Psalm 139

God Knows Everything

1 Lord, you have examined me and know all about me.

2 You know when I sit down and when I get up. You know my thoughts before I think them.

3 You know where I go and where I lie down. You know everything I do.

4 Lord, even before I say a word, you already know it.

5 You are all around me—in front and in back— and have put your hand on me.

6 Your knowledge is amazing to me; it is more than I can understand.

7 Where can I go to get away from your Spirit? Where can I run from you?

8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there. If I lie down in the grave, you are there.

9 If I rise with the sun in the east and settle in the west beyond the sea,

10 even there you would guide me. With your right hand you would hold me.

11 I could say, “The darkness will hide me. Let the light around me turn into night.”

12 But even the darkness is not dark to you. The night is as light as the day; darkness and light are the same to you.

13 You made my whole being; you formed me in my mother’s body.

14 I praise you because you made me in an amazing and wonderful way. What you have done is wonderful. I know this very well.

15 You saw my bones being formed as I took shape in my mother’s body.
When I was put together there,

16 you saw my body as it was formed.
All the days planned for me were written in your book before I was one day old.

17 God, your thoughts are precious to me. They are so many!

18 If I could count them, they would be more than all the grains of sand.
When I wake up, I am still with you.

19 God, I wish you would kill the wicked! Get away from me, you murderers!

20 They say evil things about you. Your enemies use your name thoughtlessly.

21 Lord, I hate those who hate you; I hate those who rise up against you.

22 I feel only hate for them; they are my enemies.

23 God, examine me and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any bad thing in me. Lead me on the road to everlasting life.

Psalm 139

For the music director, a psalm of David.

1 O Lord, you examine me and know.

2 You know when I sit down and when I get up;
even from far away you understand my motives.

3 You carefully observe me when I travel or when I lie down to rest;
you are aware of everything I do.

4 Certainly my tongue does not frame a word
without you, O Lord, being thoroughly aware of it.

5 You squeeze me in from behind and in front;
you place your hand on me.

6 Your knowledge is beyond my comprehension;
it is so far beyond me, I am unable to fathom it.

7 Where can I go to escape your spirit?
Where can I flee to escape your presence?

8 If I were to ascend to heaven, you would be there.
If I were to sprawl out in Sheol, there you would be.

9 If I were to fly away on the wings of the dawn,
and settle down on the other side of the sea,

10 even there your hand would guide me,
your right hand would grab hold of me.

11 If I were to say, “Certainly the darkness will cover me,
and the light will turn to night all around me,”

12 even the darkness is not too dark for you to see,
and the night is as bright as day;
darkness and light are the same to you.

13 Certainly you made my mind and heart;
you wove me together in my mother’s womb.

14 I will give you thanks because your deeds are awesome and amazing.
You knew me thoroughly;

15 my bones were not hidden from you,
when I was made in secret
and sewed together in the depths of the earth.

16 Your eyes saw me when I was inside the womb.
All the days ordained for me
were recorded in your scroll
before one of them came into existence.

17 How difficult it is for me to fathom your thoughts about me, O God!
How vast is their sum total!

18 If I tried to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand.
Even if I finished counting them,
I would still have to contend with you.

19 If only you would kill the wicked, O God!
Get away from me, you violent men!

20 They rebel against you and act deceitfully;
your enemies lie.

21 O Lord, do I not hate those who hate you,
and despise those who oppose you?

22 I absolutely hate them,
they have become my enemies!

23 Examine me, and probe my thoughts!
Test me, and know my concerns!

24 See if there is any idolatrous tendency in me,
and lead me in the reliable ancient path!