Psalms 139
139
The All-knowing and Ever-present God
1For the leader. A psalm of David.
I
Lord, you have probed me, you know me:
2you know when I sit and stand;#When I sit and stand: in all my physical movement.#2 Kgs 19:27; Jb 12:3.
you understand my thoughts from afar.
3You sift through my travels and my rest;
with all my ways you are familiar.
4Even before a word is on my tongue,
Lord, you know it all.
5Behind and before you encircle me
and rest your hand upon me.
6Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
far too lofty for me to reach.#Ps 131:1.
7Where can I go from your spirit?
From your presence, where can I flee?
8If I ascend to the heavens, you are there;
if I lie down in Sheol, there you are.#Jb 23:8–9; Jer 23:23–24.
9If I take the wings of dawn#Take the wings of dawn: go to the extremities of the east. Beyond the sea: uttermost bounds of the west; the sea is the Mediterranean.
and dwell beyond the sea,#Take the wings of dawn: go to the extremities of the east. Beyond the sea: uttermost bounds of the west; the sea is the Mediterranean.
10Even there your hand guides me,
your right hand holds me fast.
11If I say, “Surely darkness shall hide me,
and night shall be my light”#Night shall be my light: night to me is what day is to others.—
12Darkness is not dark for you,
and night shines as the day.
Darkness and light are but one.#Jb 12:22.
II
13You formed my inmost being;
you knit me in my mother’s womb.#Wis 7:1; Eccl 11:5; Jb 1:21.
14I praise you, because I am wonderfully made;
wonderful are your works!
My very self you know.
15My bones are not hidden from you,
When I was being made in secret,
fashioned in the depths of the earth.#The depths of the earth: figurative language for the womb, stressing the hidden and mysterious operations that occur there.
16Your eyes saw me unformed;
in your book all are written down;#Mal 3:16.
my days were shaped, before one came to be.
III
17How precious to me are your designs, O God;
how vast the sum of them!
18Were I to count them, they would outnumber the sands;
when I complete them, still you are with me.#Jb 11:7.
19When you would destroy the wicked, O God,
the bloodthirsty depart from me!#Jb 21:14.
20Your foes who conspire a plot against you
are exalted in vain.
IV
21Do I not hate, Lord, those who hate you?
Those who rise against you, do I not loathe?#Ps 119:158.
22With fierce hatred I hate them,
enemies I count as my own.
23Probe me, God, know my heart;
try me, know my thoughts.#Ps 17:3; 26:2.
24See if there is a wicked path in me;
lead me along an ancient path.#Lead me along an ancient path: the manner of living of our ancestors, who were faithful to God’s will, cf. Jer 6:16.
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Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc
Psalms 139
139
God's Complete Knowledge and Care#Ps 139 Hebrew title: A psalm by David.
1 LORD, you have examined me and you know me.
2You know everything I do;
from far away you understand all my thoughts.
3You see me, whether I am working or resting;
you know all my actions.
4Even before I speak,
you already know what I will say.
5You are all round me on every side;
you protect me with your power.
6Your knowledge of me is too deep;
it is beyond my understanding.
7Where could I go to escape from you?
Where could I get away from your presence?
8If I went up to heaven, you would be there;
if I lay down in the world of the dead, you would be there.
9If I flew away beyond the east
or lived in the farthest place in the west,
10you would be there to lead me,
you would be there to help me.
11I could ask the darkness to hide me
or the light round me to turn into night,
12but even darkness is not dark for you,
and the night is as bright as the day.
Darkness and light are the same to you.
13You created every part of me;
you put me together in my mother's womb.
14I praise you because you are to be feared;
all you do is strange and wonderful.
I know it with all my heart.
15When my bones were being formed,
carefully put together in my mother's womb,
when I was growing there in secret,
you knew that I was there —
16you saw me before I was born.
The days allotted to me
had all been recorded in your book,
before any of them ever began.
17O God, how difficult I find your thoughts;#139.17 how difficult I find your thoughts; or how precious are your thoughts to me.
how many of them there are!
18If I counted them, they would be more than the grains of sand.
When I awake, I am still with you.
19O God, how I wish you would kill the wicked!
How I wish violent people would leave me alone!
20They say wicked things about you;
they speak evil things against your name.#139.20 Probable text they speak… name; Hebrew unclear.
21O LORD, how I hate those who hate you!
How I despise those who rebel against you!
22I hate them with a total hatred;
I regard them as my enemies.
23Examine me, O God, and know my mind;
test me, and discover my thoughts.
24Find out if there is any evil in me
and guide me in the everlasting way.#139.24 the everlasting way; or the ways of my ancestors.
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.