Psalms 139:1

God’s Perfect Knowledge of Man

For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.

1 O Lord, ^aYou have searched me and known me.

2 ^aYou know my sitting down and my rising up;
You ^bunderstand my thought afar off.

3 ^aYou¹ comprehend my path and my lying down,
And are acquainted with all my ways.

4 For there is not a word on my tongue,
But behold, O Lord, ^aYou know it altogether.

5 You have¹ hedged me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.

6 ^aSuch knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is high, I cannot attain it.

7 ^aWhere can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?

8 ^aIf I ascend into heaven, You are there;
^bIf I make my bed in¹ hell, behold, You are there.

9 If I take the wings of the morning,
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,

10 Even there Your hand shall lead me,
And Your right hand shall hold me.

11 If I say, “Surely the darkness shall¹ fall on me,”
Even the night shall be light about me;

12 Indeed, ^athe darkness shall not hide from You,
But the night shines as the day;
The darkness and the light are both alike to You.

13 For You¹ formed my inward parts;
You covered me in my mother’s womb.

14 I will praise You, for¹ I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well.

15 ^aMy¹ frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.
And in Your book they all were written,
The days fashioned for me,
When as yet there were none of them.

Commentaries:

Forerunner Commentary
What is the Forerunner Commentary?

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What Does Psalms 139:1 Mean?

God searches and knows through His Holy Spirit by which He remains omnipresent in all His power at every point in space and time. He sees and hears personally just as He saw and heard David, tracking all in creation without confinement. His presence connects directly to His Holy Spirit, as David noted in asking where one might go from Your Spirit or flee from Your presence.

Psalm 139:1-6

It is beyond our ability to understand how a Being could be at the center of His creation—and we know a little bit about the awesome size of His creation. We are able to see the earth and the billions of people on it. How does God keep track of all that? It is too great. It is too high. But He does it, we know, by His Spirit.

John W. Ritenbaugh
The Right Use of Power

Psalm 139:1-7

Omnipresence is an eternal attribute of God. He is omnipresent through His Holy Spirit, the same boundless power that provides for His omnipotence (Jeremiah 32:17; Zechariah 4:6).

David understood and made the connection between God's presence and His Holy Spirit. “Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me” (Psalm 51:11). Because God is everywhere, He sees and hears us—just as He saw and heard David—personally (John 2:24-25). He is always present in all places through His Spirit. God is never confined but is present in all His power at every point in space and time. David addressed this attribute directly when he asked: “Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence?” (Psalm 139:7).

Martin G. Collins
God's Non-Transmittable Attributes (Part Two): Omnipresence

**Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Psalms 139:1:**

1 John 5:14-15

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