Psalms of David - Modern Translation - Psalm 139

Lord, You have searched me and known me.

You know when I sit and when I rise;
You understand my thoughts from afar.

You observe my journey and my rest;
You are familiar with all my ways.

Before a word is on my tongue,
You, Lord, know it completely.

You go before me and behind me,
and You lay Your hand upon me.

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too high for me to reach.

Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Where can I flee from Your presence?

If I ascend to the heavens, You are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, You are there.

If I rise on the wings of the morning
and settle at the farthest horizon,
even there Your hand will guide me,
Your right hand will hold me fast.

If I say, “Surely the darkness will cover me,
and the light around me will be night,”
even the darkness is not dark to You;
the night shines like the day,
for darkness is as light to You.

For You formed my innermost being;
You knit me together in my mother’s womb.

I praise You, for I am wonderfully made;
Your works are marvelous—
I know this full well.

My frame was not hidden from You
when I was made in secret,
woven together in the depths of the earth.

Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all my days were written in Your book
before a single one came to be.

How precious to me are Your thoughts, O God!
How vast is their sum!

Were I to count them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand;
when I awake, I am still with You.

O Lord, if only all that is wicked
would be removed from the earth!

They speak against You with malice;
they misuse Your name with dishonor.

Do I not cherish You, Lord, above all things?
Do I not grieve for what opposes You?

I hold fast to what is good,
and I turn from all that brings harm.

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my thoughts.

See if there is any way in me that leads to sorrow,
and guide me in the way everlasting.