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Psalm 139

To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.

O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me.

Psalm 139:1 KJV

Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.

Psalm 139:2 KJV

Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.

Psalm 139:3 KJV

For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether.

Psalm 139:4 KJV

Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.

Psalm 139:5 KJV

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.

Psalm 139:6 KJV

Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?

Psalm 139:7 KJV

If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.

Psalm 139:8 KJV

If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;

Psalm 139:9 KJV

Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.

Psalm 139:10 KJV

If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me.

Psalm 139:11 KJV

Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.

Psalm 139:12 KJV

For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother’s womb.

Psalm 139:13 KJV

I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

Psalm 139:14 KJV

My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

Psalm 139:15 KJV

Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them.

Psalm 139:16 KJV

How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!

Psalm 139:17 KJV

If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee.

Psalm 139:18 KJV

Surely thou wilt slay the wicked, O God: depart from me therefore, ye bloody men.

Psalm 139:19 KJV

For they speak against thee wickedly, and thine enemies take thy name in vain.

Psalm 139:20 KJV

Do not I hate them, O LORD, that hate thee? and am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee?

Psalm 139:21 KJV

I hate them with perfect hatred: I count them mine enemies.

Psalm 139:22 KJV

Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:

Psalm 139:23 KJV

And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

Psalm 139:24 KJV

End of Psalm 139

Continue reading Psalm 140

What is Psalm 139 about?

Psalm 139 is David's wonder at how completely God knows him. God knows when he sits and rises, his thoughts from far away, and every word before he speaks. There is nowhere he could go to escape God's presence: "Whither shall I go from thy spirit?" (verse 7). God formed him in his mother's womb, and David praises him because "I am fearfully and wonderfully made" (verse 14). All his days were written in God's book before one of them came to be. The psalm ends with a prayer for God to search his heart and lead him "in the way everlasting."

What does Psalm 139 mean?

Psalm 139:14

In Psalm 139, David marvels that God knows him completely: when he sits and rises, his thoughts, and every word before he speaks it. Just before this verse he says God formed him in his mother's womb. Then he bursts into praise: "I am fearfully and wonderfully made." "Fearfully" here means with awe and reverence; human beings are a work so remarkable that it should make us stand in wonder at the Maker. David adds that his soul knows this "right well." The verse speaks powerfully to anyone who struggles with self-worth. Every person bears the careful craftsmanship of God and is valued by him.

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