To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.
1O LORD, you have searched me and known me!
2You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.
3You search out my path and my lying down
and are acquainted with all my ways.
4Even before a word is on my tongue,
behold, O LORD, you know it altogether.
5You hem me in, behind and before,
and lay your hand upon me.
6Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is high; I cannot attain it.
7Where shall I go from your Spirit?
Or where shall I flee from your presence?
8If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
9If I take the wings of the morning
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
10even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me.
11If I say, "Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and the light about me be night,"
12even the darkness is not dark to you;
the night is bright as the day,
for darkness is as light with you.
13For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.
14I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
15My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
16Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written,
every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.
17How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
18If I would count them, they are more than the sand.
I awake, and I am still with you.
19Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God!
O men of blood, depart from me!
20They speak against you with malicious intent;
your enemies take your name in vain!
21Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against you?
22I hate them with complete hatred;
I count them my enemies.
23Search me, O God, and know my heart!
Try me and know my thoughts!
24And see if there be any grievous way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting!
This is one of my favorite psalms. A few summers ago, it felt like I couldn’t get away from it. The bible study I was in went over it, I attended a women’s event at a church I rarely went to and the woman spoke on it, the daily devotional I was using went through it… and the list goes on. I just couldn’t escape it! Because of that, my heart is very much tied to this psalm. There are parts in which my heart is filled with love for God and parts that I can feel it breaking because it seems too much or too good for me. I hope you can relate to the words David writes in this psalm!
- Verses 1-6: These verses talk a lot about God knowing everything, also known as God’s omniscience. Does the idea of God knowing everything about you give you peace, fear or both? It can be peaceful when we are having a difficult time in prayer or when we are down and can’t even find the words to explain it. There are also the times it can be fearful when we are living in sin or just trying to comprehend what it means that God is omniscient! Look at verse 6, how does David respond to the idea of God being all knowing (check out verse 7 if you don’t see it)?
- Verses 7-12: In these verses, David looks at the aspect of God being all present, or His omnipresence. In 7-10, David tells us that there is nowhere he can go away from the presence of God. Verses 11 and 12 show us how God sees things that we, literally, cannot see. Have you ever been in a place so truly dark that you cannot see anything? Think about that place and how different of an experience it would have been if you’d been able to see everything there as though it was completely illuminated. Does the idea of darkness seeming the same as light to God give you peace, fear or both? Why?
- Verses 13-18: One of the main themes in these verses is that God has ultimate power an authority, or that He is omnipotent. Starting in Genesis 1:1, we see that God creates the whole world from nothing- it doesn’t get more powerful than that! If you are ever struggling with self-worth, verses 13-16 speak to this. Look over these verses now. God was so intimately involved with making you from the beginning! Whether your parents had prayed for a child for years and you were the answer or if you were an “accident”, there are no accidents to God. How does that make you feel? How does that effect how you view yourself now? In verses 17 and 18, David ponders all of God’s thoughts toward him and says they are innumerable. God thinks about you. Constantly. You could not count His thoughts of you even if you tried. Let that sink in and encourage you!
- Verses 19-24: If the jump from verses 17 and 18 to 19 seems like your TV just switched channels from a sappy love story to a war movie, you aren’t alone. David has been pondering all of these amazing attributes of God but is struck by the reality of his situation. He’s being pursued by some people who are completely against God. Keep in mind when reading these verses that David was God’s anointed king. God’s enemies were David’s enemies. While we do not stand in the same position as David, there is an ever-present enemy in our lives in sin. Sin is serious business to God (read Genesis 3 if you doubt that). How do these verses affect the way you see sin? In 23 and 24 David asks God to search him and show him any sin in his life. This is a bold prayer but also very biblical. If you have trusted in Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, you have His Spirit that will convict you of any sin in your life. If you’re up for it, pray verses 23-24.