Psalm 139:1-24

Search Me, O God

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1For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. O LORD, You have searched me and known me.

2You know when I sit and when I rise; You understand my thoughts from afar.

3You search out my path and my lying down; You are aware of all my ways.

4Even before a word is on my tongue, You know all about it, O LORD.

5You hem me in behind and before; You have laid Your hand upon me.

6Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.

7Where can I go to escape Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence?

8If I ascend to the heavens, You are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there.

9If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle by the farthest sea,

10even there Your hand will guide me; Your right hand will hold me fast.

11If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me, and the light become night around me”—

12even the darkness is not dark to You, but the night shines like the day, for darkness is as light to You.

13For You formed my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb.

14I praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Marvelous are Your works, and I know this very well.

15My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in secret, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.

16Your eyes saw my unformed body; all my days were written in Your book and ordained for me before one of them came to be.

17How precious to me are Your thoughts, O God, how vast is their sum!

18If I were to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand; and when I awake, I am still with You.

19O God, that You would slay the wicked—away from me, you bloodthirsty men—

20who speak of You deceitfully; Your enemies take Your name in vain.

21Do I not hate those who hate You, O LORD, and detest those who rise against You?

22I hate them with perfect hatred; I count them as my enemies.

23Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my concerns.

24See if there is any offensive way in me; lead me in the way everlasting.

Berean Standard Bible

Read aloud

The LORD has searched and known the psalmist. He knows when he sits, rises, thinks, travels, rests, and speaks. There is no word on the tongue that God does not know completely. This knowledge can feel exposing, but the psalm receives it as a wonder.

There is nowhere to flee from God's Spirit: heaven, the depths, the dawn, and the far side of the sea are all within His hand. Darkness is not dark to Him. He formed the psalmist’s inward parts, knit him together in the womb, and saw his unformed body. His days were written in God’s book before any of them came to be. David praises his Maker with wonder: God’s thoughts are precious and beyond counting.

David then speaks fiercely against bloodthirsty people who misuse God’s name. He counts God’s enemies as his own and declares his hatred of them. Yet he ends by asking God to search his own heart, know his concerns, and expose any offensive way in him. He needs the God who knows him completely to lead him in the everlasting way.

Questions

1 What does God know?

AnswerHe knows the psalmist's actions, thoughts, travels, rest, and words before they are spoken.

2 Where can the psalmist flee?

AnswerNowhere; God's Spirit and hand reach heaven, the depths, dawn, sea, and darkness.

3 How did God form him?

AnswerGod formed his inward parts, knit him together in the womb, and saw his unformed body.

4 What does David ask at the end?

AnswerHe asks God to know his heart and concerns, expose any offensive way in him, and lead him in the everlasting way.

What This Means for Us

God knows the words we have not yet spoken and the concerns we struggle to explain. We can bring them to Him without first making ourselves sound better. The One who formed us also sees the days before us.

David's final request gives us a prayer to use before accusing someone else. Ask God to show you any sinful way in your own heart. Be willing to name what He exposes, ask for forgiveness, and follow His direction. His complete knowledge is a reason for honesty and trust.

Prayer

God who knows us completely, give us courage to be searched without performance. Protect people formed in the womb, expose our hurtful ways, and lead us into an everlasting path of truth. Amen.

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