standards.

Luke 15:18-19

15:18 I will get up and go to my father and say to him, “Father, I have sinned ¹  against heaven ²  and against ³  you. 15:19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me ⁴  like one of your hired workers.”’

Luke 15:21

15:21 Then ⁵  his son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven ⁶  and against you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ ⁷ 

Luke 18:13

18:13 The tax collector, however, stood ⁸  far off and would not even look up ⁹  to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, be merciful ¹⁰  to me, sinner that I am!’ ¹¹ 

¹ sn In the confession “I have sinned” there is a recognition of wrong that pictures the penitent coming home and “being found.”

² sn The phrase against heaven is a circumlocution for God.

³ tn According to BDAG 342 s.v. ἐνωπιον 4.a, “in relation to ἁμαρτάνειν ἐ. τινος sin against someone Lk 15:18, 21 (cf. Jdth 5:17; 1 Km 7:6; 20:1).”

⁴ tn Or “make me.” Here is a sign of total humility.

⁵ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

⁶ sn The phrase against heaven is a circumlocution for God. 1st century Judaism tended to minimize use of the divine name out of reverence.

⁷ sn The younger son launches into his confession just as he had planned. See vv. 18-19.

⁸ tn Grk “standing”; the Greek participle has been translated as a finite verb.

⁹ tn Grk “even lift up his eyes” (an idiom).

¹⁰ tn The prayer is a humble call for forgiveness. The term for mercy (ἱλάσκομαι, Jilaskomai) is associated with the concept of a request for atonement (BDAG 473-74 s.v. 1; Ps 51:1, 3; 25:11; 34:6, 18).

¹¹ tn Grk “the sinner.” The tax collector views himself not just as any sinner but as the worst of all sinners. See ExSyn 222-23.