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By William Van Zyl
Published on September, 29, 2026
When the Ocean Knows What You Did
There are some things you simply don’t tell anybody.
You don’t tell your wife.
You don’t tell your best friend.
You certainly don’t tell the pirate crew.
And if you happen to have done something really, really bad, there is always one final option:
Throw the evidence into the ocean and hope Davy Jones never finds it.
Of course, there is one small problem.
Davy Jones already lives down there.
And he has a locker.
A very deep locker.
A locker that, according to pirate legend, has swallowed ships, sailors, treasure, bones—and probably more than a few secrets.
So let’s imagine something for a moment.
The moon hangs low over the Caribbean.
The waves slap against the sides of the Black Pearl.
The ropes creak.
The sails groan.
A cold mist rolls across the deck.
Then something moves in the darkness.
A figure steps forward.
It is Bootstrap Bill Turner.
But he isn’t supposed to be alive.
He has been beneath the ocean.
He has suffered the crushing weight of the deep.
He has been transformed by the supernatural world of the Pirates of the Caribbean.
Yet now he is standing on the deck again.
And waiting for him is the one man who knows everything.
Davy Jones.
Bootstrap stares at him.
“Davy.”
Jones slowly turns.
“What do you want, mate?”
Bootstrap hesitates.
“I want to know something.”
Jones raises an eyebrow—or whatever passes for an eyebrow beneath all those tentacles.
“What?”
Bootstrap steps closer.
“You know what I did.”
Silence.
“You know the things I’ve done.”
Another silence.
“The things nobody else knows.”
Davy Jones smiles.
A horrible, tentacled smile.
“Aye.”
Bootstrap looks toward the dark ocean.
“Where are they?”
“Where are what?”
“My secrets.”
Jones points over the side of the ship.
“Down there.”
Bootstrap looks over the rail.
“The ocean?”
“Not just the ocean.”
Jones leans closer.
“The Locker.“
Bootstrap swallows.
“You kept them?”
“Every one.”
“All these years?”
“Aye.”
“Nobody has found them?”
“No.”
“Nobody knows?”
“No.”
Bootstrap looks relieved.
Then he asks the question that suddenly changes everything.
“Can I have them back?”
Davy Jones stares at him.
“Of course.”
Bootstrap smiles.
“Really?”
Jones points toward the black water.
“Go get them.“
Bootstrap looks down.
The ocean is enormous.
Dark.
Cold.
Endless.
He suddenly realises something.
Some secrets are very difficult to retrieve once they have been thrown into the deep.
And that brings me to something much more serious.
Because there is a place even deeper than Davy Jones’ Locker.
And there is Someone who deals with sin in a way that Davy Jones never could.
Who Is Davy Jones?
Before we go any further, there is an interesting distinction.
Davy Jones is the fictional supernatural captain portrayed in the Pirates of the Caribbean films. He commands the Flying Dutchman, and in Dead Man’s Chest he is connected with Jack Sparrow’s debt and the raising of the Black Pearl from the depths. Bootstrap Bill becomes a member of Jones’s crew and is sent to warn Jack about his debt.
But Davy Jones’ Locker is older than the movies.
The expression was already being used in the eighteenth century. The earliest known printed reference dates to 1726, when “Davy Jones” was associated with the fate of sailors lost at sea. Over time, “Davy Jones’ Locker” became a nautical expression for the bottom of the sea—the watery grave of sailors and ships. The name’s precise origin remains uncertain.
The movies simply took an old maritime expression and turned it into a supernatural location.
And that gives us a fascinating picture.
A place at the bottom of the sea where things disappear.
Ships.
Bodies.
Treasure.
And, in our imaginary story, secrets.
But What If Your Secrets Were Sins?
Let’s return to Bootstrap Bill.
Imagine that his secrets weren’t merely pirate secrets.
Imagine they were sins.
Things he regretted.
Things he wished he had never done.
Things that haunted him.
Things that nobody else knew.
He could hide them.
He could bury them.
He could lock them away.
He could throw them into the deepest part of the ocean.
But one problem remained.
The sins would still exist.
Somebody would know where they were.
Davy Jones would know.
The Locker would contain them.
And if somebody could somehow reach the bottom of the sea, they could potentially bring them back.
That is where the Gospel becomes radically different.
Because when God forgives sin, He doesn’t merely hide it.
He doesn’t put it into a secret underwater filing cabinet.
He doesn’t lock it in a supernatural treasure chest.
He doesn’t say:
“I’ll keep this secret for a while, but perhaps I’ll bring it up again later.”
The Bible uses some astonishing language to describe what God does with sin.
God Throws Sin into the Depths
The prophet Micah gives us one of the most beautiful pictures of divine forgiveness:
“You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.”
— Micah 7:19
Think about that imagery.
Not onto the beach.
Not into a shallow pool.
Not somewhere where it can easily be recovered.
Into the depths of the sea.
It is a picture of complete removal.
Micah begins by asking:
“Who is a God like You, pardoning iniquity…?”
And then he describes God’s compassion and His treatment of our sins.
God doesn’t merely acknowledge our sin.
He vanquishes it.
He casts it into the depths.
As Far as the East Is from the West
David gives us another extraordinary picture.
Psalm 103:12 says:
“As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.”
Notice the language.
Removed.
Not merely covered.
Not merely hidden.
Not placed somewhere temporarily.
Removed.
How far is east from west?
There isn’t a point where east finally meets west.
You can keep travelling east forever.
You can keep travelling west forever.
David is using an image of immeasurable separation.
God separates the forgiven sinner from the forgiven sin.
David Knew About Secrets
And David knew something about sin.
He knew what it was like to carry something terrible inside himself.
He knew what it was like to try to hide wrongdoing.
He knew the burden of guilt.
And when David finally came before God in repentance, he prayed:
“Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities.”
— Psalm 51:9, KJV
That word “blot” is powerful.
David wasn’t asking God to put his sins in a drawer.
He wasn’t asking God to lock them away somewhere.
He was asking God to blot them out.
Erase the record.
Remove the stain.
Take away the evidence.
And immediately afterwards David asks:
“Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.”
— Psalm 51:10, KJV
This is more than forgiveness.
It is transformation.
Davy Jones Keeps the Record
This is where our pirate analogy breaks down.
Imagine Davy Jones standing beside his enormous underwater locker.
Inside are boxes.
Chains.
Scrolls.
Books.
Records.
Names.
Dates.
Secrets.
Everything Bootstrap ever did.
Every shameful moment.
Every betrayal.
Every terrible decision.
Everything is still there.
Locked away.
But not destroyed.
Davy Jones can remember.
He can retrieve.
He can remind.
He can say:
“I know what you did.”
And perhaps that is how guilt sometimes operates in our own minds.
We know God has forgiven us, yet we keep diving back into the Locker.
We reopen the chest.
We look at the old records.
We read the old accusations.
We say:
“But I did this.”
“I shouldn’t have said that.”
“God could never forgive something like that.”
“If people really knew me, they wouldn’t accept me.”
We keep visiting the place where God has already finished the work.
But God Says: It’s Gone
The Bible gives us an even more remarkable promise.
God says:
“For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
— Jeremiah 31:34
Think about those final words:
“I will remember their sin no more.”
This doesn’t mean that God literally suffers from forgetfulness.
It means that He no longer holds the forgiven sin against the person.
The sin is no longer the basis of His relationship with them.
It has been dealt with.
Forgiven.
Removed.
The Difference Between the Locker and the Cross
Here is the great contrast.
Davy Jones’ Locker says:
“Your secret is hidden.”
God says:
“Your sin is forgiven.”
The Locker says:
“Nobody can find it.”
God says:
“I have removed it.”
The Locker says:
“It is still down there.”
God says:
“It has been dealt with.”
The Locker says:
“Someone still knows.”
God says:
“I will remember your sin no more.”
That is an enormous difference.
The Blood of Jesus Changes Everything
And now we arrive at the centre of the Christian message.
Forgiveness is not simply God pretending that sin never happened.
The cross tells us that sin was taken seriously.
Jesus paid the price.
Jesus carried our sin.
Jesus gave Himself for us.
And John writes:
“The blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.”
— 1 John 1:7, KJV
All sin.
Not some sin.
Not respectable sin.
Not the sins we are comfortable admitting.
Not merely the mistakes we think are forgivable.
All sin.
And then John gives us another extraordinary promise:
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
— 1 John 1:9, KJV
There it is again.
Forgive.
Cleanse.
All unrighteousness.
No Secret Underwater Archive
Imagine Bootstrap Bill standing before Davy Jones.
“Where did you put my sins?”
Jones points downward.
“They’re in the Locker.”
“But they’re still there?”
“Aye.”
“Can they ever be brought back?”
“Perhaps.”
That would be a terrifying kind of forgiveness.
But that isn’t the promise of the Gospel.
God doesn’t say:
“I’ve hidden your sins where nobody can find them.”
He says:
“I have forgiven them.”
He doesn’t say:
“I’ve buried your guilt.”
He says:
“I have removed your transgressions.”
He doesn’t say:
“I’ll keep your sins locked away.”
He says:
“I will remember their sin no more.”
Colossians Gives Us Another Picture
Paul takes the imagery even further.
He says that God has:
“forgiven you all trespasses”
and describes the record of debt as being taken away and nailed to the cross.
What an image.
The accusation isn’t sitting at the bottom of the sea.
It is at the cross.
The debt has been dealt with.
The record has been cancelled.
The price has been paid.
What About the Things You Can’t Forgive Yourself For?
Perhaps this is where the story becomes personal.
There may be things in your past that you wish you could erase.
Words you wish you had never spoken.
Choices you wish you could undo.
People you hurt.
Opportunities you wasted.
Things you did in secret.
Things you are ashamed of.
Things nobody else knows.
Perhaps you have taken those things and thrown them into your own version of Davy Jones’ Locker.
But every now and then, something brings them back to the surface.
A memory.
A conversation.
A photograph.
A place.
A smell.
A thought in the middle of the night.
And suddenly the old guilt rises again.
You think:
“I am still that person.”
But the Gospel says something different.
If you have come to Christ in repentance and faith, your past is not your master.
Your sin is not your identity.
Your failure is not your final destination.
God Doesn’t Need a Locker
Davy Jones needs a Locker because the secrets have to remain somewhere.
God doesn’t.
He has something far more powerful than a locker.
He has mercy.
He has grace.
He has the cross.
He has the blood of Jesus.
And He has the authority to forgive.
Micah says:
“Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity…?”
— Micah 7:18
And then:
“Thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.”
— Micah 7:19
That is not the language of temporary storage.
It is the language of removal.
The Black Pearl and the Blood of Jesus
There is another interesting contrast.
The Black Pearl is associated with curses, debts, death and the supernatural consequences of past actions.
Bootstrap Bill himself becomes a picture of someone trapped beneath the consequences of what happened aboard the ship. In the film story, he was thrown overboard after the mutiny and eventually became part of Davy Jones’s crew.
But Jesus does something completely different.
He doesn’t make us serve forever because of our past.
He doesn’t demand that we spend eternity paying off an impossible debt.
He doesn’t keep reminding us of our failures.
He pays the debt.
He breaks the power of sin.
He cleanses.
He restores.
He gives new life.
Can Davy Jones’ Locker Keep Secrets?
Perhaps.
At least in the imagination of pirate folklore, it can.
It can swallow ships.
It can hide treasure.
It can conceal the remains of sailors.
And in our imaginary story, it can keep Bootstrap Bill’s darkest secrets.
But there is one thing Davy Jones cannot do.
He cannot redeem the person whose secrets he possesses.
He can hide the evidence.
He cannot change the heart.
He can keep the record.
He cannot remove the guilt.
He can guard the Locker.
He cannot offer resurrection.
But Jesus can.
The Great Exchange
At the cross, Jesus took what belonged to us and gave us what belonged to Him.
Our sin.
His righteousness.
Our guilt.
His forgiveness.
Our condemnation.
His grace.
Our death.
His life.
Our brokenness.
His restoration.
That is why the Christian message is not merely:
“Your sins are hidden.”
It is:
“Your sins are forgiven.”
And David’s Prayer Becomes Our Prayer
David cried:
“Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities.”
— Psalm 51:9, KJV
That can become our prayer too.
Lord, blot it out.
Lord, wash me.
Lord, cleanse me.
Lord, forgive me.
Lord, create in me a clean heart.
And the beautiful thing is that God doesn’t answer with:
“Go find Davy Jones and ask him for your file.”
He points us to Jesus.
There Is No Need to Dive Back Down
Perhaps some of us need to stop diving into the Locker.
Stop reopening the old chest.
Stop reading the old records.
Stop reminding ourselves of sins that God has already forgiven.
If you have confessed your sin to God and placed your trust in Jesus, don’t keep trying to pay for something Jesus has already paid for.
Receive His forgiveness.
Walk in His light.
Let Him make you new.
The past may explain where you have been.
But it doesn’t have to determine where you are going.
One Final Scene
The Black Pearl rocks gently on the dark sea.
Bootstrap Bill stands on the deck.
He looks at Davy Jones.
“Are my secrets still down there?”
Davy Jones nods.
“Aye.”
“Can I get them back?”
Jones smiles.
“If you can find them.”
Bootstrap looks down at the endless ocean.
Then he hears another voice.
Not the voice of Davy Jones.
A voice of mercy.
A voice of grace.
A voice saying:
“It is finished.”
The cross stands above the ocean of human history.
And beneath that cross, the record of sin has been dealt with.
Not merely hidden.
Not merely locked away.
Not merely forgotten by accident.
Forgiven.
Cleansed.
Removed.
Redeemed.
The Secrets God Will Never Hold Against You
The promise of Scripture is breathtaking.
“As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.”
— Psalm 103:12
“You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.”
— Micah 7:19
“I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
— Jeremiah 31:34
And John gives us the foundation:
“The blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.”
— 1 John 1:7, KJV
That is greater than anything Davy Jones could ever offer.
Davy Jones can keep a secret.
Jesus can remove a sin.
Davy Jones can lock something in the depths.
Jesus can set a person free.
Davy Jones can remember what you did.
God says, “I will remember their sin no more.”
So perhaps the question isn’t really:
Can Davy Jones’ Locker keep secrets?
Perhaps the greater question is:
Can Jesus really forgive the things I have done?
The answer of the Gospel is yes.
His blood cleanses us from all unrighteousness.
His grace reaches deeper than our shame.
His mercy reaches further than our past.
And when He forgives, we don’t need to keep diving back into the depths to retrieve what He has already removed.
It is gone.
It is forgiven.
It is covered by the blood of Jesus.
And, like David, we can cry out:
“Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities.”
And trust the One who answers with mercy.
Because unlike Davy Jones’ Locker, God doesn’t need to keep our sins at the bottom of the ocean.
He removes them.
He forgives them.
He cleanses them.
And He remembers them no more.
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Copyright © 2026 by William Van Zyl
Can Davy Jones’ Locker Keep Secrets?
All rights reserved. This eBook/article or any portion
thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner
without the publisher’s permission, except for using brief quotations in a book review.
Published by Five House Publishing (New Zealand)
First published, September 2026
More eBooks and articles are available at https://fivehousepublishing.com/
More about the author at http://williamvanzyl.com/
