Psalm 139
King James Version
139 O lord, thou hast searched me, and known me.
2 Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.
3 Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
4 For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O Lord, thou knowest it altogether.
5 Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.
7 Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
8 If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.
9 If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;
10 Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.
11 If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me.
12 Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.
13 For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb.
14 I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.
15 My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
16 Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them.
17 How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!
18 If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee.
19 Surely thou wilt slay the wicked, O God: depart from me therefore, ye bloody men.
20 For they speak against thee wickedly, and thine enemies take thy name in vain.
21 Do not I hate them, O Lord, that hate thee? and am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee?
22 I hate them with perfect hatred: I count them mine enemies.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
Psalm 139
Contemporary English Version
(A psalm by David for the music leader.)
The Lord Is Always Near
1 You have looked deep
into my heart, Lord,
and you know all about me.
2 You know when I am resting
or when I am working,
and from heaven
you discover my thoughts.
3 You notice everything I do
and everywhere I go.
4 Before I even speak a word,
you know what I will say,
5 and with your powerful arm
you protect me
from every side.
6 I can't understand all of this!
Such wonderful knowledge
is far above me.
7 Where could I go to escape
from your Spirit
or from your sight?
8 If I were to climb up
to the highest heavens,
you would be there.
If I were to dig down
to the world of the dead
you would also be there.
9 Suppose I had wings
like the dawning day
and flew across the ocean.
10 Even then your powerful arm
would guide and protect me.
11 Or suppose I said, “I'll hide
in the dark until night comes
to cover me over.”
12 But you see in the dark
because daylight and dark
are all the same to you.
13 You are the one
who put me together
inside my mother's body,
14 and I praise you because of
the wonderful way
you created me.
Everything you do is marvelous!
Of this I have no doubt.
15 Nothing about me
is hidden from you!
I was secretly woven together
out of human sight,
16 but with your own eyes you saw
my body being formed.
Even before I was born,
you had written in your book
everything about me.
17 (A) Your thoughts are far beyond
my understanding,
much more than I
could ever imagine.
18 I try to count your thoughts,
but they outnumber the grains
of sand on the beach.
And when I awake,
I will find you nearby.
19 How I wish that you would kill
all cruel and heartless people
and protect me from them!
20 They are always rebelling
and speaking evil of you.[a]
21 You know I hate anyone
who hates you, Lord,
and refuses to obey.
22 They are my enemies too,
and I truly hate them.
23 Look deep into my heart, God,
and find out everything
I am thinking.
24 Don't let me follow evil ways,
but lead me in the way
that time has proven true.
Footnotes
- 139.20 you: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 20.
Psalm 139
New King James Version
God’s Perfect Knowledge of Man
For the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.
139 O Lord, (A)You have searched me and known me.
2 (B)You know my sitting down and my rising up;
You (C)understand my thought afar off.
3 (D)You [a]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, (E)You know it altogether.
5 You have [b]hedged me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.
6 (F)Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is high, I cannot attain it.
7 (G)Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
8 (H)If I ascend into heaven, You are there;
(I)If I make my bed in [c]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 shall [d]fall on me,”
Even the night shall be light about me;
12 Indeed, (J)the darkness [e]shall not hide from You,
But the night shines as the day;
The darkness and the light are both alike to You.
13 For You formed my inward parts;
You [f]covered me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will praise You, for [g]I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Marvelous are Your works,
And that my soul knows very well.
15 (K)My [h]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.
17 (L)How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How great is the sum of them!
18 If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand;
When I awake, I am still with You.
19 Oh, that You would (M)slay the wicked, O God!
(N)Depart from me, therefore, you [i]bloodthirsty men.
20 For they (O)speak against You wickedly;
[j]Your enemies take Your name in vain.
21 (P)Do I not hate them, O Lord, who hate You?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against You?
22 I hate them with [k]perfect hatred;
I count them my enemies.
23 (Q)Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me, and know my anxieties;
24 And see if there is any wicked way in me,
And (R)lead me in the way everlasting.
Footnotes
- Psalm 139:3 Lit. winnow
- Psalm 139:5 enclosed
- Psalm 139:8 Or Sheol
- Psalm 139:11 Vg., Symmachus cover
- Psalm 139:12 Lit. is not dark
- Psalm 139:13 wove
- Psalm 139:14 So with MT, Tg.; LXX, Syr., Vg. You are fearfully wonderful
- Psalm 139:15 Lit. bones were
- Psalm 139:19 Lit. men of bloodshed
- Psalm 139:20 LXX, Vg. They take Your cities in vain
- Psalm 139:22 complete
Psalm 139
English Standard Version
Search Me, O God, and Know My Heart
To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.
139 O Lord, you have (A)searched me and known me!
2 You (B)know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you (C)discern my thoughts from afar.
3 You search out my path and my lying down
and are acquainted with all my ways.
4 Even before a word is on my tongue,
behold, O Lord, (D)you know it altogether.
5 You (E)hem me in, behind and before,
and (F)lay your hand upon me.
6 (G)Such knowledge is (H)too wonderful for me;
it is high; I cannot attain it.
7 (I)Where shall I go from your Spirit?
Or where (J)shall I flee from your presence?
8 (K)If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
(L)If I make my bed in Sheol, 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 (M)lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me.
11 If I say, (N)“Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and the light about me be night,”
12 (O)even the darkness is not dark to you;
the night is bright as the day,
for darkness is as light with you.
13 For you (P)formed my inward parts;
you (Q)knitted me together in my mother's womb.
14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.[a]
(R)Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
15 (S)My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in (T)the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your (U)book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.
17 How precious to me are your (V)thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
18 (W)If I would count them, they are more than (X)the sand.
I awake, and I am still with you.
19 Oh that you would (Y)slay the wicked, O God!
O (Z)men of blood, (AA)depart from me!
20 They (AB)speak against you with malicious intent;
your enemies (AC)take your name in vain.[b]
21 (AD)Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord?
And do I not (AE)loathe those who (AF)rise up against you?
22 I hate them with complete hatred;
I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart!
(AG)Try me and know my thoughts![c]
24 And see if there be any grievous way in me,
and (AH)lead me in (AI)the way everlasting![d]
Footnotes
- Psalm 139:14 Or for I am fearfully set apart
- Psalm 139:20 Hebrew lacks your name
- Psalm 139:23 Or cares
- Psalm 139:24 Or in the ancient way (compare Jeremiah 6:16)
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
