Skip to main content
Psalmlog Logo

Psalm 139

Psalm 139 moves from wonder at God’s complete knowledge to a plea for that same scrutiny and guidance.

David addresses God as the one who knows his thoughts before he speaks and sees him wherever he goes. The heading identifies this as his psalm, though no specific occasion is given. He moves from wonder at God’s knowledge and presence to praise for being formed in the womb. Then the tone sharpens: he calls for judgment on violent enemies of God. He closes by asking God to search his own heart and lead him.

feeling distant from Godguilt and confessionpraise and worship
Read
1For the Chief Musician. A Psalm by David. LORD, you have searched me, and you know me.
2You know my sitting down and my rising up. You perceive my thoughts from afar.
3You search out my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways.
4For there is not a word on my tongue, but behold, LORD, you know it altogether.
5You hem me in behind and before. You laid your hand on me.
6This knowledge is beyond me. It’s lofty. I can’t attain it.
7Where could I go from your Spirit? Or where could I flee from your presence?
8If I ascend up into heaven, you are there. If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, you are there!
9If I take the wings of the dawn, and settle in the uttermost parts of the sea,
10even there your hand will lead me, and your right hand will hold me.
11If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me. The light around me will be night,”
12even the darkness doesn’t hide from you, but the night shines as the day. The darkness is like light to you.
13For you formed my inmost being. You knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14I will give thanks to you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful. My soul knows that very well.
15My frame wasn’t hidden from you, when I was made in secret, woven together in the depths of the earth.
16Your eyes saw my body. In your book they were all written, the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there were none of them.
17How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is their sum!
18If I would count them, they are more in number than the sand. When I wake up, I am still with you.
19If only you, God, would kill the wicked. Get away from me, you bloodthirsty men!
20For they speak against you wickedly. Your enemies take your name in vain.
21LORD, don’t I hate those who hate you? Am I not grieved with those who rise up against you?
23Search me, God, and know my heart. Try me, and know my thoughts.
24See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way.
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected. Tap a number for its page.
Key verses
Psalm 139:1The opening establishes God’s searching knowledge of David, which becomes the basis of the closing prayer.
Psalm 139:2Ordinary movements and unspoken thoughts show the reach of God’s knowledge into every part of David’s life.
Psalm 139:23After declaring his hatred of God’s enemies, David asks God to examine his own heart and thoughts.
Where this chapter reaches

Jeremiah and Job share the themes of God knowing a person before birth and forming human life in the womb. Hebrews and Proverbs share Psalm 139’s emphasis on God seeing what human eyes cannot see and examining the heart.

Psalm 139's chapter linksAll strongest linksHover or tap a book
Notice

After reading the whole chapter

Which image of God’s presence in verses 7–12 most challenges your sense of being beyond his reach?

Write on this

How does David’s request to be searched shape your reading of his words about enemies?

Write on this

Questions people ask about Psalm 139

Who wrote Psalm 139?

The heading identifies Psalm 139 as a psalm by David and addresses it to the Chief Musician. The text gives no specific occasion for its composition. Its references to bloodthirsty enemies do not identify particular people or establish which event in David’s life lies behind the prayer.

What does “fearfully and wonderfully made” mean in Psalm 139?

The phrase expresses awe at God’s work in forming human life. Verses 13–16 describe God making David in the womb, seeing his hidden frame, and knowing his days before they began. The language praises the wonder of God’s craftsmanship; it makes no claim that a human body will be free from illness or disability.

Why does David say he hates God’s enemies in Psalm 139?

David describes these enemies as bloodthirsty people who speak against God and misuse his name. His hatred expresses his declared allegiance to God against those who oppose him. The psalm then turns toward David’s own heart: he asks God to expose any wicked way in him and lead him.

Read it. Now write it.

Start an entry on Psalm 139. Your words go beside the text, and you get one next step for the week.

Psalms · 150 chapters
123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445464748495051525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150
What the Bible says about doubt →What the Bible says about guilt →What the Bible says about worship →

Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).