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!
You (B)know when I sit down and when I rise up;
    you (C)discern my thoughts from afar.
You search out my path and my lying down
    and are acquainted with all my ways.
Even before a word is on my tongue,
    behold, O Lord, (D)you know it altogether.
You (E)hem me in, behind and before,
    and (F)lay your hand upon me.
(G)Such knowledge is (H)too wonderful for me;
    it is high; I cannot attain it.

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13 For you (A)formed my inward parts;
    you (B)knitted me together in my mother's womb.
14 I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.[a]
(C)Wonderful are your works;
    my soul knows it very well.
15 (D)My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
    intricately woven in (E)the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your (F)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 (G)thoughts, O God!
    How vast is the sum of them!
18 (H)If I would count them, they are more than (I)the sand.
    I awake, and I am still with you.

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 139:14 Or for I am fearfully set apart

Greeting

Paul, (A)a prisoner for Christ Jesus, and (B)Timothy our brother,

To Philemon our beloved fellow worker and Apphia our sister and (C)Archippus our (D)fellow soldier, and (E)the church in your house:

(F)Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Philemon's Love and Faith

(G)I thank my God always when I remember you in my prayers, because I (H)hear of your love and (I)of the faith that you have toward the Lord Jesus and for all the saints, and I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full (J)knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ.[a] For I have derived much joy and (K)comfort from your love, my brother, because the hearts of the saints (L)have been refreshed through you.

Paul's Plea for Onesimus

Accordingly, (M)though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do (N)what is required, yet for love's sake I prefer to appeal to you—I, Paul, an old man and now (O)a prisoner also for Christ Jesus— 10 I appeal to you for (P)my child, (Q)Onesimus,[b] (R)whose father I became in my imprisonment. 11 (Formerly he was useless to you, but now he is indeed useful to you and to me.) 12 I am sending him back to you, sending my very heart. 13 I would have been glad to keep him with me, in order that he might serve me (S)on your behalf (T)during my imprisonment for the gospel, 14 but I preferred to do nothing without your consent in order that your goodness might not be (U)by compulsion but of your own accord. 15 For this perhaps is why (V)he was parted from you for a while, that you might have him back forever, 16 (W)no longer as a bondservant[c] but more than a bondservant, as (X)a beloved brother—especially to me, but how much more to you, (Y)both in the flesh and in the Lord.

17 So if you consider me (Z)your partner, receive him as you would receive me. 18 If he has wronged you at all, or owes you anything, charge that to my account. 19 (AA)I, Paul, write this with my own hand: I will repay it—to say nothing of your owing me even your own self. 20 Yes, brother, I want some benefit from you in the Lord. (AB)Refresh my heart in Christ.

21 (AC)Confident of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I say. 22 At the same time, prepare a guest room for me, for (AD)I am hoping that (AE)through your prayers (AF)I will be graciously given to you.

Final Greetings

23 (AG)Epaphras, my (AH)fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends greetings to you, 24 and so do (AI)Mark, (AJ)Aristarchus, (AK)Demas, and (AL)Luke, my fellow workers.

25 (AM)The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.

Footnotes

  1. Philemon 1:6 Or for Christ's service
  2. Philemon 1:10 Onesimus means useful (see verse 11) or beneficial (see verse 20)
  3. Philemon 1:16 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface; twice in this verse

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