Psalms 139

David marvels that God knows him completely, is present everywhere, and made him in the womb. He then turns from wonder to a hard prayer against violent, God-defying men. He ends by asking God to search his own heart and lead him on the everlasting way.

Psalms 139:1

David begins with a simple confession: God has examined him and knows him through and through. This is not distant knowledge of facts. It is the close knowledge of one who has looked into every corner of his life, and David finds it a comfort, not a threat.

BSA: searched (“thoroughly, carefully”): God’s looking into David was careful and complete, with nothing skipped. known (“intimately, thoroughly”): God knows David as a close friend would, not as a stranger.

Hebrew: חֲקַרְתַּנִי (chaqartani, H2713) — “you have searched me.” The word is used of digging down to find something hidden, as when miners dig for ore. God has dug deep into David and found him out.

See also: Jeremiah 17:10.

Psalms 139:2

Sitting and rising stand for the whole round of daily life, the quiet times and the active ones. God knows all of it. He even understands David’s thoughts while they are still forming, before David could put them into words for anyone.

BSA: thoughts (“ideas, intentions”): God sees not only what David thinks but what he is aiming at.

Psalms 139:3

God watches over both David’s travels and his rest. Nothing in his manner of life is unfamiliar to Him. The idea is not of a spy but of a close companion who knows every road David walks and every night he lies down.

BSA: aware of (“familiar with, acquainted with”): God is on familiar terms with all David’s ways, as with an old friend.

Psalms 139:4

Before David speaks, God already knows what he is about to say. No word can surprise Him. This means David cannot pretend before God, and it also means God understands what he struggles to express in prayer.

See also: Matthew 6:8.

Psalms 139:5

God stands on every side of David, behind and in front, and His hand rests on him. The picture can feel like being enclosed, but here it is protection and care. David is guarded and held, with no side left exposed.

BSA: hand (“palm, gentle guidance”): The hand laid on David is a steadying, guiding hand.

Psalms 139:6

David admits that this kind of knowing is beyond his grasp. He cannot fully take it in, as one cannot climb a mountain that is too high. The right response is not to give up but to stand in wonder and worship.

BSA: lofty (“exalted, set on high”): God’s knowledge sits on a height that David cannot climb to.

See also: Romans 11:33.

Psalms 139:7

David now asks whether he could ever get away from God. The question is rhetorical. His answer is that nowhere is outside God’s reach. God’s Spirit and presence are with him wherever he goes.

BSA: presence (“face, being before You”): The Hebrew word is literally face, so there is nowhere David can go that is out of God’s sight.

Psalms 139:8

David names the two extremes, the heights of heaven and the depths of Sheol, the place of the dead. God is there in both. Neither the highest place nor the lowest can put David beyond His presence.

BSA: Sheol (“the underworld, grave, place of the dead”): Even the realm of the dead lies open to God.

See also: Amos 9:2.

Psalms 139:9-10

Even if David could fly east with the dawn or settle in the far west by the sea, God’s hand would be there. The same hand that surrounded him now guides and holds him. For a believer, God’s nearness in distant places is a comfort, not a trap.

BSA: hold me fast (“securely, in possession”): God does not merely accompany David but grasps him firmly so that he is not lost.

Psalms 139:11-12

Perhaps darkness could hide him, David imagines. But darkness is no barrier to God. To Him night is as bright as day. A person cannot hide sin or sorrow in the dark, and neither can he be lost in it.

BSA: darkness (“physical and spiritual, misery or wickedness”): The darkness may be outward night or an inward gloom of trouble and sin; God sees through both.

See also: 1 John 1:5.

Psalms 139:13

David now moves to the beginning of his life. God made his innermost self and wove him together in his mother’s womb. His life is not an accident. A craftsman’s careful hand was at work, and that is why God knows him so well.

BSA: knit (“wove, covered”): The picture is of a weaver or craftsman putting David together piece by piece. inmost being (“inner self, deepest nature”): The Hebrew word is literally kidneys, used for the deepest seat of feeling and thought.

See also: Job 10:11; Jeremiah 1:5.

Psalms 139:14

David answers God’s work with praise. Being made by God fills him with awe, and he says he knows it well in his own soul. Every human being carries the stamp of God’s skill, which gives each life worth and wonder.

BSA: fearfully (“with a sense of awe and reverence”): The word carries holy awe, as if the maker’s work deserves reverence. wonderfully (“in a distinctive and marvelous way”): God’s making of each person is set apart and special, not ordinary.

Hebrew: נִפְלֵיתִי (niphleyti, H6395) — “I am set apart, made marvelous.” The word comes from a root used for God’s wonders and means something set apart and extraordinary. David sees himself as one of God’s wonders.

Psalms 139:15

David’s body was not hidden from God even while it was forming out of sight. The phrase about the depths of the earth is a poetic way to speak of the hidden, secret place of the womb. God saw what no human eye could.

BSA: woven together (“curiously wrought or intricately put together”): The word suggests fine embroidery of many colors, showing the care in each detail.

Hebrew: רֻקַּמְתִּי (ruqqamti, H7551) — “I was embroidered.” This word describes colored needlework. The body is pictured as a delicate piece of art, patiently stitched by God.

Psalms 139:16

God’s eyes saw David before he had a form, and his days were written down before any of them began. David is not saying life is without choices. He is saying that God’s care and purpose reach before his first day.

BSA: unformed body (“embryo, a wrapped up mass”): The Hebrew word suggests something folded up and shapeless, yet already seen by God. ordained (“planned, purposed”): His days were not random but held within God’s purpose.

See also: Ephesians 2:10; Job 14:5.

Psalms 139:17

God’s thoughts toward David are dear to him. Knowing that the Lord thinks of him, plans for him and cares for him is a treasure beyond counting. The sum of God’s thoughts is too large to measure.

BSA: precious (“valuable, dear”): God’s thoughts are not only great but prized, like something costly and loved.

See also: Isaiah 55:8-9.

Psalms 139:18

If David tried to count God’s thoughts, they would be more than the grains of sand. Even when he wakes from sleep, perhaps worn out from the attempt, he finds God still with him. God’s care does not stop when David’s mind does.

BSA: grains of sand (“like the particles of the desert”): The picture is of a sea of sand stretching beyond all counting.

Psalms 139:19-20

The mood changes sharply. After praising God’s nearness, David cries out against violent men who live as God’s enemies. They use God’s name falsely, speaking of Him with deceit. David wants them removed so that he is free of their company.

BSA: deceitfully (“with evil designs, wickedly”): Their talk about God hides wicked purposes behind religious words. name (“reputation, character”): To misuse God’s name is to misrepresent who He is.

See also: Exodus 20:7.

Psalms 139:21-22

David says he sides with God completely. His hatred is not personal spite but loyalty: he cannot be neutral toward those who set themselves against the Lord. Christians read this alongside Jesus’ call to love enemies, and they pray for such people’s repentance, not their ruin.

BSA: detest (“am grieved with, loathe”): The word includes grief, so David is pained by their rebellion and not simply angry.

See also: Matthew 5:44; Psalm 97:10.

Psalms 139:23

David now turns the searching on himself. Having spoken of others’ wickedness, he asks God to look into his own heart. He is not afraid of that, and he even invites it, because only God can see his hidden worries and motives.

BSA: concerns (“anxious thoughts, disquieting reflections”): David asks God to know even the restless worries that trouble his mind. test (“prove, try”): The word is used of testing metal to show whether it is pure.

See also: Psalm 26:2.

Psalms 139:24

David asks God to point out anything in him that is wrong or harmful, then lead him on the path that lasts forever. The psalm ends where it began, with God’s knowledge, but now it is welcomed as the way to be changed and guided.

BSA: offensive (“wicked, grievous, sorrowful”): The way David fears is one that grieves God and brings pain to himself. everlasting (“forever, always, eternal”): The path God leads him on is lasting and leads to life with God.

See also: Psalm 25:4-5.