Psalms 139
139
PSALM 139
Common Meter: 8,6,8,6
To the chief Musician,
A Psalm of David.
1O Lord, thou hast me search'd and known.
2Thou know'st my sitting down,
And rising up; yea, all my thoughts
afar to thee are known.
3My footsteps, and my lying down,
thou compassest always;
Thou also most entirely art
acquaint with all my ways.
4For in my tongue, before I speak,
not any word can be,
But altogether, lo, O Lord,
it is well known to thee.
5Behind, before, thou hast beset,
and laid on me thine hand.
6Such knowledge is too strange for me,
too high to understand.
7From thy Sp'rit whither shall I go?
or from thy presence fly?
8Ascend I heav'n, lo, thou art there;
there, if in hell I lie.
9Take I the morning wings, and dwell
in utmost parts of sea;
10Ev'n there, Lord, shall thy hand me lead,
thy right hand hold shall me.
11If I do say that darkness shall
me cover from thy sight,
Then surely shall the very night
about me be as light.
12Yea, darkness hideth not from thee,
but night doth shine as day:
To thee the darkness and the light
are both alike alway.
13For thou possessed hast my reins,
and thou hast cover'd me,
When I within my mother's womb
inclosed was by thee.
14Thee will I praise; for fearfully
and strangely made I am;
Thy works are marv'llous, and right well
my soul doth know the same.
15My substance was not hid from thee,
when as in secret I
Was made; and in earth's lowest parts
was wrought most curiously.
16Thine eyes my substance did behold,
yet being unperfect;
And in the volume of thy book
my members all were writ;
Which after in continuance
were fashion'd ev'ry one,
When as they yet all shapeless were,
and of them there was none.
17How precious also are thy thoughts,
O gracious God, to me!
And in their sum how passing great
and numberless they be!
18If I should count them, than the sand
they more in number be:
What time soever I awake,
I ever am with thee.
19Thou, Lord, wilt sure the wicked slay:
hence from me bloody men.
20Thy foes against thee loudly speak,
and take thy name in vain.
21Do not I hate all those, O Lord,
that hatred bear to thee?
With those that up against thee rise
can I but grieved be?
22With perfect hatred them I hate,
my foes I them do hold.
23Search me, O God, and know my heart,
try me, my thoughts unfold:
24And see if any wicked way
there be at all in me;
And in thine everlasting way
to me a leader be.
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Psalms 139: MP1650
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maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society
Psalms 139
139
To the director: A praise song of David.
1Lord, you have tested me,
so you know all about me.
2You know when I sit down and when I get up.
You know my thoughts from far away.
3You know where I go and where I lie down.
You know everything I do.
4Lord, you know what I want to say,
even before the words leave my mouth.
5You are all around me—in front of me and behind me.
I feel your hand on my shoulder.
6I am amazed at what you know;
it is too much for me to understand.
7Your Spirit is everywhere I go.
I cannot escape your presence.
8If I go up to heaven, you will be there.
If I go down to the place of death, you will be there.
9If I go east where the sun rises
or go to live in the west beyond the sea,
10even there you will take my hand and lead me.
Your strong right hand will protect me.
11Suppose I wanted to hide from you and said,
“Surely the darkness will hide me.
The day will change to night and cover me.”
12Even the darkness is not dark to you.
The night is as bright as the day.
Darkness and light are the same.
13You formed the way I think and feel.#139:13 the way I think and feel Literally, “my kidneys,” which were thought to be the center of emotions.
You put me together in my mother’s womb.
14I praise you because you made me in such a wonderful way.
I know how amazing that was!
15You could see my bones grow as my body took shape,
hidden in my mother’s womb.#139:15 mother’s womb Literally, “deepest parts of the earth,” meaning a place we know nothing about.
16You watched my body grow there.
In your book you wrote about all the days planned for me
before any of them had happened.
17Your thoughts are beyond my understanding.#139:17 beyond my understanding Or “precious to me.”
They cannot be measured!
18If I could count them, they would be more than all the grains of sand.
But when I finished, I would have just begun.#139:18 I … begun Or “I would still be with you.”
19You murderers, get away from me!
God, kill those wicked people—
20those who say bad things about you.
Your enemies use your name falsely.#139:20 Your enemies … falsely The Hebrew text here is hard to understand.
21Lord, I hate those who hate you.
I hate those who are against you.
22I hate them completely!
Your enemies are also my enemies.
23God, examine me and know my mind.
Test me and know all my worries.
24Make sure that I am not going the wrong way.#139:24 Make sure … way Or “See that I don’t worship idols.”
Lead me on the path that has always been right.#139:24 Lead me … right Or “Guide me on the ancient path.”
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