The psalmist is very aware of the close, careful dealings of The Shepherd. Never alone, the psalmist draws upon this deep truth to carry him through all things.
The revelation about the depth of God’s love sustains him through every struggle and question. The struggles will cause him to come face to face with himself and God in his journey. Draw near and see if this could also be your story. Let’s go together and see.
Psalm 139:1-2 Lord, you have searched and known me, You know my sitting down and my rising up; you understand my thought afar off.
God is so familiar with our ways, down to the most detailed things. He knows the moment you sit and the moment you rise.
He searches us. He comprehends our thoughts and knows us better than anyone else. To be known by God is to be loved by him and experience the reality of his constant love.
Psalm 139:3-4 You comprehend my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue, but behold,
O Lord You know it altogether.
God knows all of our ways and every word that comes out of our mouths.
Psalm 139:5-6- You have hedged me behind and before and laid your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is high I cannot attain it.
God divinely protects and preserves us, this is humbling. His awesome love and hand upon us is hard to grasp, yet he loves us this way and we cannot understand how deep this love is towards us.
Psalm 139:7-8 Where can I go from your Spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence? If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, you are there.
In our lives, God himself pursues us. When we are in the pit due to our own choices, He is there. When we are on the mountaintop likewise, He is there. When we are faithless He is faithful.
Psalm 139:9-12 If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, Even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me. If I say, “Surely the darkness shall fall on me,” Even the night shall be light about me; Indeed the darkness shall not hide from you, but the night shines as the day; The darkness and the light are both alike to you.
This confidence comes out of a heart that knows God, knowing that in all things God himself is in control. There is nothing too difficult for God, even the days our faith seems shaky or non-existent. He is able. Trust him.
Psalm 139:13-14 For you formed my inward parts; you covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise you for I am wonderfully and fearfully made; Marvelous are your works, and that my soul knows very well.
God has placed within us the unique ability to be ourselves., unlike anyone else. The gifts and talents we possess are deposits of himself within us.
The psalmist acknowledges, the good things that are within him as “Marvelous”. What if we all just did that? Not putting ourselves down or comparing ourselves to others but simply said, “Marvelous.” Our self-image would be healthier and we would be honoring God. Being thankful for how He made us. Unique. Quirky. Creative. Administrative. However you are is a reflection of his glory.
Psalm 139:15-16 My frame was not hidden from you, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in your book they were all written, the days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them.
God saw all of it. Every circumstance that brought you into existence. He was right there with you, yes, even there.
If you were brought forth from broken, painful circumstances, all your days were seen and known by God.
He wasn’t the author of that pain but He is the author and finisher of your life. You were never alone in those painful moments; God himself began to write out the very script of your life and all of your days. He never left you but entered into it with you.
Psalm 139:17-18 How precious are your thoughts to me O God! How great is the sum of them! If I could count them, they would be more in number than the sand; when I awake, I am still with you.
How comforting are thoughts that come from The Lord. They strengthen and sustain us at all times. They are the collected thoughts of his love towards us. How do you number grains of sand? You can’t, neither can you capture the capacity of an enormous love like the love of God.
Psalm 139:19-20 Oh, that you would slay the wicked, O God! Depart from me bloodthirsty men. For they speak against you wickedly; Your enemies take your name in vain.
No mincing words here. The enemies of God taunt believers, they show no honor to God. Slay them Father.
Psalm 139:21-22 Do I not hate them O Lord, that hate you? And do I not loathe those who rise up against you? I hate them with a perfect hatred; I count them my enemies.
May our love for God run so deep that we cannot stand to be in the presence of the enemies of our God. That our devotion and sincere love for him would be so strong that we would be immovable.
Psalm 139:23-24 Search me, O God and know my heart; Try me and know my anxieties; and see if there is any wicked in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
Search us God with a fine tooth comb. Trials have caused anxieties to be revealed in me. My fears have surfaced. Temptations to hide “from you” instead of “in you” present themselves to me. Purge the things in me that are offensive to you. Anything undesirable must bow to The Lordship of Christ. He is the object of my desire and his way is full of life and is the everlasting path.