Does the thought of someone knowing everything there is about you, and always being with you something that you don’t want to hear or know about, or does it bring you peace? Today’s psalm is one of several favorites that I have from the Book of Psalms, and one that should bring comfort and peace to believers, but is also one that might bring discomfort to those who do not have or want God in their lives. Let’s take a look at this beautiful psalm of David, where we see God’s omniscience, omnipresence, omnipotence, and His righteous judgment.
Psalm 139 can be broken up into about five segments, each one highlighting a different aspect of God. The first segment, in verses 1-6, shows us God’s omniscience. He knows everything about each one of us completely. He knows our actions, our thoughts, the motives behind everything we do, the words we speak, and even our unspoken intentions. God knows us better than we know ourselves. When David says that God knows our thoughts “afar off” (vs. 2), it means that He knows our thoughts before they even form. He knows every word we will speak before it is even spoken (vs. 4). God surrounds us with His protective presence.
His omniscience, His knowledge of us, is absolute (Hebrews 4:13). This knowledge should be comforting to all those who have put their trust in Jesus. Knowing that God knows everything about us should bring the believer peace, as He understands us when others don’t. However, this can be terrifying to the unrepentant sinner. We cannot hide anything from God. Knowing that, we should walk in honesty and have a quick confession when we fall into sin.
The second segment shows us God’s omnipresence He is with us everywhere we go (vs. 7-12). There is no escaping from God’s presence. There is nowhere we can hide from Him. He is everywhere (Jeremiah 23:23-24). The highest place on earth is Mt. Everest at 29,032’. The deepest spot in the ocean is the Mariana Trench at 36,200’. The remote island on earth is Tristan da Cunha in the South Atlantic Ocean, 1,750 miles from South Africa and over 2,000 miles from South America. Yet if we went to any of these places, God would be there with us. Even in the deepest darkness we cannot hide from Him (vs. 11-12). We cannot run away from God, as Jonah found out. This should bring comfort to the Christian, knowing that God is with us in all of our trials. Whenever we feel lonely or we feel afraid, we can know that He is there. We can also trust that God is with our loved ones when we are apart.
We next look at the third segment, which shows God’s creative power, and how He made each of us with a purpose (vs. 13-16). God formed every part of us - body, soul, and personality. He created each of us unique, with distinct fingerprints, voice patterns, retinal prints, and DNA. No one has or ever will be exactly like another. He knows the number of hairs on our head (Matthew 10:29-30), and our name is engraved on the palm of His hand (Isaiah 49:16). We are “fearfully and wonderfully made (vs. 14).
This passage is foundational for the sanctity of life. Human life begins in the womb and is sacred because God is the Creator. It is not just a blob of cells, but is human life that God knit or wove together as delicate and intentional craftsmanship. He ordained our days before we lived a single one (vs. 16). Our life has purpose because God designed it, and we can trust Him with our future.
Next we see God’s righteous judgment, and how He opposes the wicked (vs. 17-22). A believer in the Lord Jesus should always align themselves with God’s holiness, and also oppose what He opposes. David expressed his righteous indignation towards those who hate God. This is not personal vengeance. Instead, it is loyalty to God’s holiness. Hatred of evil is part of loving God (Romans 12:9). Christians should guard their hearts from compromise with wickedness.
The final segment shows us God’s sanctifying work (vs. 23-24). The psalm ends where it began - with God searching the heart. David wants God to expose any sin in his life and to lead him in holiness, on the path of obedience and eternal life. We should regularly ask God to reveal any hidden sin we might have. His goal is not condemnation but transformation.
As we close this beautiful psalm, we see that God knows us perfectly, is with us constantly, and who made us intentionally. We also see that God judges wickedness righteously and when we come to Him, He will sanctify us lovingly. Let this knowledge be a comfort and a blessing to you today.
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